How To Save The World 101
by StreamingViking
Summary: Fate/Grand Order Friend Insert co-Writer and Insert Passive Soul: Andrew Murphy didn't expect many things to happen in his life. Becoming a hero and being set on a quest to save mankind from Incineration hadn't been one of them. Contains M/M relationship, and minor crossovers.
1. Chapter 1 - Wizards are Kidnappers

This is a Friend Insert starring Passive_Soul from Space Battles in the Mobile Gach Game Fate/Grand Order. While does know of the fate franchise as he has seen UBW and a bit of Apocrypha, he knows nothing about the game's plot, nothing at all and he has forgotten finer details concerning the animes. So un like a normal one you can talk spoilers on as he does not have an account here.

 **Chapter 1:**

Andrew Murphy was looking through the mail when he noticed a letter addressed to him by the _Chaldea Security Organization._

Obviously curious, having never heard of such a thing, he opened the letter. He folded out the paper and began reading the first line.

" _Congratulation Mr. Murphy for entering our contest during your latest blood donation and we are happy to announce that you have won the grand prize."_

Andrew stared at the line, confused. He didn't remember entering any contest the last time he gave blood- or for that matter, the last time he donated his blood. Andrew continued reading curious as to what it was all about.

" _And such you have won a week-long stay at the Chaldea Security Organization Observatory SHEBA. Our men will pick you up on July 7, there is no refusal of this request."_

Andrew, now confused and honestly, a bit threatened by the letter looked over at the calendar to check today's date- July 7th. Desperately hoping it was a prank, he continued reading the letter. The only thing that was left on it was a symbol that looked like a moon surrounded crown of leaves, along with the name of the so-called organization written at the bottom of the page.

Andrew flipped over the paper, hoping there might be something there, only to find it blank.

Before he could do anything, he heard the sound of the doorbell ring. Andrew, now scared for his life, quickly grabbed his knife from his room, made sure he had his phone to call 911 once he thought he was safe and tried to sneak out the back door.

But when he did and opened the door he came face to face with a man dressed in a black uniform.

"Thought you would try this kid." The man said, and before Andrew had time to react he heard the words Sleep being spoken and his entire world went dark.

Xxx

Andrew felt the wakefulness of consciousness return to him as his eyes opened up to bright lamplight hitting them and instinctively closed them once again.

Andrew easily remembered what had happened and for just a moment thought that it had just been a bad dream. But when he tried to move his arms he found them not moving very much, and he heard the sound of two metal objects hitting each other.

Andrew, bewildered and afraid, looked around to try and figure out where he was. He figured he was handcuffed based on the position of his arms and how hard it was to move them. Andrew looked around where he was, and it looked to be a very spartan bedroom, that was painted white along with a few metal colored panels along the walls. And to the side, he could see a white desk at the corner where a door was. He only figured out it was a bedroom because he was lying on the bed. He tried to get up, only to find that he was seemingly cuffed to the legs of the bed. His head laying where his feet were supposed to be.

Andrew had never been in a situation like this before, and he was panicking. He had been kidnapped, knocked out, and was now chained to a bed in a sterile looking room with no idea where he was or how long he had been out. He felt like he wanted to scream.

But before he could scream or call for help the door in the middle of the wall he was looking at opened up, and a man stepped inside, not the one that had knocked him out.

Andrew looked up at the man in green. "Please, let me go." was all he could say, his frightened mind, robbing him of any thoughts more complex.

But all he got from the green top hat wearing man was a small laugh, more like a chuckle before he began to speak properly. "Sorry about the rough treatment kid, I hope our men weren't too scary, but we had to get you to Chaldea as fast as possible, the Director's order. But now that you are awake. You can get the explanation you deserve, also sorry about the cuffs we had to make sure you didn't run around the facility in a panic." The green man spoke with a voice filled with mirth to it as if he found the current situation like a big joke. One that only he understood.

Andrew looked up at the man, both more confused and more worried, though admittedly less panicked. "Wait, what? Who's the director? And why do they want me?" He looked at his wrists. "And can I get these off please?"

"Sure thing kid." The man spoke as he took the chair from the desk and over to where Andrew was laying. As he stopped, he took a key out of one of his pockets and unlocked the cuffs that were around his wrists.

Andrew sat up as the man sat down on the chair. He rubbed his wrists a little bit to get the blood flow back up to his hands and to not make them feel numb. "Thanks," he muttered.

"Don't thank me, kid, not yet anyway. Now, what do you wish to know first?" The man in green asked Andrew.

"What the hell is going on?" Andrew said, cutting to the chase. "And why do you want me, of all people?"

"Ah, an excellent first choice my boy. You see in this world there exists people with the capability to use magic- or Magecraft as it were, and you're one of the highest potentials of first generations we have detected in the modern age, putting even some of the older families to shame."

Andrew looked at the man before him incredulously. "So basically you're saying you kidnapped me because I'm a wizard." Now, he was even more worried. Magic? If the man was telling the truth that meant he might be able to use magic eventually, which was awesome, but at the same time the man and his organization could very well be crazy.

"Kidnapping is such a strong word to use Andrew, more like temporarily borrowing you. But I can see it in your eyes, 'magic how could something like that exists these people must be crazy.' So take a look at this. אֵשׁ" The man said and a second later a small ball of fire appeared in the man's hand before going out. "As you can see the Supernatural is very much real Andrew my dear boy."

Andrew stared at the spot where the flame had been above the man's hand. It was too round to have been a hidden flamethrower or something to fool him. Somehow, the man before him had actually used magic. "Holy shit," he said, dumbfounded. Magic. Magic was _real_. And according to the man before him, he had a high natural talent for it. He was mind boggled at the possibilities. "So, wait, what am I actually here for? Is this some kind of school or something?"

"Now that question is the crux of the situation, isn't it. First, there is a school in London along with Norway and Egypt for specific studies, mostly magecraft is taught internally in a family. And when first generation Magi like you are found is sent to one for basic learning of how to make mysteries. But as for why you're specifically here, Chaldea the Organization and whose base of operation your currently in are looking for Magi with Magic Circuits who are able to take up the role of a Master." The green man finished his current exposition dump.

"Wait, what? What are Magic Circuits? And Master of what?" Andrew asked, confused.

"Okay, basic information for beginner Magi. Magic Circuits are what allows Magi to channel Magical Energy, Prana to use Magecraft. Each Magi are born with a set number of circuits of various quality being able to only channel so much energy at a time. Yours are quite impressive for a First Generation Magus having 30 Magic Circuits of A-Rank quality. Now for the second question is a little bit more complex. Oh, it seems I've forgotten to introduce myself. My name is Lev Lainur, one of the head researchers here at Chaldea. Now for Chaldea itself, it is a security organization that is meant to ensure the survival of mankind, by having people like you, Andrew, to act as Masters to summon Heroic Spirits in the form Servants to ensure it." The now named Lev explained to him.

Andrew thought about Lev Lainur's words as he spoke. Apparently, he had good mana -or, Prana, he figured- capacity, which was why he had been kidnapped. "You didn't actually explain what being a Master actually means, though. What do you mean by 'Heroic Spirit'?"

Lev blinked for a few moments before he answered. "I'm sure I did, as I said Master's like you are to summon Heroic Spirits in the form of a Servant to command and defend humanity and the world from extinction. But what as for what a Heroic Spirit is they are Legends of the Past summoned from the Throne of Heroes. Think of it as an afterlife for the heroes of the past instead of being reincarnated like us ordinary humans; their Souls are Ascended to near Divinity as a reward for their deeds. A Servant is a small part, a copy of the hero if you will, meant to assist Masters like you when they answer the call to battle. Do you understand what I'm saying, its okay if you don't it is rather high-level stuff?" Lev finished speaking.

"So… you're saying that you kidnapped me so that I could summon some kind of demigod in order to protect humanity from extinction?" Andrew asked, trying to understand the situation.

"In a nutshell as you kids say nowadays, yes. But still, kidnapping is a rather strong word to use as you will be able to go home after you and your fellow Master have helped us resolve our current situation. We _would_ have recruited you the normal way after discovering you through that blood donation you did last month. But you see my dear SHEBA lense have seen that humanity is going to by the next new year." Lev explained to him.

Andrew thought about it for a moment before coming to a conclusion. "You know if you guys would have just asked I would have said yes." He said, still not quite over being taken from his home like that. "But, I guess since humanity is at risk I don't really have a choice if I want to keep living but to help, right?"

"That's the spirit, Andrew! Now come with me, and I'll get you situated with the others, along with getting you some appropriate clothes, you have been sleeping in those garbs for over a day." Lev said as he stood and held out a hand to him.

Andrew gratefully took the hand and got up, and was pleasantly surprised to find that his legs were more or less okay to use despite having been sleeping for more than 24 hours.

"Now follow me Andrew I'll show you the way to the showers." Lev began moving towards the door, and Andrew quickly followed behind, leaving the room and stepping out into a long hallway that was the same color as his room, but the obvious difference was that the left wall was entirely made out of glass which gave view to snowy mountaintops.

A blizzard was currently raging outside. Andrew looked out the window in awe. He had never been as high up as they appeared to be at the moment before. A thought occurred to him, and he vocalized it to the so far friendly Lev. "So, where is this place anyway?" He asked as they walked.

"Ah, that is a good question Andrew, but I'm afraid to even I don't know which country we're currently in. It's kind of an ongoing bet between us who work here of who can guess where we are. The only clue I can give you is that we're currently 8000 feet above sea level." Lev answered as they continued to walk down the empty corridor, currently absent of people.

Andrew had absolutely no idea where that meant they could be. As far as he knew, that could put them on any big enough mountain, so he simply filed away that information for later and continued following Lev with just a soft "Woah."

They walked for another minute before they came to a stop in front of another door with the stand blue logo on it. "The changing rooms and showers are here. Your locker is number 39. The code currently is 1234, but you can change it to what you want afterward. I'll be waiting for you. Afterwards, we'll be going to medical to get you a check up and open up your Magic Circuits for use." Lev said.

Andrew decided to go with the flow, responding with a just a nod before going into the room. It looked like a standard high school gym locker room with mercifully separated showers unlike what he was used to. One of them was occupied, but he just ignored them and used the shower furthest away from them.

Andrew went over to his locker and opened it to see if there were shampoo, body soap, and a towel. And to his luck there were along with a folded up uniform; he could see a part of it was white.

He quickly changed and went into one of the shower cabins and got washed, while he did so he heard the shower currently being used stopping.

Andrew paid it no mind and stopped when he was clean of sweat, and dirt.

Andrew left the shower cabin, towel around the waist and went back to his assigned locker.

And of course right next to his was the one he heard use the other shower. He was a boy around his age, with spiky black hair, and blue eyes. Currently wearing what was probably the official uniforms for Masters to walk around in.

"Hello?" The boy greeted in heavily accented English. "Are you a Master too?" He asked.

Andrew, slightly taken aback at talking to a stranger fresh out of the shower, fumbled over his words before replying with something coherent. "Y-yeah, I'm a Master I guess." He said, not really knowing what else to say.

"New, too are you? I'm in the same boat as you got here two days ago. My name is Fujimaru Ritsuka, or rather Ritsuka Fujimaru here I suppose."

"My name is Andrew Murphy, and I guess I got here yesterday." He said, figuring it polite to tell the other Master his name.

"Nice be acquainted with you Murphy-san, I shall be honored working with you. I wish to speak to you later, as I have other things to do." The overly polite boy finished speaking with a slight bow and left for the door to the hallway.

Andrew let out a sigh of relief as soon as Ritsuka left the room. This was not the best way of meeting someone new. He then proceeded to put on the uniform, which fit rather nicely, before going through the door himself to rejoin Lev.

"Good to see you're done Andrew, I guess you met Ritsuka in there didn't you." The green wearing magic user said.

"Y-yeah, we met," Andrew said, trying to push the meeting out of his mind.

"Good, he's one you're going to be working with for the foreseeable future. Now let's go meet the Doctor shall we?" Lev asked.

Andrew nodded and followed him down the hall. As he did, he remembered something. "Oh yeah, do you know what happened to my knife?" He asked, not remembering what had happened to it when he got knocked out.

"Ah, yes that and some of your casual clothes and other items have been collected by our agents and placed in your room- the closet is built into the wall. And before you ask, your family is okay they have just been hypnotized to think you left for a two-week cruise trip, you've won. So no need to worry about them, we even fabricated some evidence to show them your trip when you go back home." Lev said as they came to a stop in front of another door one that was identical to the one to his room. "And we are here." Lev walked up to the door and began knocking on it. "Hey, Romani wake up you lazy bum, your patient is here for his check-up!" Lev yelled as he hammered on the door. And a second later a voice responded.

"I'm awake, awake, Lev. No need to yell I wasn't even asleep I was talking with Vinci." The door opened up, and a man stood in the doorway.

Andrew gave the supposed doctor a look over, he was a man wearing a white and green colored lab coat. He had light, fluffy orange hair tied into a ponytail.

"Andrew, this is Romani Archaman, he's Chaldea's head doctor and the one that will take care of your health, as he is the only one that doesn't have a Master under his care yet," Lev said, with none of the mirth his tone held before. It seemed that he and Romani didn't get along very well.

"You don't have to sound so mean Professor Lev, now come inside Andrew, so I can give you a look over, and have Vinci open up your Circuits for use," Romani spoke with a soft voice but seemed to have whining set at a low setting to it.

Andrew, slightly confused, did as he was told but spoke as he did. "It's nice to meet you Doctor, but ah, what do you mean about 'opening' my circuits? And, if you don't mind me asking, who is Vinci?"

Romani was about to speak, but Lev cut him off before he could. "You see a Magi's Magic Circuits first needs to be opened or rather activated before they can be used to channel Prana through them. One can do it oneself, or have another do it. Vinci is going to do it as that way is going to be the fastest way to do it, to prevent you damaging yourself. I will say this Andrew Magecraft is dangerous if one is careless, and you can die doing it if you're not careful. As the saying goes to be a Magus is to walk with death. As for who Vinci is? Well, she is the first successful Servant summoned by Chaldea." Lev explained. "Now could we do this quickly the Director is starting her speech in two hours, and there is one thing we need to do before that."

Andrew absorbed the information, before moving over to the doctor with the oddly colored hair, and did as he was told.

Andrew followed the doctor into his room/lab/clinic, that was still the same color as his room and the hallway. But inside the sitting on one of the chairs was the woman he guessed to be Vinci.

"Andrew, meet Vinci," Romani said gesturing with his hand at the beautiful woman.

"Hello to you Andrew, I'm the Caster Class Servant Leonardo Da Vinci, but you can call me just Da Vinci or Vinci."

Andrew's brain short-circuited. "What." Was all he could say in response to the woman before him who introduced herself as _Leonardo da Vinci_ , one of the greatest inventors of all time, who he was pretty sure was not an (admittedly rather gorgeous) woman.

"Oh, I can see the face your making and the thoughts your having. _"Leonardo Da Vinci, a woman? Wasn't he supposed to be a man?"_ Am I correct in guessing that?" She said a playful smile on her lips.

Andrew just nodded dumbly, still trying to get his brain to process this information properly.

"And that is true, I was a man when I was alive, but when I was summoned as a Servant, I chose to appear as what I think is perfect beauty, my Mona Lisa." Da Vinci answered.

The actual check-up seemed pretty routine, as Romani took a small blood sample, checked for any diseases or illnesses he might have gained over the last month, etc. After being confirmed healthy and in working order, Andrew sat directly in front of Da Vinci trying to avert his eyes from her rather impressive bust, her hands firmly holding his.

"Now the next part is going the be a little bit, painful as opening Circuits for the first time can be a shock to the system. Like nerves, you never knew existed bursting with energy. I can say from it experience doesn't feel nice. But afterward, when you use them normally it's going to feel like having your hands on a radiator. Nice inventions you know, wish I had come up with them, same with the toaster- so much easily baked bread. Anyway, I'm going off topic. Now brace yourself." Da Vinci took out one of her hands from his and pressed it against his chest. "Percorsi aperti di energia!" Came what Andrew guessed was a magic chant like what Lev had spoken when he had summoned his fireball.

Andrew's curiosity only lasted for a second as pain struck his body like a lightning bolt; he saw green lines spread across his body, but a few seconds later the pain of seemingly putting a fork in a socket stopped, and the lines disappeared.

Andrew couldn't help but yell when it started, and he was very grateful when the pain stopped. "Why is it...that whenever someone says...something will only hurt a bit...it hurts like a bitch…" he said, out of breath from not having been doing much breathing during the procedure.

"Because of the Placebo Effect, because I said it would hurt less, I braced your body and mind for only small amounts of pain, and so were a bit more relaxed. Then if I had said it would hurt more, you would brace for a lot of pain and cause your body to lock and stress. And making the pain worse and causing some damage to your muscles if you had spasmed." Da Vinci tried to explain to Andrew like he were a child. "Now a quick healing spell to soothe your aches." Da Vinci said another chant and Andrew felt like his body had just gone through a soothing massage and not a supernatural electrocution. "Now try and activate your Magic Circuits yourself. You do so by focusing on an image in your mind of an action happening, and your Circuits being filled with Prana."

Andrew nodded and tried to do so. He pictured himself running. Not for any particular reason, just running for fun. Andrew saw the image of the foot hitting the asphalt, and he felt it like something had awoken within him, and he saw the image of thirty lines lighting up filled with energy to be used. He closed the Circuits quickly after, a sense of satisfaction filling his body. He might just be able to help these people save the world!

Xxx

 **Rection Theater:**

Me: Sending a picture of what Ritsuka looks like

Passive_Soul: That's a protagonist alright

Me: Sending a picture of Da Vinci

Passive_Soul: [Engage the Boner]


	2. Chapter 2 - Kouhai and She-Hulk

"I see that you managed to find an image to activate your Magic Circuits." Da Vinci said a smile still on her face.

"Yeah, I just thought about running and then…" Andrew thought about the feeling of activating his Magic Circuits- it was like nothing he'd ever experienced before. "The only word I can really use to describe it is, well, _magical._ "

"Hmm, well that is certainly an interesting response. Now your body is in fine condition, and you can activate your Circuits that means your done here for today Andrew. Professor Lev is waiting for you outside the door." Da Vinci said.

"Yeah, I'm glad we got it over in less than twenty minutes." Romani intruded on the conversation. "I don't want him to be mad for wasting his time." The Doctor complained.

"Well, thank you very much, Da Vinci." Andrew thanked the hero, finding that calling someone that was a bit odd, but he was trying to roll with it. "And you too Doctor Archaman."

"Your welcome kid, now move along." The doctor responded.

Andrew nodded and raised himself from his chair and left through the door which slid open as he approached it. On the outside, he saw Lainur leaning up against a wall, his green top hat over his face.

As the door closed behind Andrew the professor looked up, his eyes meeting Andrew's own. "Ah, you're already done? Good, we still have two more things we need to do before the first mission starts." He said.

Andrew's interest was piqued. "Mission?" He asked, hoping that meant he could learn some kind of magic soon.

"Yes, the mission that Chaldea is going to send you Masters on to correct the anomaly in the Human Order, and prevent the extinction of mankind, but first you have to go through the Sipritron Simulation so that you get a little experience in how Servants fight." Lainur exposited to Andrew.

"Human Order?" Andrew asked, curious. He could understand what the professor meant about the simulator, but he hadn't heard that term before.

"I can explain that, on the way to the Simulation room," Lainur said as he began walking. Andrew quickly followed, walking right next to him. Going past the windows that showed the seemingly endless snowstorm. "The Human Order is a catch-all term for human history and the current reality. You see before the Age of Man there was the Age of Gods, where divinity ruled over man, from the Greeks to the Mesopotamian Gods." The weight of the silver cross around Andrew's neck felt a bit heavier at Lev's words. "But as humanity grew larger and Science became more fact. The collective Will of Mankind began to overcome the Gods and banished them from our reality to another called the Reverse Side. The Human Order in simple is the reality that mankind created. Physics exist because humanity believes it so. Now it's a lot more complex, but this is as simple I can make for someone of your beginner knowledge." Lev explained. "Oh my how time can go by when your teaching others, we're at the simulation room already."

And the professor was right in that as they stood right in front of a much larger door with the words ´Spiritron Simulation´ written on it.

"Now, let's get inside and have it booted up shall we," Lainur said, as he walked towards the door and it opened for him.

Andrew followed right behind him. The room or rather rooms they had entered looked like a studio recording booth. Andrew could see a large computer console with instruments and functions that looked decades ahead of any computer he had seen.

The second room was what he would say the recording booth, with a large window that allowed one to see the insides and the wall had studio lights that lit it up brightly. On the floor, there were several chairs, ten in total.

"Now Andrew I'm going to have you enter the simulation room and take a seat in one of those chairs. I'm going to be handling the rest from here, I just need you to relax. The whole thing is going to technically take place inside your head, so I'm going to warn you as a first time user you're going to be mentally drained a bit afterward." Lev explained.

Andrew responded with an affirmative nod and did as he was told, entering the booth and sitting on one of the chairs before doing his best to relax -admittedly a bit easier than he thought considering the circumstances. He just chalked it up to his freshly activated Magic Circuits having helped to release some of the nervousness from the whole 'being kidnapped' thing. "Alright, ready when you are Professor." He said.

Lev nodded and responded with. "Now the simulation is going to teach you how to command Servants in battle and how to utilize your Mystic Code."

"Mystic Code?" Andrew asked. He was starting to get used to having to ask questions so often.

"Ah, yes quick lesson, Mystic Code is the name for Magical objects capable of fulfilling a task. One is the clothes that you're wearing right now. It was developed by Da Vinci, by channeling Prana through you can use three spells that had been programmed into it. Now, do you have any last questions?" Lev finished.

Andrew was about to ask how to use which spell and what they did before he recalled that Lev had just said the simulation would explain how to use said Mystic Code. "Nope, I'm ready to go!" He said, honestly more than a bit excited.

"Good, now I'm going to start the simulation in three, two…" Lev didn't get to finish his countdown as the sound of beeps filled both rooms. "What is it now." Andrew heard Lev say. He saw him lift his arm up, and what seemed to be holographic screen appeared above. "What is it Director I'm about to put our newest recruit through the simulation."

"And I need you down in control to help with SHEBA and CHALDEA, just activate the simulation, and have Kyrielight pick him up when it's done." An irate female voice said that sounded like she was used to bossing people around.

"I will Director," Lev responded and ended the call. "Sorry about that, that was the Director telling me to come down to her and control. And you probably heard her didn't you?"

Andrew looked at Lev through the glass, a tad curious (which seemed to be his new default state) but nodded anyway. "Yeah, I did. She said that someone could pick me up when I'm done right? So I'm guessing that means you don't have to be here to operate the simulation."

"That is correct, I just need to start it, and the thing can run itself until it's done. Now starting simulation in three, two, one."

When Lev finished counting down, Andrew found his vision going black, but only for a moment, and when color came to again, he found himself standing in a green open field.

"Woah," Andrew said, looking around the field. Intellectually he knew that it was a simulation, but he couldn't help but think he had instead been teleported. Everything looked so… _real_ that it defied what he thought of a 'simulation.' Though he was a bit confused why he was the only thing in the field. Wasn't this a training simulator?

Andrews confusion was alleviated when heard a male voice come from seemingly nowhere, but it wasn't Professor Lainur's voice, it had that automated, Siri-esque feel to it.

"Welcome Master, to the Training Simulator, here you will learn how to utilize the Chaldea Uniform Mystic Code that, you have been given and how to command Servants during battle. Please turn on your Magic Circuits." The Voice instructed.

Andrew did as he was told, thinking again of the feeling of running, and this time he was able to see the green lines appear on his skin as he did.

"Good, now the Chaldea Uniform has three spells that you can use by channeling Prana through the Code and thinking about the Spell you wish to use for as long as you have Prana to spare. Those Spells: are First Aid which is able to heal you or a Servant of Injuries; Instant Reinforcement which temporarily increases your or a single Servants strength; and finally Emergency Evade, which boosts agility to escape an attack. Now try to use them on yourself to proceed to the next part of training."

Andrew was ecstatic as he channeled the Prana from his Circuits into the Mystic Code (which he didn't even know he knew how to do) and thought of which spell to use first, before deciding on Instant Reinforcement. Andrew could instantly feel the power flowing through him, and with no target to test his strength decided to punch the ground underneath him, causing dirt to fly from the point of impact.

He was not expecting the pain in his hand and wrist after doing so, however. Andrew figured it probably just enhanced his strength and not his durability, but it was a good way to test First Aid. He channeled his Prana into his Uniform once more, this time to cast First Aid on his arm- and instantly the pain from punching the ground disappeared as if he had never done it in the first place.

Andrew then cast Emergency Evade, and suddenly felt much faster for about a second before the feeling completely disappeared. ' _That must be why its called_ Emergency _Evade'_ he thought to himself.

"Congratulation you have managed to use all of the Mystic Codes' Spells correctly, and from the quantity and quality of your Magical Circuits, you can use these spells a total of fifteen times before you run of magical energy. Now onto Servant combat simulating Servants and enemies for combats." The Voice said.

And a second later Andrew saw three circles appear on the ground in front of him. They lit up and on them stood three figures, two of which he felt he recognized.

Another second later the three of them spoke at once. "Servant Saber/Lancer/Archer. We answer your call to battle!"

Andrew suddenly realized why some of the things he had heard earlier sounded somewhat familiar. The small blond woman in the armored dress and the blue-haired man with the scarlet red spear, calling themselves Saber and Lancer, were what finally made him realize. This stuff was straight out of Fate/Stay Night!

Andrew's mind went into overdrive. How the hell were fictional characters (reinterpretations of characters, but the point still stood) from some anime, he watched once standing in front of him? Suddenly, he began to doubt whether or not this whole thing was just some weird dream, and he was still at home for New Yea-

His thoughts stopped. He had been home for Winter Break, not Summer Break, yet he had been kidnapped on July 7th. And when he had punched the ground just a moment ago, it actually hurt. He had absolutely no idea what was going on anymore. He decided that since this _must_ be a dream, as things like this just don't happen, he'd might as well play along and enjoy it while it lasted.

"Master, enemies have appeared! What are your orders?" the gender-bent version of King Arthur calling herself Saber asked.

Andrew was pulled out of his thoughts and looked at her, and right behind her he saw eight feet tall figures seemingly made out of stone, walking towards them there were about twenty of them. "So orders, Master." The one called Archer said the one he didn't recognize from the anime.

Andrew thought for a moment before deciding on a course of action. "Archer, suppressing fire on the enemy!" He said motioning to the man wielding the scarlet bow as he did. "Saber, take the ones to the right, Lancer the ones to the left!" He finished, motioning to the respective sides as he did. He then remembered his Mystic Code and used Instant Reinforcement on Lancer first as he was faster second Saber, and Archer last.

The Servants accepted the orders and began to attack.

Andrew saw Saber and Lancer rush to their respective side, their superhuman speed breaking the sound barrier and they were within their targets reach in less than a second.

Sword and Spear cleaved through the monsters made of rock like butter with their temporarily enhanced strength aiding them.

Meanwhile, the Archer Andrew didn't know the name of summoned Arrows from thin air, firing at the monsters like a machine gun, hitting the ones that Saber and Lancer missed and was about to attack them. The Arrows, just how like Saber and Lancer moved, were fired at supersonic speed. The rock the monsters were made out of was pulverized upon impact.

Andrew could only watch in fascination and horror as all twenty of the rock monsters were massacred in less than a minute, leaving only rubble behind as evidence.

"Damn." Was all Andrew could say in response to the total decimation which had occurred at his command. It was one thing to see such destruction in an animated format; it was another beast entirely to see such a thing in person.

That was when Andrew saw the Servants freeze in place. "Congratulation on completing the beginners training course, come back another day for harder challenges." The Voice he had completely forgotten about spoke again.

And just like he entered the simulation Andrew's vision went black again.

Andrew opened his eyes once again, but now he felt something on his lap which hadn't been there when he had started; he looked down to see what it was. On his lap was a small, snow-white animal that looked like it was more fluff than anything else, with ears like a rabbit but looking more like a cat or a fox; and it was tiny. It seemed to be wearing a little blue shirt with a red bow. All in all, the animal conveyed one thing to Andrew- absolute adorableness.

"It's good to see you awake Senpai." Andrew heard a female voice speak from his left side, he turned his head and saw standing there was a girl, with light pinkish hair, and glasses that covered eyes of deep purple color. She was wearing a white and grey jacket, with a black shirt underneath.

"Uh, hi," Andrew said lamely, almost every fiber of his being telling him to pet the small animal on his lap, with the only thing preventing him from doing so being his experience with stranger's pets. He did not even process being called 'Senpai' so great was his preoccupation. "Uhm, is this your pet?"

The girl shook her head. "No, he is not, Fou is a squirrel-like creature that is allowed to roam the halls of Chaldea, he is like a Mascot we have." She said.

Andrew looked at her with barely contained glee at the small creature on his lap. "Is...is it safe to pet it?" He asked, hopeful.

The girl nodded. "It is, and Fou already seems to like you."

Andrew immediately began to gently pet the small, strange creature. Upon touching Fou's fluff, he had only barely prevented himself from squeeing (something he had done before with similarly adorable animals) in delight. He then remembered that there was a stranger, standing right next to him, and reined himself in. "U-uhm, sorry about that." He said, still petting Fou but now much slower and focusing more on the person before him. "I'm sorry I didn't introduce myself. I'm Andrew Murphy, one of the new Masters here." He said, neglecting to mention how he had arrived. The girl looked about his age, maybe a bit younger, she likely had nothing to do with it.

As he stopped petting Fou, the creature left his lap and proceeded to jump up on the girls face with a loud. "FOU!" Coming from it landing on her face before situating itself on her shoulder.

The girl quickly regained her composure from Fou landing on her face. "I know that my name is Mash Kyrielight, Professor Lainur told me to pick you up and taking you to the dining hall for a quick lunch as you're probably hungry." She spoke with her soft voice, that seemed to be filled with life.

"Sure, I guess," Andrew said, definitely feeling hungry, and more-than-slightly disappointed at Fou leaving his lap. He stood up. "So, where is the dining hall?"

"Its down on the floor below us. I shall show you the way." Mash said, and Andrew nodded in response. The two and Fou left the Simulation Room. And as they did Andrew could feel a slight headache building up- probably the after-effects of the simulation like Lainur had said would happen.

As they were walking, Mash leading the way, Andrew asked. "So, are you one of the other Masters?" He was curious as to who he would be working with and figured it be better to ask than silence.

Mash didn't turn her head to look at him as she spoke. "No, I'm unqualified for such a task."

"Oh, uh, so what do you do?" He asked, curious. He hoped he hadn't hit a nerve with that given her response.

"I assist others with their work, but most of the time I'm with Doctor Romani and Da Vinci, but now my job is to assist Masters such as you Senpai, in getting situated in Chaldea."

"Oh, okay," Andrew said, before realizing what she had said. "Wait, Senpai? I haven't been here for more than a day or two. If anything, I should be calling you that." He said, ignoring that since they were speaking English, he shouldn't be calling anyone that, but he figured since this was a dream it didn't have to make total sense.

Mash turned her head to look at Andrew, a look of bewilderment on her face. "Why? Doctor Romani told me that it was a polite way to refer to those older than oneself."

Andrew thought about it for a moment. "Well, how old are you?" he asked.

"I'm 16 Senpai." She gave a short answer.

"Oh, okay. I'm 18, so I guess it makes sense then." Andrew said, not really giving it much else thought. He then had a realization. "Uh, Professor Lainur said that there were other Masters, and I met the one, but do you know how many there are total?" He asked in order to figure out how many people he might end up working directly with.

"Ah, there are forty-nine Masters in total Senpai, 38 from established Magi families and 11 civilians. And they are separated into teams of seven."

"Oh, so that each team has one of each servant right?" Andrew said, recalling how there were seven servant classes.

"That is correct Senpai," Mash responded.

Andrew let out a short laugh. "Seven whole holy grail wars being used against one enemy. Man, they don't stand a chance!" That made Andrew have a small realization. "Oh! So when do I get to summon a servant?" He asked, excited at the prospect of having a legendary figure under his command.

"That is a good description of our fighting force Senpai, and from what I remember summoning is supposed to take place after Rayshift has been commenced and on location."

Andrew, by now used to not recognizing a term, asked "Rayshift?"

"Ah, has Professor Lainur not told you about that?" she asked, to which Andrew shook his head negative. "I tell you when Senpai. Rayshift is a piece of technomancy developed by Chaldea that allows for the consciousness to be converted into Spiritons and sent into the past to correct the calamity that SHEBA has observed that will end the Human Order that CHALDEA used to see."

Andrew soaked up her words like a sponge. He noticed that she said about going to the past, which meant this dream also involved time travel! As if it wasn't already complicated enough!

"Ah, we need to turn left here Senpai," Mash said, and Andrew followed the shy looking girl as they entered through a door. And from there walked down some stairs to the lower floor. And after a minute more of walking and relative silence, they came to the dining hall, marked by the giant letters on the door.

The three of them entered inside, and Andrew saw that were people already inside, and this time it was adults clad in uniforms different from his own. These were primarily black in color with a green stripe down the middle for men and orange for women.

"They are Chaldea's General Staff Senpai." Mash introduced Andrew to the men and women who would work behind the scenes.

Andrew followed Mash as she leads him to where the food was and picked out something that he recognized and liked. Afterwards, they took a seat at the round dinner tables.

Andrew and Mash ate their food in a relatively comfortable silence. Fou also ate, eating something out of a bowl on the table for him.

Andrew went for two more portions to have his fill and when he was full Mash spoke up. "Are you done eating Senpai?"

Andrew thought for a moment before speaking. "Yeah, I think I'm good. So, where to now?"

"We are going to go down to mission control where the Director is going to make her opening speech about the mission and its details. When the teams are going to be Rayshifted to where the Calamity originated from."

"Neato. Lead the way, Kouhai." Andrew said.

Andrew saw a small blush on Mash's face as she nodded and they put their plates away, and they made their way out of the dining hall passing by some of the staff, who greeted them, and they returned the courtesy.

This time the journey didn't lead to another room, but rather an elevator, which Mash said, lead to the control room deep down inside the mountain.

As the elevator came to a stop, they went to another large door which bore the symbol he had seen on the end of the letter had gotten before the kidnapping happened and his dream had begun.

"The rest of the Masters are inside Senpai take the seat with number 49 on it." Mash instructed.

"Thank you for helping me today, Kouhai~," Andrew said as he went to do as she told him.

Andrew entered through the door, and a few feet in front of it he saw several heads sticking over several benches. He quickly guessed those were his fellow Masters and that he should quickly take a seat.

Luckily for him, his seat number was the end of the last row, and as such sat down. But it seemed he was still a bit early as the others Master were making small talk with each other. So he took the time to look around as much as he could from his seat. But the only thing he could clearly see was a contraption. It looked like a multi-layered gyroscope with a blue glowing sphere at its center that looked like a small star. The whole thing was seemingly floating in the air, surrounded by more of the holographic screens he had seen earlier. More strange was the fact that the walls surrounding it looked like something out of an M. C. Escher painting, and the more he looked at them, the more his head hurt.

As Andrew finished examining what he could see of the room he leaned back in his seat as he waited for the Director to show up. He yawned a bit and was starting to feel a bit sleepy, the simulation starting to catch up to him. The Director stilled looked ways out so, catching five didn't seem to be a bad idea. He stifled a laugh at falling asleep in a dream.

Andrew closed his eyes.

"Oh, you think my speech is boring to do you." Andrew heard an angry-sounding woman say. Andrew opened his eyes immediately coming face to face with the woman he guessed was the Director, recognizing the voice from Lainur's call earlier. "So do you enjoy sleeping during important information Master 49?" Her voice sounded like it could freeze fire cold and the glare she was giving him could melt the north pole.

Andrew sputtered, at a loss for words, before deciding on spite and snark. "Sorry, I've been through a rather stressful kidnapping recently." He said with a smile which held no mirth. "I'm a little out of it right now. Sorry, _Director_." The final word was filled with as much vitriol as Andrew could muster. He wasn't normally so spiteful, but he was dreaming so who cares, he thought.

And with those words, he saw the Director's face turn into one of undignified rage. "Are you mocking me? Are _you_ mocking _me_? Olga Marie Aminusphere. Out! Out get out!" She screamed at him, and before Andrew knew it, he was pulled from his seat and bodily thrown by the woman in an impressive feat of strength through the open door and landed right at Mash's feet. He heard the door seal shut.

Andrew was completely dumbfounded before he started laughing at the absurdity of what had just happened. A white-haired woman who otherwise looked like she was at most in her late 20's, who was at best five and a half feet tall, and definitely on the skinny side. Had just lifted him, a 6'2" male weighing almost 300 pounds and had _thrown him at least 6 feet!_ He couldn't do anything but laugh at the strange turn his dream had apparently taken. Her exploding on him just moments before made it even better.

Andrew stopped laughing as he saw Mash looking down on him. "Senpai did you do something stupid?"

Andrew let out another, much shorter laugh before speaking as he started to get up. "Yes, Kouhai. Yes, I did." He said, bearing a wide and frank smile.

Andrew heard a sigh escape from his Kouhai's throat. "Stand up properly, Senpai. Let's get back to your room. It seems that you won't be joining the first mission." Mash said.

"That he won't my dear Miss Kyrielight, not with how mad he made the Director." Andrew heard the familiar voice of Lev Lainur, one of the few people in this dream he really liked.

They both turned to the green man coming out from a door a little away from the main door.

"Oh hey, Professor!" Andrew said, greeting the well-dressed man with enthusiasm. He pointed to the ball of fluff on Mash's shoulder. "Hey, is Fou your pet?" He said, being curious about the creature and not giving any shits about the bitch who had just thrown him out of the room.

The man shook his head. "No, that thing is not mine. But think it was Romani that found it wandering around the facility one day, we wanted to throw it out, but the Director took a liking to it. Convinced by Romani, it could be some sort of mascot for us. Anyway, I got a good laugh from what you said to the Director, haven't seen her so riled up in a while. But it seems your banned from this mission Andrew, but there is always a next time cause I don't think this is going to be the last one." Lev said as he left Andrew, Mash, and Fou alone outside of the control room.

"Come Senpai, I'll go with you up to your room," Mash said.

"Alright Kouhai, lead the way," Andrew said, pep in his step as he followed her back.

Xxx

"It was nice to meet you Senpai, but I need to return to the control now, I want to watch the A-Team Rayshift," Mash said as they reached the door to Andrew's room.

Andrew smiled as he spoke. "It was very nice to meet you too, Kouhai~," He said. "And thank you very much for everything you've done for me today. See you soon!"

Mash nodded goodbye as she and Fou left together, a small blush on her face. As she turned the corner.

Andrew turned to the side and entered his room.

Where he came face to face, with Romani sitting on his bed eating a strawberry cake, with a laptop on his knees.

"Oh, Doctor Archaman, I wasn't expecting you to be in here," Andrew said, not really finding it all that strange. Dream logic, after all!

The doctor put down his spoon of strawberry cake and looked somewhat sheepishly apologetic. "Sorry, I didn't know that this was your room. I normally use this place to get away from others, and Da Vinci was starting to get a little nagging. But weren't you supposed to be down in mission control ready to Rayshift?" The Doctor asked.

"Oh, I'm banned from the mission," Andrew explained nonchalantly. "I closed my eyes for what I'm pretty sure was a literal second, and she got up in my face, so I just told her the truth, and she threw me out." Andrew paused for a moment before adding "And I mean she literally, bodily threw me out of the room."

"You made the Director mad didn't you?" Romani said, with a deadpan voice. It was more of a statement than a question.

"Yes indeed!" Andrew said, smiling wide. He had no respect for the woman who had ordered his kidnapping.

With his answer, Romani just laughed. "You're just like me, she yelled and threw me out earlier to since I couldn't help with anything as the machines are better at seeing the vitals of Mages inside the Rayshift Coffins than me."

Andrew blanched at the name. "Coffins?"

"Hey, don't look at me I didn't name them something so stupid, the previous Director did," Romani stated.

That caught Andrew's attention. "Previous Director? You mean Bitchy McShehulk didn't start this?"

Andrew heard a snort coming from Romani. "No, the previous Director was her father Marisbury Aminusphere, she took over after he seemingly disappeared, people thought he committed suicide, but not me. I knew the man from before he created Chaldea and I think somebody forced him to run away."

Andrew barely had to think before he responded. "Do you think it was the current Director's doing, or…?" he said.

Romani shook his head immediately. "No, Olga didn't do anything, she was a daddy's girl all the way, while she is a bad person she isn't capable of that kind of betrayal."

Andrew let out a short "Ah, ok." before he realized something. "Wait, her name is _Olga?_ " He said, starting to laugh. He hadn't really realized it before, but now that he had it made sense why she was so violent with a name like that.

"Yeah, Magi don't have the best naming schemes." But before Romani could talk any more a beeping sound came from the doctor's wrist. "Sorry going to have to take this. Hello?"

"Romani, we're going to start the Rayshifting soon. Could you come in case there's an emergency?" Came Lev Lainur's voice from the holographic phone. "The A-Team's in perfect condition, but B-Team on down is less experienced, and they're displaying some slight abnormalities." The Professor told the doctor. "It probably comes from anxiety. The inside of that Coffin is like a cockpit."

"Hey Lev, I feel bad for them. Why don't you give them some anesthesia?" He responded.

"Yeah, hurry up, will you? If you're in the main infirmary, then you can get here in two minutes." Lev finished, the hologram disappeared, and Romani sighed.

"Don't let me hold you up Doctor Archaman," Andrew said once the call had finished, not wanting to get in the way of a doctor helping people.

"Yeah, I should go, but I'm at least going to be five minutes late, by being here. But, don't call me Archaman, call Dr. Roman, my friends do that, for we're friends aren't we, my patient."

"Alright, Dr. Roman. I'll see you around." Andrew said with a smile. Man, this was a long dream.

"Sure thing Andrew, come around to my infirmary, and I'll treat you to some cake." And as the doctor finished speaking the light inside the room went out at once. "Wait, why did the light just go out?"

Xxx

 **Reaction theater:**

Me: Picture of Fou.

Passive: Wow, we got a mascot. And it is adorable.

Me: Mash

Passive: We got us a Sakura here.

Me: [Showing Olga and her father's name]

Passive: It's like a Japanese person trying to come up with English sounding names. *Gets Hulk thrown out of reaction*

Me: The lights going.

Passive: Well the other shoe just dropped.


	3. Chapter 3 - Singularity F

"Hey, Dr. Roman do you have a flashlight or something?" Andrew asked, not really concerned with the situation.

"Yeah, my band can function as one, but why did the light go out? It couldn't be a power outage, that has never happened since the creation of this facility, and if the main generator had gone out the backup should have activated immediately." But when Dr. Roman finished speaking redlight returned visibility to the room and a male voice like the one from the simulation spoke. "Warning. Warning. Fire detected in Main Control Room and Power Generator, unable to connect to backup power, please turn on manually." The male said and began repeating.

And now with the red lights going Andrew could see Dr. Roman's panicked face. "Shit, we need to go to Main Control now and see what happened." He said hastily as started running past him and to the door which opened an emergency power probably running through them.

Andrew was about to follow the Doctor before remembering what the Professor had said earlier and thrown open the closet door to find his knife. With Instant Reinforcement the small blade would be much more effective and would allow him to help deal with whoever started the fire. He then raced out after Dr. Roman, just catching him turning a corner to follow him.

Andrew was always a few feet behind the doctor as they ran due to his head start; he had thought about using the Emergency Evade to boost his speed and catch up but, he decided to save it for later.

Though he did manage to catch up when they reached the stairs that would lead to the correct elevators to the Main Control Room.

They both managed to catch their breaths inside the elevator as it descended downwards and would stop in about half a minute seeing the number on the panel.

"Hey, Doc, any idea what caused this?" Andrew asked.

"Sorry, Andrew but I have no answer to, the question that's why we're going down to Control. The Director should be able to tell us, along with the other operators. Though hopefully, nothing happened to them, at least of all Mash." As he finished speaking the elevator came to a stop. "Let's get going."

Andrew nodded, and got ready to use his Mystic Code based on the situation; if there was an enemy he would cast Instant Reinforcement, and if there was someone injured he would use First Aid. He followed the doctor out of the elevator.

And from there they went to the main door to the Control Room, the door opened up, and the two men were met with a blast of heated air.

"What in the world happened here?" Dr. Roman asked in shock.

And Andrew was asking the same question, before where the room had been blue and clean with the weird Gyroscope. The Control Room looked like a bomb had gone off. With the floor filled with massive piles of rubble composed of massive chunks of rock which seemed to have fallen from the ceiling. And as they looked they heard the automated voice go off again, saying that backup power had yet to be turned on.

"Dammit, why is it still not on." Dr. Roman growled seriousness filling his voice. "Andrew I'm going to turn on the power you search the room for anybody that needs help afterward, go to the Control System right above."

Andrew nodded before he began to scan the room. The heat was sweltering, and the room was filled with smoke. Not seeing anyone, he moved deeper into the area.

Andrew walked around and over the rubble which blocked his vision, the air getting a bit hotter as he moved further inside.

But as he did he finally found something of interest- standing out off the ground were several metal tubes with glass on the front of them. He moved over to one of them and saw a person inside. He was wearing a uniform just like his own. As he looked at him, Andrew saw there weren't any visible injuries, and he was still breathing. So it seemed he was just knocked unconscious. He checked the others and saw that they were exactly the same, and moved on to find others as they would probably be safer inside there than if he took them outside of the probably Coffins that Roman had talked about with Medical functions.

Andrew moved over a little more rubble and came upon a more gruesome sight.

"Oh shit, shit, shit, shit!" was all Andrew could really say as he made his way over the rubble over to Mash. "Mash, Mash! Are you still conscious?" He asked he reached the girl who was currently underneath one of the massive stone blocks. He couldn't tell if she was still alive or awake from this angle.

Luckily he saw her turn her head to the side her eyes looking at him, a weak smile appeared on her face. "Senpai." Andrew heard her say weakly.

Andrew was now right next to her upper body with Fou next to him "Fou, Fou." The tiny creature said.

"Okay, okay, shit, uh…" Andrew scrambled for what to do before remembering he now had access to magical spells and decided to use them. He activated his Circuits and cast First Aid on Mash, hoping it would help her at least a little bit while he figured out how to get her out from under the rubble. "This should help a little bit." He said.

"Thank you for, that Senpai. I feel a little better now. But what are you doing here you need to leave, you can't save me." Mash said a tone of acceptance in her voice.

Andrew replied instantly. "Fuck that!" Andrew said "We've got magic!" before casting Instant Reinforcement on himself and began trying to lift the block from the side in order to allow Mash to get out. But try as he might he could not lift the rock weighing too much and him having no proper leverage. But Andrew could only touch the stone for so long as the thing was burning hot. He punched the rock in anger.

"Sorry, Senpai, I'm going to die, I can feel my organs failing I have about five left, and you need to leave before-"

Mash's voice was cut off by the male computer voice speaking again. "Backup power has been activated, sealing the main door, engaging programmed orders. Searching for an available Master candidate."

"-that." The girl finished her sentence.

Andrew cursed under his breath. With the computer sealing off the fire from the rest of the facility, no one in here with him would be able to get help. "Dammit…" he said. He looked back at Mash before using First Aid on her again. "I know you've already given up Mash, but I won't. Just wait a little bit longer. I'm going to see if I can find anything to help you out from under there." He said, trying to be as reassuring and confident as possible. He had to believe what he was saying to make her believe, after all.

"Thank, you Senpai it's nice to have another care, that's why I like you're the most human person that I know here. But don't waste your time. And I'm sorry if it weren't for me you wouldn't have been trapped." Mash said.

"Master candidate found, inputting Rayshift coordinates, January 31, 2004, A.D Fuyuki Japan." Said the automated voice.

Andrew had no idea why that time specifically, though he did recognize the location. The place where the Holy Grail War occurred. Which meant whoever was getting Rayshifted was going to have to deal with that mess. "Mash, don't you dare blame yourself for this." He said to the girl still under the rubble. "Unless you caused this yourself, it isn't your fault. I would have been here either way." He told her. He couldn't stand the idea of someone thinking like that.

Mash just smiled at him, and Fou gave a sad, fou to the situation. "Commencing unsummoning, please all personnel clear the area. Unsummoning starting in three, two, one. Begin Rayshift."

As the voice finished Andrew's vision changed from the burning to a seemingly spiraling blue vortex. And then he saw darkness.

Xxx

Andrew opened his eyes, and he was still standing straight up and looked around. He was no longer inside the burning Control Room, but instead, he was standing in a burning and ruined street. Holes filled the roads, buildings were broken, cars smashed.

It looked like he had wakened in some form of hellscape.

But before he had time to contemplate further he heard a voice screaming. "Master get down!"

A second later a person was in front of him, knocking him to his knees, and a split second later he heard the sound barrier being broken and the area was bombarded by something.

Andrew looked up to see who had knocked him down and saw a woman in a strange outfit holding an absolutely massive shield. More importantly, it looked like that woman was- "Mash! You're okay!" he said, happy and a bit confused.

"Master, please be quiet and stay down until the Archer has stopped his bombardment," Mash said, with a commanding tone of voice, but the moment she did. The barrage of presumably arrows stopped as they heard another explosion. "I can no longer feel the presence of an enemy Servant, Master they seemed to have disengaged," Mash said as she stood up properly and Andrew got a good look at her.

Andrew barely had to glance at what she was wearing to know that it was completely impractical, what with all the most important parts of her body being exposed, but he put that to the side for now as he hugged the girl in relief. "Oh thank God you're okay," he said quickly, before remembering he was hugging someone he'd known for about an hour, causing him to let go and pull back. "Sorry about that…" He apologized sheepishly. "I was just really relieved to see that you weren't..you know…"

Andrew saw Mash smile at him the same she had when he had first met her. "It's okay Senpai, I'm okay now, and I'm happy to see that you're alright too. But first, let's leave this place before we continue talking." Mash said and before Andrew could say anything Mash grabbed him with her free left hand and jumped out the crater he had just now noticed the bombardment of arrows had created. He swallowed a lump of spit at that, for if those had hit him, he would have turned into mush.

They landed outside out the crater and Andrew was let out of Mash's grip. There they were greeted by a loud. "Fou!" as Fou came running towards them and jumped onto his shoulder.

"How did you get here little guy?" Andrew asked the little white fluff ball on his shoulder. "Actually, how did any of us get here for that matter?"

"It seems that we were taken here by the Rayshift, Senpai."

"I guessed that was probably why, but I thought you needed to use one of those Coffin things to do it?" Andrew asked, before realizing something. "Hey wait, what's up with the outfit and the shield?"

"You see Senpai." Mash was about to begin talking but, stopped as they heard a beeping sound that Andrew had heard before this time it was coming from Mash's wrist. "We're getting a call from Chaldea Senpai." Mash placed her shield on her back and answered the call. But instead of the small blue screen like with Dr. Roman and image was projected in front of them. And speaking of the good doctor.

"Right, I finally got through! Hello? This is Chaldea Central Command Room? Do you read me?" The protection of Dr. Roman asked though it was kinda static and flickery like a bad tv screen struggling to receive a signal.

"This is Mash Kyrielight, a member of the new A-Team, I've completed the shift to Singularity F along with Master Potentielle 49 Andrew Murphy," Mash said in clear military fashion. "Rayshift compatibility, Master compatibility are both at satisfactory levels."

"So, Andrew got Rayshifted along with you Mash, it's good to see that you are both okay." Dr. Roman said, with happiness in his voice.

"Doctor, do you know what happened over there? And where we are?" Andrew said. "Oh, and we have Fou with us as well for some reason." He added.

"Huh? So our dear mascot is Rayshift compatible didn't know that. On our end I can clearly say that we were sabotaged, Da Vinci found remnants of shrapnel here in the control room, from a bomb. But before that why are you wearing such an outfit Mash, I didn't raise you to wear such things."

"I transformed into this. I couldn't protect Senpai wearing Chaldea's uniform."

"Wait, what do you mean by transformed Mash? Did you hit your head? Or was it…"

"Dr. Roman please be quiet." Mash interrupted the man. "Please check my condition you will understand the situation better."

"Your physical condition? Wh-Whoa, whoa, whoa WHOA!" Dr. Roman yelled, in what seemed to be shock. Though as Andrew heard their conversation, it felt like they had completely forgotten he was there.

"Wait, what's happening?" Andrew asked, confused. "What's wrong with Mash's condition?" Worry bled into his words.

"Ah, sorry for ignoring you Andrew, but nothing is wrong with Mash's condition, heck she is even better than normal. Physical strength, Magical Circuits, everything's improved! You're not so much a human, but-"

"Yes, I'm a Servant now." Mash finished his sentence.

Andrew was somewhat more confused now. "Wait, how did you turn into a Servant? I thought you had to summon them and then they were your, you know, servant."

"Ah, I don't remember how it quite happened, but it seems I survived the rock by fusing with a Servant. To investigate and resolve Singularity F, a Servant had been summoned in advance by one of the Masters. But The Servant lost its Master in that explosion and was doomed to vanish. But at the last second, before we both died, he offered me a contract. In return for his abilities, I had to find the cause of the Singularity and eliminate it." Mash explained to Andrew and Roman.

"A Heroic Spirit and a human fused… A Demi-Servant. That's Chaldea sixth experiment. I see, so it finally succeeded. Does this Heroic Spirit still have his consciousness?" Dr. Roman asked.

"No, he gave me his combat abilities and then vanished," Mash told him. "He never told me his true name. So, I don't know which Heroic Spirit I am. Nor what kind of Noble Phantasm I'm holding. At this point there's too much, I don't know."

Andrew listened intently. "So, what do we do now?" He asked, not wanting to stay in the blasted hellscape they had escaped into.

"We find the cause of Singularity and Rayshift you back home to Chaldea." Dr. Roman said. "But, I'm sorry to spring this on you, Andrew. But while Mash is now Humanity's most powerful weapon."

"I don't know about most powerful," Mash mumbled in response.

"While they are strong Servants have a weakness in common, and that is their Master, that provides them with Prana to function. And from the data, I'm gathering you're now Mash's Master going by those Command Seals on your left hand."

Andrew looked down at his left hand in surprise to see the red markings tattooed on the back of his hand. "Wait, when did these show up?" He asked, confused.

"Those showed up when your contract with Mash was established. _Crch, crhc._ " Roman said, but his voice was interrupted by static.

"Doctor you're breaking up. 10 seconds until the connection is lost."

"Right, there is a strong Leyline reading from about 1,2 miles from your location. Go there the extra power will help stabilize-" The connection was cut before Dr. Roman could finish talking.

Andrew nodded, mostly to himself, before speaking. "Alrighty then. Let's go find that Leyline." he paused for a moment. "Um, can you tell which way it is Mash? The Doctor's directions weren't very descriptive," he asked his newly contracted Servant-and wasn't that a weird thing to think.

"Yes, I do Master, I studied the maps of Fuyuki before the explosion, so I know which Leyline he is talking about." Mash stated.

"Alright then, lead the way," Andrew said.

"Hope on my back Senpai I shall carry you to our destination faster than you can run yourself." Mash offered.

Andrew was dumbfounded for a moment at the suggestion before remembering the difference between a Servant's Strength and a human's. And considering the Director's earlier actions, he really should have guessed size does not equal strength when magic is involved. "Alright." He said simply, trusting she knew what she was doing.

Mash took the shield off her back, and Andrew hugged his arms around her body carefully avoiding touching her breasts. Using her other arm to hold her shield up Mash began forward through the streets of the burning city of Fuyuki.

After running for a few minutes as fast as she could with Andrew on her back, Mash spoke up. "Senpai, We will soon reach the point Dr. Roman specified."

"Okay," Andrew said simply due to how fast they were moving.

"Have you seen the state of city Senpai?" Mash asked suddenly.

Andrew took a quick look at his surroundings. "Everything is on fire or demolished or both." He concluded after just a quick look around. There wasn't that much else to say about it.

"Yes, according to our data Fuyuki was an average harbor city in Japan, and there was no such record in LAPLACE of a disaster such as this happening in the city in 2004. It's quite concerning." Mash stated.

"Laplace?" Andrew asked, not having heard the term before. He was pretty sure he remembered something about Laplace's Demon from something a while ago though.

"Ah, yes LAPLACE is the archive device that stores the information of the past gathered by SHEBA by observing CHALDEA." Mash explained.

"Sheba?" Andrew asked, having heard the term thrown around before.

"Ah, yes you haven't caught fully up to speed on how Singularity F was discovered-"

"KYAAAAA!"

Whatever Mash was about to say was canceled by a woman's scream coming from nearby.

"A scream? Somebody is an alive and in danger Senpai." Mash said.

"Let's go help 'em out." He replied without a moment's hesitation.

"Yes, Senpai," Mash responded as they ran towards where the scream had come from. ANd as they did they could hear the women yelling.

"Why does this always happen to me, I don't deserve this. Where are you Professor Lev please help me!"

And they came upon Olga Marie fending of what looked to be a group of walking skeletons.

"Wait, is that the Director?" Mash asked in surprise as they watched the woman fire of small black balls from her index finger. "Master, what are my combat orders?"

Andrew thought for a moment before coming to a conclusion. "Alright, put me down here then run in and grab the Director and bring her back here. We can deal with the skeletons once she isn't surrounded by them." He said, putting aside his own disdain for the woman. Just cause he didn't like her didn't mean he wanted her to die.

"Your orders are accepted Senpai," Mash said, putting Andrew down on the ground after that she jumped down to the Director.

It didn't take long for Mash to complete her task, as Andrew heard a shout of. "Kyrielight what in the world! Waaaah!" And a few seconds later Mash placed the Director right in front of Andrew.

"I shall deal with the skeletons Senpai," Mash said quickly before she left again.

After that, the Director came out of her confusion and stood up looking directly at Andrew.

"You." Her voice was filled with scathing scorn.

"Me," Andrew said with a smirk.

"You, how did you?" She demanded an answer to a not so obvious question from Andrew.

"How did I what?" Andrew only had to partially feign his confusion.

"While it's obvious to see that Kyrielight became a Demi-Servant, and I'm curious how to the experiment finally worked. I want to know, how a low-class Magus like yourself became her Master." She was looking directly at Andrew's hand where his Command Spells were.

"I honestly have no idea," Andrew said, figuring the truth was the best thing to say. "I had been trying to help her before we Rayshifted, and as soon as we showed up she was a servant, and I had this." He held up his left hand.

Olga Marie just scoffed. "Obviously your lying only High-Class Magi are able to become Master's it's obvious you forced yourself on the girl."

Andrew saw red at the comment and was only barely able to stop himself from decking the white-haired woman right there and then. He then remembered something he had been told earlier and activated his Circuits. "Does 30 Grade A Circuits count as 'High-Class'?" Andrew asked. He then looked directly into Olga's eyes and- before he could say more he heard Mash's voice speak up.

"I was the one the who forced the contract Director Olga Marie," Mash said, and Olga turned round to face the girl now turned Demi-Servant.

"What did you say?" Olga responded.

"I'll explain how it happened. That way we can understand each other's situation better." Mash then went on to explain to Olga Maire what happened with Andrew assisting telling what from his point of view. "And that's how we were Rayshifted and found you, Director. Also, you're the only other human we have seen here Director. For if you got Rayshifted, that means the other Master candidates must have too." Mash said hopefully.

"I'm sorry to say, but that won't be the case. For you see, Me, you and _him_ we were all outside the Coffins when we got Rayshifted. While Rayshifting flesh and blood outside of a Coffin isn't impossible the success rate is just much lower. Meanwhile, all the other Master were inside their Coffins they have breakers that make sure they can't Rayshift if the success rate is below 95% So we're are the only ones here from Chaldea right now." Olga Marie explained.

"So no reinforcements, huh…" Andrew said, somewhat disappointed that he would be stuck with Olga and couldn't get her to go boss around the other Masters, but he was also happy that they weren't also stuck in this mess.

"I wouldn't say that exactly. You see I was looking for a Leyline Terminal, to access more magical energy and contact Chaldea and set up a base. Now we just need to find the access point." Olga Marie stated.

"It's right beneath your feet Director," Mash told her.

"Right, I knew that. Anyway, since this is an emergency, I'm going to approve the contract you have with Kyrielight. And with you having Command Seal, you should be able to summon an additional servant or more depending on their strength. Now I just need to draw a summoning circle, and I'm going to set up with your Noble Phantasm as the catalyst Kyrielight."

Andrew was surprised. "Wait, I can have more than one Servant at a time?" he asked, realizing he apparently knew nothing about this actually worked.

"Yes, as long as you have the Prana to sustain them you can. Though I would recommend more than five at the time as the strain could kill you, more so with stronger Servants. Now give me the shield and let me get to. As the shield seems to have the concept of heroes gathering around it, tied it. shall serve as excellent Catalyst to any hero who will answer the call to help humanity." Olga said as she took out a piece of chalk from her clothes and drew a complex looking magic circle on the ground, with extreme skill. "There now to place the shield." She said, and as she did, the circle around them lit up, and the area around them changed.

"This is… The same as the summoning experiment chamber at Chaldea." Mash said as she looked around with wide eyes.

Andrew really should have gotten used to things suddenly appearing or changing by now he thought, but he wasn't. At Mash's comment, he asked: "Wait, really?"

"Yes, it is Senpai, the Director must have connected the summoning circle to the FATE system, Chaldea used to summon Da Vinci, by using my shield to do so, I wonder how she did it," Mash said with curiosity.

"Now to summon a Servant you just need to." Olga was however cut off by the holographic image Dr. Roman appearing.

"CQ, CQ. Hello, hello? Okay, the connection's back!" Dr. Roman said. "Good job, you've secured the connection Andrew and Mash, now we can communicate and send rations to you through the Rayshift."

"Huh?! Why are you running the show, Romani!? What about Lev? Where's Lev? Put Lev on!" Olga interrupted the doctor and began howling at him.

"Waaahhhhhhh! D-Director, you're alive? And you're unharmed? What the…"

"What is that supposed to mean? Where's Lev? What's the head medic doing in charge?"

"Don't ask me why? I'm fully aware that I'm not cut out for this job." Dr. Roman complained before his face got a bit serious. " But there's is nobody else, Olga Marie. Currently out of the three hundred employees of Chaldea only 21 are still alive and accounted for including Da Vinci and me. The reason I'm in charge is that there is nobody ranked higher than I left alive here." Dr. Roman said with sadness.

"What," Andrew heard Mash say in silent shock as she listened to the casualties.

"Ohmygod," Andrew said at about the same time. 279 people had just died, and he'd been one of the few to survive. Moreover, from what Dr. Roman had said one of those people was Professor Lev, the first person to show him kindness since the whole mess started. The sheer amount of death he had apparently so narrowly avoided being part of weighed heavily on his mind. And he was beginning to realize that this probably wasn't a dream, this had become a nightmare. One that Andrew possibly couldn't imagine. So maybe somehow he had been teleported to another version of fate he didn't know about. He had heard there existed other versions besides the anime. But those were thoughts to deal with later.

Now, he and Mash kinda sat back as Dr. Roman told Olga that Lev had been in the epicenter of the bomb and couldn't have survived.

After that Roman began giving a status report on Chaldea's condition, the summoning of another Servant temporarily forgotten- for now this was far more important information.

He thankfully learned that the other 48 masters were still alive, but critically injured, and had been put in cryostasis until outside medical help could arrive as they didn't have supplies to handle such injuries on their own right now. Though on the bad news Chaldea had lost 80% of its functionality and they were currently putting all their resources into keeping the Rayshift System from breaking down and making CHALDEA and SHEBA keep running.

Though by Olga had changed their mission to just discovering the cause of Singularity F and not dealing with it until external communications are established, and help arrived.

"Thank, you for the report Dr. Romani. Now we're going to continue our investigation of Singularity F, though we're going to summon additional Servants as hostiles have been encountered along with an enemy Servants by Kyrielight. Now I need you to run Chaldea until I return is that understood Romani." Olga Marie finished.

"I hear you, Director, contact me when you discover new information Dr. Roman over and out." The Doctor said as he disappeared.

"This is such a mess," Olga stated.

"Yeah," Andrew said softly; though he hated to agree with her at all, it was hard to disagree that the whole situation had gone to hell.

"Now, before you summon the Servant Andrew, I need to say that I lied to Dr. Romani we're going to clean this Singularity up before another team, arrives for there is no telling when they will come. And I will certainly not have the Association run their claws deeper into my Chaldea and take it from me. Now get to summoning."

Andrew nodded, before realizing something. "I uh, don't actually know how to?"

"Right, you're a completely novice. It's quite simple you just need to pump Prana into the circle and along with the intent to summon. The FATE system is what is doing the heavy lifting."

Andrew got a bit angry at the insult and was about to make a remark, before he realized it was completely true and simply did as he was told, activating his Circuits and channeling his Prana into the circle.

Andrew focused on the circle and forced the intent of calling for help into his Prana; he didn't know if it worked at first. But the circle lighting up, confirmed it was working he channeled he felt the drain and realized twelve of his circuits had been drained of Prana and a with that a flash of light appeared blinding everyone in the created base.

As Andrew was blinking his eyes to see again, he heard a female voice speak up. "I am Arturia Pendragon, The Princess of Knights but you can call me Saber Lily."

And standing on the shield, Andrew saw a very different Arturia from the one he knew and had seen in the simulation.

"I ask are you, my Master?"


	4. Chapter 4 - Serpent

"Yes, I am your Master," Andrew said after a moment as he tried to process what- or rather, who- he had just summoned. She looked much like the Saber in the simulation but younger, and wore a white and silver armored dress with detached sleeves instead of her counterpart's blue ensemble, her hair holding a black bow. He was perplexed as to what precisely was going on with the summoning, and expressed his confusion to his new Servant -a term he was still getting used to in reference to people. "Saber, what do you mean when you say 'Lily'?" Andrew asked, figuring the one who would know the best would be the Servant in question herself.

"The contract has been established. As to why I described myself as 'Lily' that term is used to describe Servants who are summoned from an earlier point in their Legend. I am King Arthur just after I pulled Caliburn from the stone and before I officially became King, gathering the first Knight's of the Round. Though I have all the memories of my entire life, it is I like have yet to experience them. Does that answer satisfy you, Master? And I see that you already have another Servant at your command." Saber Lily explained to Andrew.

Andrew nodded at her explanation; it kind of made sense given all the weird conceptual crap that occurred with Servants. "Thank you, Saber. And yes, I already have a contract with Mash here. In fact, we used her shield to summon you." Andrew informed the Once and Future King.

The young King looked down at her feet to see the Shield she was standing, and Andrew was sure he saw her smile get a little bigger. And she quickly stepped off it. Saber Lily turned to Mash and addressed his Kouhai. "Well, it shall be a pleasure to work with you Mash, but might I ask which Servant Class you are."

"Uhm, I'm not quite sure Ms. Lily, but based on my Armament I believe my Class is Shielder?" Mash said.

"Yes, that is very on point." Saber Lily responded. "Now, Master what is the cause you have summoned for?"

"Hm, Hm," Olga Marie coughed getting everyone's attention. "I believe I can answer that question best for you Servant Saber. You see we all work for the Chaldea Security Organisation, which is meant to protect humanity. Right now, we're inside a Singularity, a segmented piece of Space-Time, where human history has been changed from what has happened. And our mission to eliminate the cause of it and make sure it no longer bears a threat to human history."

"I understand, I shall do the out most to assist my Master in saving humanity." Saber Lily declared.

Andrew stayed silent during Olga's explanation, figuring that since this was technically her organization, she would be able to describe it best. After she was done, he then asked an important question. "You said I could sustain up to about 5 Servants if they weren't too powerful right? So should I summon a third one, so we have some more firepower?" He asked, shelving his personal animosity towards the white-haired woman to prioritize their success in their mission.

Olga Marie shook her head at Andrew. "No, not right now at least tell me how many circuits did you empty of Prana to summon Saber?"

Andrew recalled the feeling when he summoned Saber and how he felt now. "I think I used about 12's worth and have about 15 left?" He said, not 100% sure due to the sensation being one he was not used to yet.

"And that is the problem if you summoned another you just have enough to maintain them as they aren't hooked up to an external source. And then you wouldn't have enough left to use their Noble Phantasm. And if they did you probably die and Circuits break as they try to convert you internal Od source into Prana to use." Olga Marie explained and the rather gruesome end he would meet if did what he had planned to do. "And speaking of Servants and Master, as a Master Andrew you have the ability to view a Servant's Stat Sheet and see their Skills and Attributes."

Andrew flinched at the image Olga Marie had conveyed but stayed silent as she explained. "How do I view that?" He asked. Andrew felt he had been, and would continue to be, asking a lot of questions since his kidnapping.

"Just look at Servants and focus on the thought of seeing their Stats and it should appear in your Mind's Eye, its an innate Skill granted to Masters so it should easy for you to use like blinking one's eyes."

Andrew nodded at her explanation and quickly decided to test it on Saber Lily due to not having seen her in action yet. He looked at Saber Lily and focused his thoughts; a moment later he began seeing numbers, in front of his eyes.

Class: Saber

True Name: King Arthur Pendragon

Master Andrew Murphy

 **Parameters:**

Strength: C

Endurance: C

Agility: B

Luck: A+

Mana: A

Noble Phantasm: B

 **Class Skills:**

Magic Resistance: B

Riding: C

 **Personal Skills:**

Blossoming Journey: EX

Mana Burst: A

Instinct: B

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Caliburn: The Golden Sword of The Victorious. (Anti-Unit): B

"Woah," Andrew said as he looked over the information which had sprung up in front of his eyes. He wasn't sure what most of it meant, but from the looks of it, Saber Lily was very, very, very lucky if he was right about how the grade-like labeling worked. He then turned his gaze to Mash and did the same thing.

Class: Shielder

True Name:?/Mash Kyrielight

Master: Andrew Murphy

 **Parameters:**

Strength: C

Endurance: A

Agility: D

Luck: C

Mana: B

Noble Phantasm: ?

 **Class Skills:**

Magic Resistance: A

Shield-Field Defense: C

Possession Inheritance: ?

 **Personal Skills:**

Transient Wall of Snowflakes: -

Obscurant Wall of Chalk: -

 **Noble Phantasm:**

?

Mash's stat sheet provided less information than Saber Lily's. Most of what hers had said was pretty self-explanatory, while Mash's was more obscure. He had no idea what the wall skills did from their names, for instance. He decided to vocalize his question. "Hey Mash, do you know what your skills do?" He asked, hoping she might instinctively know due to her servant fused nature.

"I do Senpai, the only one unknown to me is Inheritance one and what my Noble Phantasm is." Mash explained.

"Why would you not know your own Noble Phantasm?" Saber Lily asked. But before anyone could answer her question she answered it herself. "You were given the power of a Servant weren't you?"

"Yes, he saved my life by doing so," Mash answered.

"I see, now Master are we going to leave this blue room now, it is rather boring?"

Andrew thought for a moment before reluctantly looking over to Olga Marie. "Director, what do you think our best course of actions would be?" He asked, at least trying to be professional towards the woman.

"Hm, so you have manners. Now as Kyrielight confirmed, there are enemy Servants in the city and Monsters. It seems from the information we have that A Holy Grail War took place in the city, we didn't know if the Ritual was successful or not, but the current situation didn't happen. So our Best would be to go to Kotomine Church in the other end of the city across the bridge. To see if there is information, regarding when things began to go wrong. Is that understood?"

"Yes, ma'am," Andrew said with only a hint of sarcasm in his words. And the other two women in the group did so without the sarcasm. "I'm guessing we'll be moving out immediately?"

"Yes, Kyrielight just needs to pick up her shield, we shall move at once.

Mash nodded and picked up her shield, and as she did the base, Olga Marie has set up disappeared, and they were all back in the burning city.

And the second they were outside Saber Lily spoke up. "Master, I think you don't need to worry about giving me Prana for my Skills. There is enough Mana in this hellscape, for me to not need unless I need to use Caliburn. It's almost like I'm back home. You can feel it too can't you Mash?"

Mash nodded. "Yes, the Mana is heavy in the air, almost like it's described in texts from the Age of Gods."

"That's is useful information to know, but." Whatever Marie was about to say was interrupted by Roman appearing once again.

"You need to get out of there now!" He yelled at all of them.

"He's right enemy Servant in coming, we have been found. We need to leave and find a better fighting ground." Mash said.

"I agree with her assessment." Saber Lily seconded.

"Mash, you said you memorized the maps right? Let's try and get to somewhere you think would be a good battleground. Since you two are faster, it would probably be better if you carried us there. Saber, take Olga, Mash you'll be carrying me again." Andrew said, trying to implement the tried and true method of 'runaway' into something useful, to the situation.

"Good thinking Senpai/Master." Mash and Saber Lily spoke at the same time. The two Servants acted quickly as Saber Lily took Olga over her shoulder like a sack of potatoes, much to the woman's protest.

Mash this time Andrew lifted in bridle carry with her shield on her back. "The bridge would be a good spot to fight we wouldn't be able to be blindsided there."

The Servants began running as fast as they could with their human baggage.

Andrew didn't say anything as they moved as he didn't want to distract Mash. After a few seconds, they came to the river, where he could see the large red bridge from about a mile away. But, their run came to a stop as chains appeared in front of them and behind them, locking them all inside a rectangular box where the only option was to run back into the city of flames away from the river and their destination.

Mash and Saber Lily set Andrew and Olga Marie down, as a fight seemed inevitable here.

Andrew's instinctual reaction to seeing the chains, given their location and what he remembered of Fate/Stay Night, was along the lines of ' _Oh dear God not Gilgamesh'_ before he realized they weren't being bombarded or mocked that it must be a different Servant, much to his relief. "Saber, Mash, can either of you tell where the enemy is?" He asked, figuring since Mash had been able to detect incoming enemies and Saber Lily having that Instinct skill they should probably be able to tell.

"Yes, the Servant is right on top of the Riverbank looking down at us, it's in astral form right now."

Andrew turned his head up to the top of the tiny grass hill that curved down to the river, with storm drains on the side of it. But at the top of it, he didn't see the Servant, but instead seemingly stone statues of people.

Andrew let out a soft "What?" at the sight. The statues were obviously not carved but looked rather like people who were turned to stone. His heart admittedly beat faster at the realization that someone- or some _thing_ \- could turn people to stone and was likely the Servant nearby. Only three creatures capable of such a thing came to mind, the Cockatrice, the Basilisk, and the Gorgons, but none of those were particularly 'Heroic' figures, so he honestly had no idea who/what the Servant could be. Perseus maybe?

"Oh, my what tenacious little prey you are, running away from _me._ " Spoke a clearly female voice that rippled with desire. But had no visible source. "To think that you can sense my presence so clearly as to determine my position even when astrelized, you are very troublesome, luckily for me, you entered my hunting grounds. Now how about I introduce myself."

The female voice said, and a second later she shimmered into existence now visible to all. "I was the Lancer, in the Holy Grail that took place in this city, but now that it is over, I can reveal my True Name to you- I'm Medusa. And I see, before me two living humans, a Mage, a Master, along with two new Servants, one I don't recognize, and one that looks like the one that killed and resurrected me." Andrew saw her lick her lips as she finished speaking. "Now become my dinner."

Andrew was honestly more than a bit scared. Motherfucken _Medusa_ was standing there, and none of them had anything reflective enough. He did find it odd that she didn't have anything particularly snake-like about her, but he was more concerned about not looking at her eyes. He _really_ didn't want to get turned to stone. But then he remembered something else he could look at, and tried to summon her stat sheet.

Class: Lancer

True Name: Medusa

Master: None

 **Parameters:**

Strength: B

Endurance: D

Agility: A

Luck: E

Mana: B

Noble Phantasm: -

 **Class Skills:**

Magic Resistance: A

Riding: A

 **Personal** **Skills:**

Divinity: E-

Monstrous Strength: B

Mystic Eye: A+

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Harpe: Immortal Slaying Scythe. (Anti-Immortality): -

Andrew's eyes widened upon reading the words; she was fast _and_ strong on top of the whole 'turn people to stone' thing, but something else worried him as well. ' _Divinity? I thought that Medusa was_ cursed _by the Greek Gods, not one of them?'_ He wasn't quite sure what it meant for this battle, but he didn't like it.

Andrew heard Saber Lily unsheath her sword. "If your Medusa are you the one that turned those people into stone?" She demanded, not asked.

"Yes." Was all she said in response with glee in her voice.

"Why, why would you do such a thing?" Came Mash's voice, sounding a bit shaken. She was definitely not used to this level of violence, and neither was Andrew really.

"Why, you ask? Well, that's quite a simple question to answer because I can, and I like it." She said as she walked up to one of the statues and then ripped the head of it sending it flying down to their feet. And blood spewed out of the neck for a second. The head landed near Andrew's feet.

Andrew saw the stone head landing at his feet, leaking blood from its neck, and kicked it away out of fear. He then looked over to his Servants. "W-We're going to slay this _monster_." He said shakily to the two, actively trying not to throw up.

"Oh, so you wish to kill me, you call me a monster. Now before you die, as your senior Servant let me teach you how, we fight." She said, as she grabbed her scythe with both hands and rushed at them.

"Senpai!" Mash yelled as she moved and blocked Medusa's strike with her shield. Andrew could only thank her internally as she saved his life, as she continued to block the mad Servant's strikes.

"I warn you girl this scythe of mine can slay even the gods, I should know it killed me!" Medusa shouted.

With Medusa's strikes being blocked by Mash, Andrew utilized his other Servant, using Instant Reinforcement on her as he simply commanded "Saber!", trusting the King to know better what to do when she got in close quarters with the monster from Greek Myth.

"Right, Master." She said, and Andrew saw her go off, the ground exploded beneath her feet as she attacked.

"Urgh." He heard Medusa grunt (more like growl), and a second later he heard the clashing of metal on metal again, but this time not right in front of him. He saw Mash move, and now the two Servants began double-teaming the Gorgon.

"So, you indeed have some form of skill." Andrew heard the Gorgon say as he saw her use her superior speed to avoid getting hit by Mash's shield and parrying Saber Lily's blade with her scythe. "But, it isn't enough."

She said as she swung her weapon at Saber Lily's neck so fast she didn't have time to dodge, but instead to Andrew's surprise and apparently Medusa's the scythe passed right through her neck like she was not even there. "What?" She said, and Andrew saw Mash take advantage of her vulnerability and attacked.

She hit the Lancer right in the stomach with the side of her shield sending her flying right into the grass hill making a small crater in the side of it. Andrew could see cracks in the earth where she landed.

Andrew stared wide-eyed at the result of Mash's attack, and then back at Mash. "That was amazing Mash!" he exclaimed, praising his Servant. He then remembered what had happened just beforehand and turned to Saber Lily. "And Saber, whatever you did there to dodge the attack was what gave her the chance to do it! So good job you two!" he said, smiling at his Servants.

"Thank you for the praise Senpai, but-" Mash said.

"-It was not me that did the dodge it was Mash, using her Skill on me that I was able to do, so." Saber said, taking over the sentence.

Andrew blinked twice as he processed that. "Wait, Mash, you can just straight up make someone avoid an attack just like that?" he asked. Perhaps he should have inquired as to what her skills actually did earlier.

"Yes, Senpai, my Personal Skill Obscurant Wall of Chalk, can make me or one of our ally's shift out this dimension, to dodge a single attack no matter what it is, but it has a cooldown between uses." Mash explained.

"That is absolutely incredible Mash!" Andrew said excitedly. "You can just do that whenever, except during the cooldown period?" He asked. That was a really, really awesome tool at their disposal for dealing with some of the bullshit that he knew could happen when Servants were involved.

"Yes," She answered, meekly with a blush on her face.

"And I must say that was expert teamwork, you two." Came Olga Marie's voice as she walked up next to Andrew. "Now, make sure she is dead."

"Yes, Director/ Ma'am." Answered both Servants.

"Damn the both of you." Came Medusa's voice from her hole. Andrew turned to look at the Greek snake and saw that she was standing shakily on her legs, and there was blood flowing down her mouth. She probably had suffered some internal damage from Mash's hit. "I will get, you for this- _auharg,_ " Medusa screamed as she was suddenly consumed by a pillar of fire which roared for a few seconds, leaving Medusa looking like a burnt corpse that collapsed and then disappeared in a shimmer of gold. Andrew saw the chains that blocked their path disappear in the same way.

"That's much better, don't you think, her voice was getting really grating." A male voice spoke. Andrew and all the others turned to where the voice had come from. Standing on top of a street lamp to their left, was a man in blue and white garb wielding a large wooden staff. More readily apparent to Andrew was that he looked suspiciously familiar- the blue hair made him think Cu Chulainn, but he didn't have Gae Bolg… "Not that we aren't grateful for your help, but why did you help us? And who are you?" He asked, deciding to take charge. The Servant on the street light might have been a friendly, but he just as easily be, another enemy who just didn't like Medusa.

The blue man didn't immediately answer as he jumped down from the light and landing a dozen feet from Andrew. Though the instant he did Saber Lily and Mash were directly in front of Andrew (and Olga) ready to protect him.

"Woah, take it easy, I'm with you guys. The Class is Caster, and my name is Cu Chulainn. Now then, which one you here is in charge of your little group?" Cu said, with a grin on his face.

"That would be me." Olga Marie spoke up. "My name is Olga Marie, I'm the Director of Chaldea, now what is it you want with us Ireland's Child of Light?"

"I just want to know, how you're here, as I was certain there weren't anymore humans left alive on the planet and only us Servants were left." Cu said, dropping the proverbial bomb on them.

"Holy shit," Andrew said softly. First, he had a run in with a Mythological Monster, and now Cu Chulainn himself was telling him that he was one of the two/three last humans on earth. If it weren't for that part, he would have honestly been ecstatic to meet Cu Chulainn, but as is his enthusiasm was squashed before it could really even be built. Everyone. Dead. He could barely think it fact, but the fiery hellscape they were still stuck in helped remind him that it was rather likely the truth.

"Caster, could you tell us exactly what happened here?" Olga Marie asked the Servant.

"I can, it all started when Saber was defeated early into the war, I don't know how happened, but she came back and proceeded to defeat everything and then resurrected them, blackening them somehow, bringing out the worst traits in them, like you saw with Lancer. And when she did fire spread from Ryuudou Temple on top of Mount Enzou on the west side of town. Which then spread beyond the city and consumed the world in a matter of days, the fire was magical in nature, so I think Saber used the power of the Holy Grail to fuel it. And I meant it when I said, the world is dead, I checked with my Magic, there is no Life outside of this town."

Andrew took in this new information and was internally wishing very hard he at least still thought this was a dream so he could use that to distance himself from what was going on. What with everything having been set on fire because a Saber -and given his luck and the location he was pretty sure it was _the_ Saber- had used the Holy Grail to destroy everything. And with that thought, he realized he was probably going to have to fight her to get out of this mess. He looked over to his own Saber with mixed feelings, wondering how she would react. He obviously couldn't warn her in advance without revealing that he knew things that he shouldn't possibly know, especially since what he knew was at least partially incorrect. He turned to Caster and asked. "So, what now?" Very well knowing the most likely answer.

"Well, as it looks like you guys are trying to fix the situation I'm going to help you guys, for you seem like the right sort of people." He said.

"And we would be thankful for your assistance, and now that we know what caused the Singularity we can eliminate the source and erase the Singularity, before the damage it has caused Human Order becomes permanent. But first, we need to contact Dr. Romani, and update him on the situation and prepare a plan to attack Saber and the rest of the remaining Servants." Olga Marie said with confidence in her voice.

"Ah, don't worry about that the only ones remaining are Archer and Saber. Berserker won't attack unless we bother him. Also, follow me I know a whole building we can use as a base. Where we can plan, and you can tell me how you showed up here for you certainly didn't come from nowhere." Caster stated.


	5. Alter

The building Caster Cu Chulainn had been talking about was a still intact Japanese Highschool, where they had set up a base. With Cu and Olga Marie using Runes to set up something called Bounded Field which would detect intrusion if one of the three remaining Servants did decide to attack as a precaution.

Afterwards, they had contacted Dr. Roman about what they had discovered, and he had agreed to change the plan and eliminate Saber, and The Grail as soon as possible. Though what they had learned from him had been a bit worrying that he and the rest of the staff had been unable to contact The Mages Association.

What had next had been Cu and Saber Lily taking Mash out into the school courtyard, to train her in accessing her Noble Phantasm before they attacked the Saber holed up in inside the small local mountain. A thing Andrew could see from his position where he was watching the training session.

Though what he currently had in his hands were was grabbing his attention the most, the small kaleidoscoped colored prism inside another prism gem. He had picked up after having seen it sparkling in the dirt where Medusa had met her end.

Andrew had shown it to the others and asked if they knew what it was. They didn't have any answers to that, even Olga Marie didn't know what they were. Though to their surprise, Cu had pulled out two of his own, saying he had found them after he had killed Assassin and Rider. When he had shown them to Dr. Roman, he said to bring them back to Chaldea and have Da Vinci analyze them in her Workshop.

Andrew put the gem away into his uniforms pocket, with the two others Cu had given him and returned his attention to the training session.

Andrew watched Caster fire fireballs at Mash, while Saber Lily attacked with her Sword, hoping they could force Mash to use her Noble Phantasm out of instinct. But they had been going for over twenty minutes and seemingly going nowhere.

Andrew's ears perked up as he heard Cu speak up. "Well, we have tried all forms of attacks to get you to activate you Noble Phantasm out. And it seems to me now the only way to bring a Noble Phantasm out is with another one."

"Wait, Caster, isn't that a little extreme?" Saber Lily asked, as she looked at the Irishman, rather nervously now.

"I don't think piercing her heart is going do much good in unlocking her Noble Phantasm," Andrew said, deciding to intrude on the conversation.

"Don't worry kid, not going to happen I'm a Caster, I don't even have my spear. I'm a Druid now, or at least a wannabe one, Scathach only taught me Scandinavian Runes, and I'm not going to use Ochd Deug Odin on her. As a Caster, I'm a fake Druid, and I have gained another Noble Phantasm based on that." Cu answered.

"Do it," Mash said interrupting the conversation.

Andrew looked over at Mash. "Are you absolutely sure?" He asked.

"I am Senpai if that is the only way to use so be it. For I'm going to need it to protect it you." Mash stated a sense of conviction in her voice.

Andrew nodded. "Alright. I trust your judgment." He then proceeded to back up a reasonable distance due to being unsure as to what Caster was about to use.

"I shall join you, Master." Saber Lily said as she ran up to Andrew's side, not wanting to be caught in what Caster Cu was about to use.

"Alright little lady, here I come. WICKER MAN!" Cu shouted as he slammed the end of his staff into the ground and a circle of fire appeared in front of him.

And out of it Andrew saw a massive figure seemingly made out of straw appear out of it, an effigy of a man. The thing was large- incredibly so, being several times bigger than Andrew himself, he had to compare it to be at least a few stories tall. The thing also seemed to have a giant metal cage in its stomach. To make it worse, the entire thing was on fire.

The Wicker Man controlled by Cu pulled it's fist back to hit Mash who stood steadfast with her shield. Andrew could see the determination in her eyes.

The world seemed to go in slow motion as the Wicker Man's fist rocketed towards Mash, but right before it hit Mash slammed her shield down and shouted. "Lord Chaldea!"

Andrew saw a green barrier appear in front of the shield, and it completely tanked the hit, stopping the fist cold.

The clash continued until the Wicker Man collapsed, Mash's barrier still standing. A few seconds later it disappeared, and Mash had a content smile on her face.

Andrew wasted no time in making his way over to Mash. "That. Was. Amazing!" He said, giddy with excitement. "With a barrier like that and with your Obscurant Wall of Chalk, we'll probably be able to beat the enemy Saber no problem!" he exclaimed.

"Thank, you for the praise Senpai but," Mash's smile fell a little as she trailed off her last word.

"But what?" Andrew asked, confused. "With your defensive abilities, the firepower Caster's got, and whatever Saber Lily's Caliburn does we've got this in the bag!"

Mash shook her head. "It's not that Senpai, it's that."

"That isn't the true Noble Phantasm of the shield isn't it?" Came Cu's voice as he walked up to their sides.

"Yes, I still do not know the true name of the Noble Phantasm of the Heroic Spirit who gave his power is. Lord Chaldea is more like me making my own, by using the energy within the shield to create it." She explained.

"Well it was good enough to stop my Wicker Man, so with a Command Seal boosting it should be able to stop Saber's Noble Phantasm easily." Cu said with confidence. "Aren't I right kid?"

Andrew nodded enthusiastically. "Yeah, with how well Lord Chaldea worked against the Wicker Man, boosting it would make it even better!" He then thought about what had just been said. "Wait, how do I use a Command Seal to boost? I thought they were just for making a Servant do what you wanted them to when they didn't." Andrew asked.

"Ha, you really are a novice Master aren't you kid." Cu laughed at Andrew, but not in a degrading way. "The correct usage of a Command Seal can make all the difference in a battle between Servants. A Command Seal can be used to make Servant go beyond their limits. Hit harder, go faster make a Noble Phantasm stronger. The one you should use with the miss is probably 'Block that attack no matter what.' or something in that vein." Cu recommended.

"Thank you for the information, Caster," Andrew said, mulling it over. Given what he knew about Excalibur -mainly when released it shot a massive laser- the fact he could strengthen Mash's super shield would likely prove invaluable. Andrew then realized that he had yet to use his Servant vision on their new ally, and attempted to do so.

Class: Caster

True Name: Cu Chulainn

Master: -

 **Parameters:**

Strength: E

Endurance: D

Agility: C

Luck: D

Mana: B

Noble Phantasm: A

 **Class Skills:**

Territory Creation: B

Divinity: B

 **Personal Skills:**

Primordial Rune: -

Protection From Arrows: A

Disengage: C

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Wicker Man: Cage of Scorching, Consuming Flames. (Anti-Army): B

Ochd Deug Odin: Great God Carved Seal. (Anti-Fortress): A

Andrew looked over Cu Chulainn's sheet. Two things, in particular, stood out to him- firstly, that Divinity (which made sense given Cu Chulainn's parentage) was a Class Skill, implying something Andrew really didn't want to think about, and more immediately relevant Protection From Arrows. "Caster, how effective is your Protection from Arrows skill?" he asked, a plan beginning to formulate in his mind.

"Oh want you to want to know about that, well with the help of my magic I can erase any projectile as long as I see it coming."

"I see…" Andrew said, the details of his plan coming together in his mind. There was just one more factor he needed to check on. "Saber Lily, what does your Noble Phantasm do when activated? Don't demonstrate, just elaborate." He asked.

"Caliburn can fire off a beam that explodes on whatever it hits." The soon to be King said as she walked up to them joining their half circle.

Andrew grinned. "Then I think I have a plan."

"What, is happening out here and what was that giant flaming statue." Came the voice of Olga Marie, as she jogged towards them. "Do, you want the enemy to attack us."

"Ah, Director that was Caster's Noble Phantasm, we used to unlock mine. And now we're planning on how to deal with Saber, and Senpai has one." Mash told the Director.

"Really, so you're a tactician now, so tell me what it is you plan to do." Olga Marie inquired.

Andrew motioned towards Cu Chulainn. "Caster here can erase any projectile he can see, so part 1 is to lure out Archer and have Caster draw his fire while Saber Lily and Mash-" here he motioned towards his servants. "-go in close and destroy him. Part 2 is to then attack the enemy Saber in the mountain with Wickerman as a distraction which might hopefully deal some damage to her, but will, more importantly, draw her out in the open for Saber Lily to use her Noble Phantasm and kill her. And if at any point it looks like the enemy Saber is going to use _her_ Noble Phantasm, we all hide behind Mash while she uses Lord Chaldea." Andrew explained.

"That's a good plan kid, and I would recommend it if those two weren't hold up where they are." Said Cu before anybody else could. "Archer is more of a guard dog than me, and from what my familiar's are seeing watching the cave entrance where Saber is hiding inside. And he has not moved from since my last fight with him. And Saber she is protecting the Grail, which is inside the cave and won't move from there no matter what, so we have to enter it to fight her. And he just shut down one of them. We need to attack soon and agree we need to deal with Archer first, but let me take care of him, while you take down Saber, with Mash's shield Noble Phantasm won't be a help."

"Cu Chulainn, that is the second time you mentioned Saber's Noble Phantasm, so that means you know what it is?" Saber Lily asked.

"Yes, that is information we would like to know." Added Olga Marie.

"Right, I'll tell you. But Miss Saber, you won't like what I'm going to say. Saber's Noble Phantasm is the Holy Sword known as Excalibur." Cu revealed, confirming Andrew's suspicions, much to his dread.

Andrew saw Olga and Mash's eyes widen, while Saber Lily's face turned to one of horror, for a brief moment before becoming one of sorrow. "I see, then I will do everything in my power to stop the me, that has lost her way. For these are not the actions of a King." Saber Lily spoke with determination. "Even if I'm weaker than her."

Andrew frowned. "We still have to fight the enemy Saber, regardless of what weapon they wield." He took a deep breath to try and calm himself. "This just means we have to kill her before she uses it. And if we can't, we always have Mash's Lord Chaldea which will (hopefully) block it," he said, deliberately whispering the hopefully.

"Thank, you Master, your words are inspiring." Said, Saber Lily, as she looked at Andrew.

"And kind." Added Mash.

"Now, enough with this sappy stuff we have some hell to bring." Cu said.

"Right." Said Mash and Saber Lily at the same time.

"Alrighty then! We're gonna go clean this mess up." Andrew said enthusiastically.

Xxx

The ground crunched beneath as the walked through the now dead forest that surrounded Mount Enzou, walking on the path that leads to the entrance of the cavern that existed inside of it.

"The entrance is right there." Cu said as he pointed at a dark hole that leads into the mountain. But Andrew could see there was no one in front of it like Cu had said there was.

They entered a small clearing that was right before the entrance.

"Caster," Andrew said quietly to said Servant. "Didn't you say Archer was right here?" He asked, worried he had moved to a higher vantage point.

"Oh, he is still in the forest I can feel his presence in there. He is moving quickly, so I'm not able to pinpoint him precisely, but I think he is looking for us inside it." Cu said but stopped as an unknown male voice spoke.

"I Am The Bone of My Sword!"

"Get down!" Cu shouted, and he quickly did a one-eighty degrees turn and placed his hand on the ground, and a blue circle appeared around them.

Andrew and the others turned around to see a massive sword arrow that the Archer, who Andrew knew as EMIYA, slowed to a complete halt in midair before vanishing.

"That was too close." Cu said.

"Agreed." They all answered.

"It seems that your just as tenacious as you normally are, _dog_." Came the voice of Archer, as he stepped out of the forest revealing himself to the group. In his hands, Andrew saw those black and white paired blades he used as his primary weapon. But his appearance was different somewhat from it had been in the anime; mainly, his coat was now just a waistcoat, and he had strange red markings on his face and arms.

"Caster, blast him," Andrew said softly, figuring it be best to just cut to the chase and destroy the enemy Servant as quickly as possible.

"And you're still protecting her. _Anzus_!" Caster shouted as he fired a fireball from his staff.

But the attack quickly was blocked by Archer and his blades.

"Of course I will, I will always protect her no matter what," Archer stated and went on the attack ignoring Andrew's Servants focusing only on Cu.

"Kid, go deal with Saber, I'll deal with him as quickly as I can." Cu stated as he began coating his staff in flames.

"On it!" Andrew said, motioning to his Servants and Olga Marie as they made their way into the cave proper.

And as they entered the mountain they, began running through the tunnel that would lead them to the main cavern. As they went further in, going through a few smaller rooms and bit downwards.

Andrew heard Fou let out a small concerned whimper, from his shoulder. Andrew looked over to the little white fluffball, having honestly forgotten he was there. "What's wrong little guy?" He asked. Fou was blatantly obviously some kind of magical creature what with everything going on, so maybe he could feel something that Andrew couldn't? Or maybe he smelt something to the same effect, and he was overthinking it. Either way, it probably wasn't a good sign.

"I think, that Fou is able to sense something within the mountain Senpai. And I can feel it to now, it feels wrong, cold." Mash stated.

"I feel the same thing now Master, there is something wrong with the Mana here in the cave, it feels like it has been tainted." Saber Lily said.

Andrew frowned. He couldn't really feel anything himself, but the fact that they were was definitely a bad sign, but then he remembered what Caster had said about what had happened to the Servants. "Didn't Caster say that the Servants killed by Saber came back twisted? That probably means the Grail is the cause of it since its what Saber is clinging to in this mess." He stated his observation to the group and then realized something else. "That probably means we're going in the right direction, at least."

"You actually have the brain power to be able to figure that out, impressive deduction from a novice." Olga Marie said, in what she probably thought was praise.

Andrew looked Olga Marie dead in the eye, expression as deadpan as possible. "Gee, thanks." He said flatly.

"Why, you little- have some respect."

"Please don't fight right now." Mash interrupted as the voice of reason. Though Andrew heard Saber Lily stifle a laugh.

"Mash is right. Now isn't the time for this." Andrew said. "Actually, Director, is there anything that you can contribute to this fight?" He asked.

"Sadly not, this is going to be a fight between Servants only a Master can contribute in this battle. What I'm going to do is protect you from getting killed by stray debris being flung around."

"Understood," Andrew said with a nod. "Let's keep moving. The quicker we kill the enemy Saber, the sooner we get to leave."

As Andrew finished, Mash spoke up again. "I can see the end of the tunnel." And she was right Andrew could see some form of purple colored light, and a second later they entered the main cave where Saber and the Grail was.

And the hollowed out chamber was massive with several stories to the ceiling where the stalactites hung. And in front of them was a large raised mound of earth, that went halfway up. Purple-ish pink light shone from the top of it. Though how it was made gave the impression of human bodies tangled together.

"How interesting, are you new challengers coming to take my Holy Grail?" Spoke a voice that sounded almost exactly the same as Saber Lily's but more hollow, devoid of feelings.

Andrew, previously, had just, had a gnawing fear that he was going to die growing in the back of his mind which would come to the surface occasionally that he had been doing his best to ignore. Now, now he was downright terrified. He couldn't see the enemy Saber, which meant she could damn well pop up at any moment and hit them with Excalibur before he could use the Command Seal on Mash. It was taking every ounce of willpower Andrew had to remain standing, but his hands were definitely shaking as he looked around the room to try and maybe spot the corrupt King. He tried to muster his resolve as he spoke. "Y-yes. Yes, yes we are." He said.

As soon as Andrew answered, the sound of something landing on rock, rang throughout the cave.

Andrew saw the dust rising up into the air covering the figure that had just landed a few feet away from them.

"Then come at me with all of your might, Master of the Servant of Shield and my foolish younger self." As she finished speaking, the dust cleared showing Saber in all her terrifying glory.

She wore an outfit much like her normal counterpart in design, but of purple coloring with those same red lines all over it, and it seemed like she had more armor than her normal counterpart, but it definitely had a more spiky design. Her eyes were a piercing yellow-gold with a piercing, fearsome gaze. In her right hand she held Excalibur, or what once was Excalibur; now the shining golden blade was pitch black, with the red lines on everything else being the only color. Oddly enough, she lacked the hair antenna that her normal counterpart possessed- perhaps further representing the loss of her normal self.

Mash and Saber Lily immediately moved in front of Andrew to protect him from Saber's altered form.

"Ah, your first instinct is to protect your Master, that is proper Servant action." She stated, for no apparent reason, she wasn't addressing them, she was just talking to herself, speaking her thoughts out loud.

"Senpai!"

"Master!

"Your orders please."

Andrew had just barely been able to regain some of his confidence from before and said "Saber, go on the offensive! Don't hold anything back! Mash, be her shield and be ready to use Obscurant Wall!" He half-shouted; he had to in order to say it clearly at that point.

The two Servants didn't say anything, but the moment he finished speaking they rushed at Saber- Alter? Right, that seemed like a good name for her to as she was very much altered from her normal self.

Lily went on the attack first, her golden blade clashed with a boom with blackened one of Alter, but the Servant didn't even move an inch. The pair disengaged their lock and Lily moved a bit back as to switch out with Mash, who blocked Alter's next attack. So Andrew watched the battle go, as his two Servants tried to get even a single hit. They moved like water to Andrew's eyes flowing in out of switching places constantly to confuse their enemy.

But Alter, Alter hadn't moved from her spot a single inch, still standing where she had landed.

If Mash and Lily were like water, then Alter was a rock standing steadfast uncaring of the water that tried to push it out of the way.

That was when Alter began to speak. "Your Master must be really pathetic if he summoned you. A version of me at the beginning of her journey to damnation. Still so very, weak and unskilled. You would never have a chance to beat me. Oh? No answer? Fine, then you aren't even worth my time." It happened when Alter finished speaking.

It happened so fast Andrew didn't have time to react and neither did Lily and Mash.

Alter seemingly let go of her blade for a single split second right in front of Mash who had just blocked a hit. The now free hand surged with some kind of dark mist which blasted Mash, sending her flying away from Alter and Lily.

Alter's left hand reached out and gripped Lily by her hair and then it happened, the hand which blasted Mash away-

Hit Lily directly in the stomach breaking her Armor and Andrew saw in that split second spit and blood fly out of her mouth. "You aren't worth killing, weak as you are." She said as she held Lily by her hair. "Here, you can have your weak Servant back."

At that Alter threw Lily at Andrew.

A minute had gone by since the battle had started, and it was over just like that. Andrew braced himself to catch the carelessly thrown Servant, managing to cushion the landing with his own body. He then immediately used First Aid on said Servant and then Mash. He then said as quietly as he could to Saber Lily "Use your Phantasm." before he even tried getting up.

"Sorry, Master that I'm so weak," Lily said meekly. "But, I think going to sleep a little." She said, as closed her eyes. Andrew feared the worst, but he could still hear her breathing, so she just had fallen unconscious.

Andrew raised himself from the ground and placed Lily down gently and cast First Aid again, so she could begin to recover.

Andrew glared at Alter as hard as he could, and the dark Servant began speaking again. "Now that the trash has been removed let's test out that shield of your's girl." She looking at Mash, who had recovered from the surprise maneuver that Alter had employed.

Andrew saw Alter pick up her blade again and positioned it above her head. "Let's see if you can block this sword." Dark energy surge from the blade it becoming being coated with black magical energy. "Excalibur-"

Andrew had been dreading this moment, but he had been expecting it nonetheless. As soon as Alter raised her sword above her head, he activated his circuits. "Shielder! BLOCK THAT ATTACK!" he said hurriedly, hoping he was using the Command Seal correctly.

Andrew saw the Seal on his hand flare red and one disappearing.

"-Morgan!"

"Lord Chaldea!"

Alter swung her blade, and a beam of dark energy flowed from it and towards Mash, and her super shield that had appeared in front of her.

The attack clashed with the barrier creating a massive boom as dark energy continued to flow from the corrupted holy sword.

But, Mash's defense held true, and after a few seconds the flow stopped, and Mash's barrier still stood though flickering a little bit.

"It seemed it was able to stop my Noble Phantasm. That Shield truly is impressive, but can it handle another." Alter said as she held her sword over her head again and dark energy began flaring again.

"Shitshitshitshitshit!" Was all Andrew could say. He had two more Command Seals, but he had no idea how many more times Saber Alter could use her Noble Phantasm, and if the answer was 'more than one' after this one they were guaranteed to lose. "Shielder!" Andrew yelled once more-

"My Magecraft is a cage of flames, a flaming yet verdant guardian. Retribution. A shrine that purifies the evil of human affairs." Andrew heard the familiar voice of Cu Chulainn, and a second later he saw him run right past him, Olga Marie and Fou. Though this time he lacked a shirt and jacket. Showing off a chiseled male body of fitness perfection. "I'm proud that you managed to hold out this long." He rushed forward towards Alter. "The one who destroys- Wicker Man!" He shouted as he activated the same Noble Phantasm he had used against Mash.

This time the fire circle that summoned the giant straw man appeared right underneath Alter. Who had to disengage her attack.

She jumped upwards to avoid the attack, but that was a mistake as the Wicker Man grabbed Alter in mid-air and threw her into its stomach cage, where it collapsed and exploded.

Andrew was in awe at the display and about to celebrate their victory but stopped as he saw Alter standing seemingly unharmed.

"It seems that victory is for the power that protects." She said as her body slowly began to disappear with a golden shimmer rising from her feet and upwards. "I see… Such as that innocent one." Andrew saw to his surprise a smile appear on Alter's face. "Ultimately, no matter how fate changes. I still face the same end when I'm alone."

"What does that mean?" Asked Cu. "Do you know something?"

"Eventually you will know too, Ireland's child of light." Alter was almost half gone now. "Grand Order." Andrew heard a shocked gasp from Olga Marie. "And the battle over the Holy Grail has just begun." She said as she vanished.

"Wait, what do you-" Cu began saying. But stopped as Andrew saw that he too was starting to disappear. "Hey, kid, young lady, I'm leaving the rest to you." He said with a smile. "If there is a next time summon me as a Lancer." He said as he disappeared too as Andrew stood there too overwhelmed to say anything.

"Caster, and Saber, both are confirmed gone Senpai. I can no longer feel their presence." Mash said as she began walking over to Andrew and the downed Lily.

Andrew looked at Mash, looked back over to where Cu Chulainn had just stood, then where Alter had disappeared, then to the down Lily and then back to Mash. "What now?" He asked shakily. The question wasn't directed just at Mash but was more of a general question. They had beaten the enemies, but one of his Servants was unconscious (which was a thing that he was unaware they could be considering the whole spirit thing) and their only ally in this hellhole had just evaporated.

Though where Saber had disappeared, he saw the same prismatic crystal he had in his pockets.

"We need to extract the Holy Grail, and Rayshift out here, doing so will deprive the Singularity of its fuel source, and it will disappear, and everything will go back to normal." Olga Marie said.

"Okay," Andrew said, as he quickly ran over to where the crystal was and picked it up, for something told him he didn't he wouldn't be able to get it later.

He turned to Olga Marie. "So, how do we extract it?" he asked.

"Simple just need to find its physical manifestation, from my earlier analysis of Kyrielight shield it has a storage function which will be able to hold the Grail. It seemed like was designed for holding spiritual objects." Olga Marie said.

Andrew nodded at the information. He was burnt out, figuratively and literally, and was just following along the path that leads to them getting out of here the quickest. "Let's go find the grail."

Olga Marie was about to speak, but closed her mouth, as the sound of clapping hands echoed throughout the cave.

It was slow, sarcastic clapping.

"My, I never thought you would all get this far." Spoke a familiar male voice. It was coming from the top of the mound.

They all looked up, and to their surprise, they saw Lev Lainur standing on top it.

"This is an unforeseen element of the project that goes beyond what my tolerance allows."

"Professor Lev?" Mash asked looking at the green wearing man.

"Professor Lev, you say?" Came Dr. Romans voice from Olga's arm wrist phone.

"Lev… Lev." Olga Marie said with happiness as she began running towards the man. "Lev! Thank goodness that you're alive! Without you, I don't know what I do."

"Hey Olga, you seemed to have had a rough time, too." Lev calmly spoke.

"Yes, that's right Lev. With all the unexpected events I thought I would go crazy. But, now that you're here we get through it won't we?"

"Of course," Lev answered. With a tone that was starting make Andrew really uncomfortable, was this really the same man he had met in Chaldea? "I'm just furious with all these unexpected events. Romani, I told you to come to the control room right away."

"Lev." Said Roman, this time coming through Mash's band.

"And you Olga," The woman stopped running. "I planted the bomb directly under your feet. I can't believe you're still alive." he paused for a second. "Well, not exactly alive. In fact, you're dead." Andrew saw Lev's face turn creepy. "Your physical body anyway. When you were alive, you didn't have any aptitude for Rayshifting. You couldn't make the transfer since you had a body. But you had such an earnest desire for it when you died, you were granted the ability to do so."

"Lies…" Andrew heard Olga Marie say in a tone of voice that he had never heard from her before, one of pure despair.

"That's why the moment you return to Chaldea, your consciousness will cease to exist."

"I will cease to exist."

"But that's too miserable to contemplate. You dedicated your life to Chaldea." Lev lifted his hand up into the air, and Andrew saw a golden cup land in it.

"The Grail." He heard Mash whisper.

"So the least I can do is show you what's going on." Lev took and snapped his finger with his right hand, and Andrew saw right behind Lev a circle appearing. It began expanding, and it revealed the floating Gyroscope inside of Chaldea, but now it was a burning orange color.

"W-what is that?" Olga Marie stammered as she began stepping backward. "It's not real, is it? That's just a virtual image right, Lev." Her voice was getting panicky.

"It's the real thing alright, I linked space-time together for you. You see with a holy grail even this is possible. So take a good look scion of the Animusphere family. This is the fate of your family's lunacy." Lev stated and then pointed his right hand at Olga, Andrew saw it lit up, and then he saw Olga's body was being lifted off the ground and up into the air.

"Hey, what are you?"

"As this is the end I will let your wish come true. You may touch your treasure." Lev said.

"What are you talking about. Stop it." Andrew could see Olga struggle in the air, and felt frustrated as there was nothing he could do here, Lily was out and Mash, was severely tired, he could hear ragged breath like she was about to collapse any second.

"That's CHALDEA," Olga screamed.

"Yes, it's no different than a black hole, or perhaps the sun. Either way if a human touches it way will be split apart on a molecular level. You will experience infinite death if you do."

Andrew just looked on as the Director came closer and closer to death, grind his teeth in frustration.

"No… No. Somebody, please help me!" Olga Marie cried. "Why? Why does this always happen to me." Andrew heard Olga Marie cry out for her life and the.

"Uarhghuauuuahhrghahharghaearguarghgarh!" And then there was silence as Andrew saw Olga Marie's body sink into the device.

Andrew threw up.

"Senpai." He heard Mash say in concern.

"And then there was three left." Rung Lev's voice through the cave.

Xxx

 **Reaction Theater:**

Passive: Sees Salter for the first. [OMG Saber turned to the dark side.]


	6. Little Down Time

Andrew wanted to scream. He felt so _useless_ as he just watched Olga Marie die. The situation had overwhelmed him, proven him unable to do anything but watch. And now, rage began to build. At Olga, for putting him in this mess in the first place; at Lev, for acting like a good person only to do all this; and mostly, at himself for his inability to do anything. He looked up at Lev from where he was still hunched over from throwing up. " _Why?"_ Andrew asked that one word held more emotion than he had ever felt in his entire life.

"Why what?" Lev asked, his voice filled with fake curiosity. "Why was I friendly towards you, or why did I kill Olga Marie and attack Chaldea."

"Both!" Andrew practically cried out, his voice cracking.

"Senpai." Came Mash voice of concern a small comfort to his mind.

"For why I was nice to you. It was just curiosity I wanted to see what kind of potential, you had and to keep up appearance. But every single second I spent with you made me physically ill. But I must say, for a newcomer to the Moonlit World your performance has been adequate. And for the second part, can you hear me Romani, Chaldea?" He said, voicing his true thoughts to everyone.

Andrew himself felt physically ill being in Lev's presence now. It was like he had drunk spoiled milk, or as if the milk had spoiled inside of him. The anger, the feeling of betrayal, the presence of the Grail combined to form a feeling Andrew had never quite felt before alongside nausea.

Hate.

"Yes," Came Dr. Roman's voice from Mash armband phone.

"Good, now let me introduce myself I am Lev Lainur Flauros, and I have been put in charge of destroying human history in 2018. Hear me Chaldea, the future you used to observe has not disappeared, but it has been incinerated. For there is no present now to create. It is only thanks to the barrier created by CHALDEA, that you're still alive. For the world which you inhabit should have met the same fate as this one by now." Lev spoke.

"That's why we can't contact anybody, there is no outside to contact." Dr. Roman said.

"Why would you help Chaldea then, if you planned to destroy it and everything else?" Andrew asked, confusion being added to his cocktail of emotions.

"Ah, you see wanted to help humanity, not this planet in the beginning, that had been my mission in life. But last year, I was granted a new mission by my King, yes humanity shall not die by their evolution ceasing or war against another species. You have met your end because you're worthless and have lost the favor of my King." Lev cheerily said. And as he finished speaking the cave began to shake.

"King? What king?" Andrew asked frantically. Lev himself wasn't the mastermind? And there was at least one being stronger than him who could command that humanity is exterminated, and it would be done? What kind of power did Lev serve?

"That is information, you will never find out. Now I need to take my leave, it seems the Singularity is collapsing in on itself." Lev spoke as he began flying into the air and the window, he had created began closing, as the shaking grew and the ground began to crack rocks began to fall down on them.

Mash moved quickly and held her shield over all three of them blocking the falling rocks.

Andrew saw Lev wink out of existence.

"Dammit…" Andrew said as he saw Lev leave; he hadn't been able to do anything to the traitor. "Doctor, get us out of here!" he half yelled; he wasn't sure how long Mash could hold up the rubble.

"Right, I'm Rayshifting you out of there now, hold on for another fifteen seconds." Dr. Roman shouted through Mash's armband.

The ground beneath them cracked apart, and they began falling in mid-air.

"Senpai grab my hand!" Mash shouted as she held out it for him.

Andrew reached out to grab her hand, his other hand grabbing for the still unconscious Saber Lily.

And as the moment he did he saw a swirling blue vortex and then darkness once again.

Xxx

Andrew blinked his eyes wearily as he woke up. He was dead tired; the New Years party must of- his eyes widened fully upon noticing the tile light in the white ceiling. He sat up and saw Saber Lily sitting in a chair, fidgeting and seeming rather uncomfortable. He also noticed Fou was at the end of his bed curled up into a ball. He then recalled what had happened in the Singularity. "Fuck…" he said, his voice hoarse. All of the feelings from earlier came rushing back to him all at once and hit like a freight train. At least the seemingly literal aspect of feeling sick in Lev's presence was alleviated.

"Here Master, have some water," Lily said, as she reached over to the table and handed him a bottle of water.

Andrew smiled weakly at Saber Lily as he took the water bottle from her. "Thank you, Saber," he said before drinking greedily, drinking most of the bottle in one go. He then looked back at Saber and asked: "What happened after we got back?"

"Mash told me after I woke up two hours ago that after we Rayshifted back to here, you fell unconscious, and it is currently eight in the morning. And I'm sorry Master." Saber Lily apologized.

"For what?" Andrew asked. "You gave it your all, and I didn't tell you to use your Noble Phantasm in time. You have nothing to apologize for."

"I know, Mash said the same thing, but it still feels like it was my fault Master, I failed you, and I wouldn't have if I were a stronger Servant." he saw tears begin to leak out her eyes.

"Bullshit," Andrew said as he reached over and pulled the girl into a hug. "Unless there's some version of you who can stop a teleporting, flying enemy in possession of a Holy Grail there's not much you could have done." He realized how shitty of a consolation that was the hopelessness of the situation they had been in hit him. The only Servant he could think of who might have been able to do something was Gilgamesh, but he would have just as likely killed Andrew himself for being unworthy of being his Master.

Andrew noticed that he too was crying. There really was nothing they could have done. The cocktail of emotions swirled, anger at the whole thing filling the brim. "B-but," he said, trying to do what he had intended and comfort her. "We still made it out alive, right? We're here, right now, too- to learn from this and become stronger, r-right?" he said, trying to convince himself just as much as Saber.

"You're right, Master your still alive, so I haven't failed you completely, If I need to get stronger I will, I will train myself and increase my swordsmanship to the highest level and be your number one Saber." The girl tried to say with a smile, but it was undermined by her tears.

"That's the spirit!" Andrew said with forced enthusiasm, not faring much better than the Servant.

"Now, we should get down to the dining hall for breakfast I bet that your hungry Master. And Mash should still be there too." Lily suggested.

"Yeah, yeah that sounds like a good idea," Andrew said. He was somewhat hungry, and it would be nice to have something to distract him from or alleviate the things he was feeling. He got up out of bed, stumbling only a little.

"There is a change of clothes on the table Master, I am waiting for you outside the door," Lily said and quickly left the infirmary room.

Andrew quickly changed into the uniform and went to join his Servant in the hall. Leaving the still sleeping Fou behind after giving him a quick pat on the head.

Andrew smiled a bit more genuinely at Lily as they left for the dining hall still being able to remember where it was, and Lily making sure he entered the right door to the floor below.

On the way there they ran into a few of the surviving staff members. Who greeted him with thanks and praise for fixing the Fuyuki Singularity. Andrew wasn't really sure what was praiseworthy about it. They ended the Singularity, sure, but they lost so much to get to there, and with the Lev situation the whole thing felt like a failure. Especially considering they were only able to beat Saber Alter with the help of a Servant who wasn't even theirs. ' _We're going to need enough firepower to not_ need _outside assistance.'_ Andrew thought to himself.

Though a useful bit of information they had given was, that Dr. Roman had some words to say to them all in the dining hall.

They walked into the hall, where they saw the rest of the nineteen employees left alive.

"Senpai, Lily over here," Mash called to them from the table she was sitting at, though not wearing her Servant outfit anymore, just her normal clothes.

"Mash, how are you feeling?" Andrew asked, remembering how she had seemed exhausted before the Rayshift out. "And where's your shield?" he asked upon realizing it wasn't there.

"Ah, Lily taught me how to astralize my armor and shield, though I can't do that with my body as its still flesh, and blood," Mash answered Andrew's question as he and Lily sat down next to her.

Andrew frowned a bit, noticing how she avoided the question. "How are you feeling?" he repeated. If something was wrong, he felt he should try and help in any way he could to repay her for saving his life several times over during the Singularity.

"I'm feeling fine Senpai, just a little bit shocked and worried is all." She answered.

"Good," Andrew said, relieved. "I can't have anything happen to my Kouhai after all."

"S-Senpai," She sputtered, looking away embarrassed. "You can't just say such thing in front of others."

"Don't mind me just, continue." Came Lily's voice treading into perverted old woman territory.

Andrew smiled, much more genuinely than earlier. "Oh, but how could I forget my other Servant! Oh, precious Princess of Knights, how fareth thee?"

This time it was her turn to blush. "If, you want to pretend to be Sir Kay, put on some armor."

"Oh, but my dear Once and Future King, how could I ever live up to one of thine Knights of the Round?" He said, putting a hand over his heart. "Ney, I could never be as virtuous a Knight as even the least of those in thine court, only ever try to be as kind," he said with a flourish, being swept away in the performance, distracting him from his thoughts.

Both Mash and Lily broke out into genuine laughter. "Oh, you will never match them in prowess Master, but as a hopeless romantic, you match even Tristan." Though before she could say more another spoke up.

"Alright everyone be quiet, and listen." Mash, Lily, and Andrew turned their head towards where they had heard Dr. Romans voice. They saw him and Da Vinci standing in front of the dining halls door, everyone inside was quiet as they looked at the man. "Thank you. Now before her murder Director, Olga Marie ordered me to take care of Chaldea, and I shall do so. Now a moment of silence."

Andrew somberly bowed his head silently in respect to the dead.

Dr. Roman began speaking again after a minute of silence. "Now thanks to the efforts of Olga Marie along with Master candidate 49 Andrew Murphy and his two Servants. Singularity Fuyuki has been erased and can no longer be observed by SHEBA. But after it disappeared, Seven Great singularities has been detected, each them even greater, space-time disturbances than the one previously observed. So I ask you Andrew and your Servants Mash and Arturia Pendragon, to go to these Singularities on the mission designated Grand Order to put human history on its correct path. Do you accept this mission to shoulder the survival of mankind." Dr. Roman asked them, looking directly at Andrew.

"Well, with stakes like these I can't really afford to say no, can I?" Andrew said after a moment. "But you said Seven more singularities- what kind of time frame are we looking at here?" He asked, trying to figure out how soon he would have to go back into another hellhole.

"SHEBA has managed to pinpoint the timeframe of the first Singularity. That is going to be French 1431 and tail end of the hundred year war. You will embark on the mission tomorrow morning, for now, I need you to prepare and be well rested." Dr. Roman finished speaking.

"And Andrew I want to see you in my Workshop after you finished eating breakfast along with Mash." Added Da Vinci.

Tomorrow morning was better than today, but still less time than he had been hoping for. "Understood," Andrew said aloud. He looked over to his Servants before speaking again. "Da Vinci, we'll be joining you shortly," he added.

"That is good." She said, and the renaissance woman and doctor left the dining hall.

"Let's get you something to eat Senpai."

Xxx

Twenty minutes later Andrew and Mash were standing in Da Vinci's workshop, which looked to have been ripped straight out of something from her time period. With bookshelves all over the place, tables with drawings and documents spread all over them.

Mash had let him here after they had finished breakfast with most the time being taken up by Lily eating several portions like a vacuum cleaner, and had finished after ten, some fitting it all in her stomach. Afterwards, they had parted ways with him and Mash going to Da Vinci and Lily wanted to explore the facility and ask roman if there were someplace she could use to train.

Now they were here, in front of the genius turned female.

"So, Da Vinci, what was it that you wanted us here for?" Andrew asked, suspecting it to be related to the summoning of more Servants. He then remembered that she too was a servant, and quickly used his Stat-o-vision.

[spoiler=Da Vinci's Stat Sheet]Class: Caster

True Name: Leonardo Da Vinci

Master: -

 **Parameters:**

Strength: E

Endurance: E

Agility: C

Luck: B

Mana: A+

Noble Phantasm: EX

 **Class Skills:**

Item Creation: A

Territory Creation: A

 **Personal Skills:**

Natural Born Genius: EX

Pioneer of The Stars: EX

Golden Rule(Body): B

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Uomo Universale: The Universal Man. (Anti-Unit/Anti-Army): EX[/spoiler]

Andrew's eyes widened a bit as he read. That was a lot of EX's. He'd have to ask about some of those later.

"You see it's about those gems you picked up in the Singularity." She answered presenting the four gems in her hand.

Andrew looked at the rainbow gems in her hand then back up to Da Vinci's face. "What, do they do something?" He asked, curious. Other than their color they seemed inert like a normal rock.

"It's not what they do dear Andrew, but rather what they are. I've spent a good chunk of the night analyzing their composition, and I found out that they highly dense pure Prana gem composed out of the remnants of a Servant's Saint Graph." She explained.

"Saint Graph?" Andrew asked as he tried not to think about how those gems were essentially the corpses of the Servants from Fuyuki.

"A Saint Graph is the technical term for the Spiritual Prana body that the Heroic Spirit inhabits while it's summoned. So because of that, I have decided to name them Saint Quartz. But it's what they are going to be doing for you that is important."

Andrew had to only think for a moment before he connected the dots in his mind. "They're pure Prana from Servants...so I'm assuming that means they can be used to aid in the summoning of one?" He asked.

"Correct, while you can summon a Servant in a Singularity by accessing a powerful enough Leyline and a bit of your own reserves. You can't do that here in Chaldea right now, as those resources are currently used to maintain our current existence in. You can use those to substitute it and summon Servant's inside the chamber here."

Andrew grinned eagerly. "Then let's go do that right now! The more Servants we have at our disposal, the easier it will be to win!" Andrew was honestly getting a bit excited about the situation. Who knows what Servant he could summon?

"And that's why I wanted Mash here, to use her shield as the catalyst and to teach her how to set up the ritual in a Singularity." Da Vinci told them.

"Well then what are we waiting for? Let's go do it!" Andrew said excitedly.

"And thankfully it's right next door." Da Vinci said. They all left the Workshop and quickly entered the summoning room which looked just like the place Olga had created. But here there was a circle already drawn on the floor. Mash placed her shield on it just like before.

"Now, Andrew it's just like when you summoned Lily, but this time, you need to just focus on Saint Quartz and direct their energy into the circle. You should only need three for this." Da Vinci said as she held out the three Saint Quartz for him to take.

He was somewhat disappointed that he would only be able to summon one Servant, but he still eagerly took the gems with a quick "Thank you." before he turned to the circle and began to focus.

Andrew activated his Magic Circuits, but instead of sending his now thankfully full reserves into the circle he send a bit of it into the Saint Quartz to fill them. And there he felt an otherworldly feeling of the power contained within the gems.

Andrew directed all of it into the magic circle without even using an entire Circuits worth of Prana.

Andrew saw the circle light up like with Lily but this time he was prepared and closed his eyes to protect them. He opened them quickly and saw a familiar figure standing in the circle.

"Hey, kid didn't I tell you to summon me as a Lancer?"

Andrew laughed as he walked up to his new Servant and couldn't help but give the blue-haired Irishman a hug. "Sorry, but I don't really know how to do that," he said. Andrew hadn't really realized how much Cu Chulainn's sacrifice had affected him until that moment. The Caster was the only stranger who hadn't been obligated to protect him who had actually earnestly had his best interest at heart so far, even if that best interest seemed to be 'kill Saber Alter.'

"Hey, hey, kid take it easy with the hugging." The man said as Andrew let go immediately of him. "Anyway, good to see you and you to miss Shielder." The man grinned, and his eyes came to the other occupant in the room. "Hello there Lady, what is a beauty like you doing here."

Cu moved past Andrew and began to flirt with Da Vinci.

"Sorry, I'm only interested in men of the non-barbarian kind." Was her retort.

Andrew chuckled at her reply.

"Well, it was worth a true. So kid what has happened since the cave and might I ask where that other pretty lady is?"


	7. Skills and Feels

xxx

Andrew steeled himself and looked solemnly at Ireland's Child of Light. "She..died almost right after you did."

"Damn, that is beyond bad luck, makes me wish, that I had made a contract with you then and there so I would have been able to stay around. She might have been a bit of bitch, but she didn't deserve to die." He said back. "So, this place is Chaldea right, I can see that shield girl is still with you, what about whitey is she still with you?"

"I think she went to ask Director Roman if there was a place she could train," Andrew replied.

"Well, could you tell me where he is so I can go join her, I want to see how good she actually is?" Cu asked.

"I shall show you the directions to where she should be training Cu Chulainn, so need to bother Dr. Roman about it." Da Vinci answered.

"Sure thing, my fellow Caster, at least I think you are. Don't look like the fighting type?" Cu asked for clarification.

"I am indeed a Caster Class Servant, my name is Leonardo Da Vinci, now come I shall show you where our room will be and the training area."

"Great, I'm going to have a bit of fun talk to you later Master after I'm done." Cu said to Andrew.

"Talk to you later then, Caster," Andrew said.

"Now Andrew, Mash you two have the entire day to relax before starting the mission to France tomorrow so spend your day well." Da Vinci suggested to the Servant and Master pair.

"Will do, boss," Andrew said to the renaissance painter before a thought occurred to him. "Actually, I think I'll come with you guys. I still don't know what most of the Skills possessed by Servants do, and I would like to know the full capabilities of my servants in order to plan accordingly." He said confidently. Andrew was going to be as tactical about this whole Singularity thing as he possibly could.

"You truly have a mind for strategy Senpai," Mash said to him.

"I agree with the girl Master, you seem to have a good head on your shoulders. Don't try to lose it now. But I think we should discuss it with Saber in the training area." Cu said honestly.

Andrew shook his head. "I just... don't want to die." He said solemnly, with a tinge of fear.

"Senpai."

"Kid lets me speak the truth here everybody dies no matter, it just a question of when really. I died fighting an army at nineteen. Used my own intestines to bind myself to a tree. Knew I would die young too like Scahtach had predicted I would. But I'm not mad about it because I died how I wanted to. In the middle of a battlefield, where I belonged. Made Morgan quite mad, when I did. It's not a matter of dying its matter how you died, so just think about that instead of being afraid of it. Not really, the best at these kinds of talks, but I've said what I wanted to. Choose a good death, not a bad one."

Andrew listened intently as Cu Chulainn spoke; he was being given advice by _Cu Chulainn_ after all. "...Thank you, Caster." Andrew said after a moment. "That does kinda help."

"Okay, enough with sad stuff. I want to go beat up Saber, wonder if she will join me in bed when I do."

"Senpai, I think we need to get a veterinarian have our new dog neutered," Mash said.

"Hey, don't joke about things like that!"

Xxx

"So, Master you wanted to know more about my Skills?" Lily asked.

The group had entered the training area, where Lily was practicing a moment ago and had seen her go up against seemingly shadowy versions of Servants they had met in Singularity F. When Andrew had asked Da Vinci what they were. She said that they were Shadow Servants, temporary copies of Servants generated by Chaldea, based on recorded information of observed once. But they only had a small fraction of Servants true power and Skill. They were just more elaborate training dummies.

"Yeah, I want to know what all of my servants are capable of," Andrew said, using his Stat-o-Vision to remind himself of the precise names of her skills. "Like Blossoming Journey? I can kind of understand what Mana Burst is from the name and its pretty obvious with Instinct, but that one I don't have a frame of reference for."

Lily along with the Cu and Mash took a seat in front of Andrew, Da Vinci had already left and returned to her Workshop. Wanting to do more research on the two remaining Saint Quartz.

"Let's with the simple ones. Mana Burst is a Skill that allows me to strengthen my body, like a Magus Reinforcement. But a super version of it, and thanks to my summoning I know how to do math now. If Magus with a certain amount of Prana can enhance their body to be a 100% better, I can do that ten times better though only with certain parts of my body like arms and legs. I tried to do my whole, but let tell you Merlin had to clean up for an entire day. Augh." She said, grabbing her stomach as if she felt phantom pain. "Now as for Instinct, it is like it says on the can, an Intuition that allows me to sense danger. Though it is different from Eye of The Mind." She took a small breath before she continued. "Now Blossoming Journey is more of a Support Skill, enhancing my allies ability to fight and pull out a win. Though it doesn't work for me though." She admitted.

Andrew listened to her explanation intently. "Thank you, Saber. I'll be sure to keep what you said in mind for the future; that Blossoming Journey skill seems really useful." He said before turning down the line of seated servants. He saw blush appear on her face at his praise. "Now then, Mash, you already explained what Obscurant Wall of Chalk does, but I'm not sure what your other skill does."

"Senpai from what I'm able to gather, my other three skills are all about raising defense as I am a Shielder Class Servant. My Self-Field defense creates seemingly a passive Boundary field around me that reduces the damage that an attack should have done. I still do not know what Possession Inheritance does, it is obscured to me like when trying to access information about it is written in a language I do not know. However third Skill Transient Wall of Snowflakes allow me to enhance the Endurance of the Servants you're contracted to Senpai, utilizing your connection to them. Though only as long as I provide focus on it and prana. But while it seems useful it expensive in terms of cost and so should be used moderately." Mash explained seemingly going into a form of lecture mode.

Andrew nodded as she finished speaking. "Thank you. But that reminds me, how intensive is it to use Obscurant Wall of Chalk?" He asked. That skill could be incredibly useful if he could use it well and often as possible.

"I think I explained before Senpai it's not very expensive it just has seemingly for no reason has a cooldown between uses," Mash said, sounding a bit frustrated at how the skill worked. It seemed like something that would be used in a game for the sake of balance.

"Right, sorry had a lot on my mind," Andrew said before turning to his most recently contracted Servant. "Caster, what all can you do? Like not just your skills, you're a Caster, so you probably have more up your sleeve than other servants."

"Sorry Master, all the Magic I got is my Runes and only the spells I can make with them. Though I got of bit of talent in making stuff, it isn't enough for an Item Creation Skill like all other Caster's have. So, I can't provide you much in the way of items, a few runes stones that you can throw like those modern grenade things. I can make those for you want with various elemental effects." Cu explained.

Andrew's eyes widened as Cu Chulainn spoke. "Yes, yes absolutely make some of those rune stones! Those could be incredibly useful." He said excitedly. Magical grenades could prove amazingly useful and he in no small part wanted some just to have magical grenades. "Make some of those at your earliest convenience."

"Sure thing Master I can have a bag ready by tomorrow with the simple stuff." Cu told him. "So anything else you wish to know about me, Master. Or do I need to write an autobiography of me for you to read?"

Andrew thought about it for a moment. "What about your second Noble Phantasm, the one that you didn't use in the Singularity? What does that do?"

"Alright, so Ochd Deug Odin, is my most powerful Noble Phantasm as a Caster. Because it involves the use of all my Runes to pull it of an activate it. But I can't use all the time as it is time-consuming to set it up taking about twenty minutes for its fire. Because I have to write every single one of my twenty runes with my blood perfectly or else, it backfires, and I get bitch smacked by Odin. So it's better for me to use Gate of Skye to send my enemies to teacher."

Andrew took in what Cu Chulainn said while nodding before double taking. "Wait, you can send people to your teacher, as in the one most known for being the pelvis destroying ruler of the dead?" He asked incredulously.

"Bwhahaha," Cu laughed.

"Senpai!"

"Master!"

"Oh, oh that was amazing Master, I have never heard her being called that before. But don't ever say that to her face, she will kill you." He said seriously at the end.

Andrew paled at the implication that it was entirely possible for him to actually meet her. "Yeah no I'd rather not die to an angry goddess thank you, I'm not stupid."

"That is just common sense Master, but you don't have to worry about her she can't leave the Land of Shadows, not anymore at least. The Gate of Skye I make I just copied from her when I was her apprentice, and she doesn't know I did it. So I take to using it sparingly, for if she found out, she would beat me red and blue."

"Wait, the way you've been talking about her, she's still alive?" Andrew asked, confused. He kinda thought the ancient deities had died out by modern times what with how the difference between the Age of Gods and the modern day was painted.

"Yeah, she still should be being Immortal and all that. And because the Land of Shadows has been separated from the World, it's now like a separate dimension from it and should have survived the whole Incineration thing." He looked a bit nostalgic for a moment.

"I'm not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing…" Andrew said. On the one hand, being able to call in an immortal goddess for help would be pretty useful alongside his Servants, but on the other hand, he'd probably die within five minutes of meeting her because of saying something stupid.

"I would believe it is for best Master," Lily said intruding on the conversation. "While the God-Slayer would be a great asset in assisting in stopping the Human Order collapsing completely she sounds like to much trouble," Lily said her piece on the matter.

"You're probably right Lily," Andrew said. "Oh yeah, on the topic of insane power, Lily is it possible for you to display Caliburn's activation without destroying Chaldea? I know Excalibur is kind of a 'kill everything' beam, but I haven't seen Caliburn in action yet." He said, curious as to the actual effects of the Noble Phantasm beyond 'heat,' which probably meant explosion.

"I can do that Master." Lily stood up and spoke up. "Computer please generate a stationary target for me?" Lily spoke out loud, and the room responded.

"Generating singular target."

Andrew watched as a few feet away from them appeared a Shadow Servant on that looked exactly like Saber Alter did.

'How appropriate…' Andrew thought to himself upon seeing the target generated. He then remembered that her Noble Phantasm was likely an explosion and pointedly stepped behind Mash.

His Kouhai didn't say anything as he did.

Lily took Caliburn out of its sheath and thrusted it forwards while shouting its name. " **Caliburn!** " Andrew watched as a golden beam shot from the tip of the blade striking the fake Saber Alter right in the chest. The golden energy seemed to collect for a moment and then exploded outwards a few feet creating small balls of light, they disappeared and the Shadow Servant along with them.

"Holy shit!" Andrew said in awe. "Lily that was awesome!"

"Thank you for the compliments Master, but it was nothing special. That isn't even the full power of Caliburn, though I'm not capable of pulling that out yet."

"That wasn't even its full power?!" He said incredulously. "That's incredible Saber you have so much potential!" Andrew said excitedly at the prospect of his servant's already powerful attack getting stronger and being at his command.

"Again thank you for the compliment Master," She said, again this time with a bit of an embarrassed blush.

"I have to say to Saber, now what do you say to the two of us having a spar together?" Cu asked Lily.

Andrew saw his Saber nod in agreement. "I would like to spar against you Child of Light."

"Senpai how about we leave, I would rather not get caught in the crossfire if that's okay with you?" Mash asked Andrew.

Andrew nodded in response to Mash, before remembering what Cu Chulainn had said earlier. "Caster, before I go, there are two things I need to tell you."

"What is it, Master?"

Andrew held up his index finger. "First, this incarnation of Saber is 14." His middle finger joined the pointer. "Second, if you attempt what you said earlier I will use a Command Seal and make _you_ do the veterinarian's job. With _acid._ " He said, giving his Servant his best death glare.

"I understand Master, by the gods, he must never meet Fergus."

Andrew nodded and left the training area with Mash.

Xxx

Andrew entered the observation room with Mash, as there was something he wanted to talk to Dr. Roman about.

Said doctor was sitting in a red chair in front of one of the rooms many control stations sipping on some coffee. He was currently the only one in the room. Though through the glass Andrew could see the globe that monitored the world situation. And where Rayshifting took place. He could see the other staff members cleaning the place out of the ruble the broken ceiling had created.

Roman took notice of their presence as the door closed behind them. "Mash, Andrew? A surprise to see you down here. I wouldn't have expected you to come down here until tomorrow. As you can see the Rayshift area is being cleaned and coffins are being prepared for you to use." He informed them.

"I see," Andrew said simply as he looked out into the room where shit had hit the fan. He looked out for a moment, his eyes lingering on the spot he thought was were Mash had been stuck under the rubble. "Reconstruction and repairs seem to be going well, but how are you holding up Doctor?" He asked the pinkish haired man.

"I'm okay at least I think so, the Director is dead, and we were betrayed by Lev., And now we have to save humanity. What a turn of events, never would have expected this to happen." He said solemnly.

Andrew sighed. "Yeah. My head's still spinning from everything. I guess that's why I came here. Of all the humans in Chaldea, you two are the only ones I actually know and trust." He admitted.

"Senpai, I don't know what to say to that."

"Yeah, me neither I'm not used to having people say they trust me like that so quickly." Dr. Roman admitted.

"Well, I trust you, Doctor, because you're the only person who has done nothing but help me out since this whole thing started, who -sorry Mash- didn't _have_ to help me or was in it for their own gain," Andrew explained. "The closest anyone else has come to that was Cu Chulainn before I summoned him, but now he kind of _has_ to care and help me. You're the only person who has been in no way obligated to help me and did so anyway." He said, looking apologetically over at Mash once more as he did. She was 100% a good person in his eyes, but she had been more or less obligated to help him from the moment they met, be it from orders coming down from the boss or as his servant, to Andrew she didn't really have a choice in the matter.

"Andrew please your words are too kind, I'm a doctor I have to help people, or I would be a rather shit one wouldn't I?" Dr. Roman responded back to Andrew's little speech. "But thank you, anyway for those words. Though I need to back to work soon, or else SHEBA or CHALDEAS is going to stop working. But I have time for a single question regarding any topic as your still new to this whole thing."

Andrew thought for a moment. "Yeah, uhm, how were the acceptance letters for becoming a Master at Chaldea sent? Or rather, did Chaldea actually test for Master compatibility? Because I've never _donated_ blood in my life." He asked.

Andrew saw Dr. Roman blink at that. "That can't be true that's how all the civilian Master's were chosen. Your recruitment was a bit more extreme because you were one of the twenty that had 100% Master and Rayhift compatibility out of all the Masters. We couldn't have known you even existed if you didn't donate blood. Are sure you never donated blood, Andrew?"

Andrew shook his head. "I am absolutely certain I've never donated blood before. I only just recently mostly got over a pretty bad fear of needles last year, and the only time I've had someone do something with my veins were for routine blood work tests or the few times I've had an IV, but never donating blood." He said, rubbing at the crooks of his elbows as he spoke. He still had phantom pain.

"That still can't be right, I took the liberty of reading your profile that Chaldea had made on you, and it says that you donated blood to the local blood bank June 28th. Thanks for bringing this to my attention Andrew, I'll look into the files some more then."

"Thank you, Doctor," Andrew said in relief. "I've been wondering about that since I first read the letter." How was he supposed to say he thought he was from the future, but only by a few months? It was best if Dr. Roman found any holes in the situation which Andrew could use to build up to it.

"Good, now I need to get back to work so could you leave, I like to work in silence." Dr. Roman asked him and Mash.

"Right. Thank you for your time." Andrew said before leaving.

Mash followed right behind him out of the door, and she began to speak. "I hope Dr. Roman figures something out about the blood thing Senpai."

"Yeah, it's really been bugging me since this all started." Andrew then realized he had been ignoring something very important. "Actually, Kouhai, how are you holding up?"

"I'm fine Senpai, I'm your Servant if I'm down I will not be able to help you." She answered.

Andrew shook his head. "I'm not asking Shielder, the Servant of Andrew Murphy. I'm asking Mash Kyrielight, living human with her own life."

"I'm fine Senpai truly am, but I'm worried that when you start to summon more Servants, you won't find a use for me anymore. Is it wrong to feel that way? I don't want to leave your side Senpai so please, I'm asking you not to put me away for my own protection, I want to help you." She sounded like she was about to cry.

Andrew pulled the girl into a hug. Somewhat to hide the fact that he was already tearing up. Her words hit _far_ too close to home. "Don't worry. I'll _never_ think your useless, and I promise you I won't ever put you away. Never. You're my first Servant, and that means you'll be there in every fight alright? I'll bring you with on every mission if that's what you want. I will never put you away."

"I would like that Senpai, I feel a lot better now. Though now I kinda want to eat ice cream and I don't know why."

Andrew chuckled, quickly wiping his tears while Mash was still unable to see his face. "Let's go get some ice cream."

Xxx

[spoiler=No Mater's of Chaldea here] Oh Passive you're going to fucking hate me later. Also yes that is a bit of a jab at players neglecting their Mash, your shit Senpai's you know that.[/spoiler]


	8. Singularity 1

It was in the early morning as Andrew together with his Servants stood in the Rayshift room where they were all gonna go to the first Singularity. They had all eaten a heavy breakfast, and now they stood ready with Dr. Roman and Da Vinci in front of them going over the necessary information.

"So, as I said yesterday Andrew we have prepared two coffins for you and Mash, as you're both beings of flesh and blood. Now there is no need for the Servant's to have one as they are Spiritual Beings and so can Rayshift outside of one safely as long they contracted to you." Dr. Roman explained. "Now, if any of you have a few questions before traveling, please ask them now?"

All of Andrew's Servants gave a firm no, soon followed by Andrew himself.

Though Cu quickly spoke up. "Oh yeah, Master I got those basic Runes stones for you." He took a bag out of his robes and threw it to his Master who managed to catch it. "Red one's fire, blue ice, yellow electricity. Perfect to use against normal opponents, bad idea to throw them at Servants. Just pump Prana into them only a tiny bit, and you have six seconds to throw then you do." He instructed.

Andrew listened intently to Caster and was very careful in holding what amounted to live explosives as he did so. "Understood." He said as Cu Chulainn finished his explanation.

"Great into the coffins you two go." Dr. Roman said, who probably didn't understand how that line sounded coming from a doctor.

Even with context.

But Andrew listened and so did Mash, as the two stepped into the white cylinders the glass front.

A few more seconds went by, but this time Andrew heard Dr. Roman's voice from inside the coffin. "All all systems are in order. Starting Rayshift in 3… 2… 1… Commence mission Grand Order."

And just like when going to Fuyuki the seemingly blue swirl he saw then it happened.

And seemingly a second later Andrew could feel wind hitting his face. His eyes quickly swept the scenery telling him that they were surrounded by mostly empty fields, with a few trees standing about.

Though in the distance he could see some sort of structure that looked rather brown.

"It seems that Rayshift was a success Senpai." Andrew hears Mash speak.

Andrew turned to look at his best Kouhai who was standing with Cu and Lily at her side.

"Alright," Andrew said as he figured out their plan of action. "Caster, can you use your Druid...stuff to scout out the surrounding area without going too far away?"

"I sure can Master, most Servants are able to see at greater distances than humans even without having Clairvoyance as Skill. I can tell you that there is some sort of fortress ahead us, and there people coming our way. Seems to soldiers, they are wearing armor and carrying weapons." Cu relayed

"Yes, I can confirm with my eyes to Master, can't see the fortress that clearly, but I can see the Soldiers. If we stand still, they should reach us in about ten minutes. What are your orders, Master?" Came Lily's voice confirming Cu's observation.

Andrew thought deeply for a moment. "Well, we're in France during the war. It would probably be best to ally with the locals, so we have some support while we're here. And if it turns out they have the Grail or know where it is, even better. We should head over there soon."

As Andrew finished speaking, he saw that Cu and Lily were listening Mash was looking up in the sky. "Senpai, what is that in the sky." They all heard her say, and to see what she was talking about, they did so too.

"By the gods, what is that!"

"By Merlin's non-existent beard?"

"What," Andrew said flatly as he stared up at the massive hole in the sky above their heads.

"It looks like a circle of light?" Mash said/asked as she was not sure about it.

But any thoughts about the circle was interrupted when Dr. Roman's voice sounded from Mash armband phone, and a second later a holographic video of Roman appeared in front of them. "Okay, a connection has been established and video coming through. Can all of you hear me?" He asked.

"We can hear you Doc," Andrew replied, facing the projection. "Are you getting visuals of what we're seeing?"

"Great I can hear you too. Now the time period you are in is France 1431, precise date June 7th a week after Jeanne d'Arc was burned at stake. While the 100-year war is going on you, this should be one of the down periods where a ceasefire is going on. Now tell have you discovered anything out of the ordinary upon arrival?"

Andrew turned towards Mash. "Mash, point the camera on your communicator straight up would you?"

Andrew was sure he just saw the Shielder Servant have a smile on her lips. "Sure thing Senpai."

"Ehh? What are you talking about… Oh my god what is that? Everyone calibrate SHEBA I want a precise reading of the circle in the sky." Roman ordered, and Mash returned to pointing her arm forwards again. Roman was silent for a few seconds before he spoke again. "Yes, that circle of light is not supposed to be there, SHEBA currently measures the things diameter to be about the size of Northern America." Andrew balked at the sheer scope of such a thing. "If such an event has occurred in real history it would most definitely be documented. Now, team, I want you to continue the mission, try asking the locals for the information Dr. Roman out." And so the hologram disappeared.

Andrew was still a bit dumbstruck by the massive scale of the hole in the sky. After a moment he was able to bring himself back to lucidity. "A-alright. Let's continue with the plan I said earlier." He had a realization as he spoke. "Caster, you wouldn't happen to be able to make water appear would you? If that things constant a massive among of the continent, and likely all of France, is going to be lacking in water very very soon if it isn't already." Andrew said.

"Won't be needed Master, I can feel the ground around me there is enough nourishment to fuel the plants for another month at least. A lack of rain isn't going to hurt things for a while, not if we find the Grail quickly."

Andrew sighed in relief. "I guess I overreacted a bit there. With a hole that large I kinda just thought everything would instantly go into a drought, but that makes sense." He shook his head. "Let's head towards that castle. Caster, lead the way."

The man nodded and so the group began walking towards the castle on the horizon, though after a few minutes of walking they came into contact with soldiers that had been spotted earlier.

Andrew looked over to his Servants before they were within earshot of the soldiers. "You guys can speak most languages, right? Tell them we're passing through and are looking for a place to rest."

"I shall do that Master." Spoke Lily taking up the role of speaker.

"Shall I translate what they are saying for you Senpai? I'm fluent in French and other Languages." Mash asked.

Andrew nodded. "Yeah, but do it quietly. It would probably be a bad idea to speak English in front of French soldiers."

The two groups got nearer to each other and Andrew was able to see that their faces were filled with nervousness and fear.

" _Hello, fellow soldiers how fair thee?"_ Lily greeted the French soldiers. Mash providing translations whispered into Andrew's ear. Cu was hanging in the back ready to act if the soldiers turned hostile.

" _That face? Is it the witch?"_

" _No, you idiot she too young looking and lacks her bosom."_

" _Ay, we do not fair well, it has been troubling times with the attack of the witch and her monsters ravaging France, burning the land."_

"Well doesn't that sound promising…" Andrew whispered to Mash. He couldn't think of any French witches, but that could just mean she wasn't a literal witch. Though it was interesting to note that they thought that Lily could in any way be said, witch. A Saberface?

" _A witch?"_ Lily asked sounding perplexed.

" _Have you and friends not heard the news?"_ Said one of the soldiers, a great look of shame on his face.

" _No, we have not? We just arrived in France."_ Lily told them.

" _You're foreigners that are easy to see, but at least your not Britons."_ Andrew managed to catch the small embarrassed look that Lily had for a second. _"Then I shall tell you. Jeanne d'Arc has risen from the grave, made a deal with the devil. She now commands a legion of beasts and is burning down France. She has taken over Orleans. She has killed the Archbishop and King Philip VI."_ The soldier explained dropping the bombshell.

"Holy shit," Andrew said to Mash, barely able to keep it a whisper. So Jeanne d'Arc was responsible? Did that mean the holy maiden had been corrupted like Saber Alter or was someone else smearing her name? The later would make sense given the whole 'burned at stake for being a witch' thing. Meaning she was probably feared even in life and fresh off her death would be a good time to capitalize on that; but by the same token who knew what kind of magic bullshit was going down in the first place. The massive hole in the sky had to be part of it, but Andrew couldn't figure out how. There simply wasn't enough information.

" _But, how she was a worshiper of God, she would never ally with the devil?"_ Lily asked, probably hoping to get some clarification.

" _I know that it sounds ridiculous, but I fought with her when she retook Orleans from England. So, even changed as her appearance was I knew it was the moment I laid eyes on her before we ran. Those haunting golden eyes."_ Andrew couldn't understand what the soldier was saying before Mash translated it. But he could tell that his voice was filled with fear. _"We're setting up a stronghold at Vaucouleurs."_ Mash relayed the information.

"Vaucouleurs?" Andrew asked Mash, continuing to keep his voice at a low volume. He had never heard of the place, but then again he knew practically nothing about France anyway.

"It must be the castle we're headed to Senpai, I think that it's a good idea to go with them." She offered her opinion.

"That was the plan." Andrew agreed.

Andrew quietly told Lily to tell the soldiers that they would go to the castle and help out with what they could, before moving on. Cu had offered that they should find the resurrected Jeanne as the one behind it probably had the Grail at their disposal to do so in the first place.

Andrew agreed with Cu Chulainn's judgment. The previous good-person-turned-pyromaniac they had fought had done the same, so it made sense, but it would be best to prioritize gaining allies and a temporary base of operations for now.

And so the group went towards Vaucouleurs, taking about thirty minutes at average walking speed. Though as they got closer, Mash got a message from Dr. Roman that there was a suitable Leyline in Vaucouleurs for them to summon one more Servant to reinforce their roster. As Andrew still had room to safely add two more to his team while outside of Chaldea.

After finally completing the walk they came to the castles cities out walls, where they were met by more Soldiers and guards. And thanks to the soldiers they had on the way they had been led inside.

What greeted the group inside was something Andrew could equate to living conditions after a disaster had struck. With families and other humans packed tightly together.

"This is horrible Senpai," Mash said as she looked at the people who were now looking at them, with awe and a bit of fear.

Andrew looked around in disgust at the squalor the people seemed to have been forced into to survive. He'd been expecting a medieval peasant town, not the majority of the French population crammed into one city like sardines. "Whoever caused this, the Witch or whatever needs to be put down." He said, anger evident in his voice.

"I agree Master, this a condition a people of this era should not be experiencing," Lily said, as looked around the people huddled together.

Andrew just gave his Servant a nod in response. Afterwards, he had Lily ask the Soldiers that had escorted them if there was an empty shed or building they could use temporarily.

For the needed a place to summon a Servant in, they couldn't do it in the open or else people would probably freak out.

The soldiers complied with the request and took them to a rundown shack at the other end of the castle where the back entrance was.

In return, they had asked if they could assist in reinforcing the walls of the castle.

Andrew and his Servant's had agreed to the deal.

Now they were alone in the shack with the soldiers returning to the duty of assisting the people.

Andrew stood in front of the summoning circle that Mash had drawn, along with her shield like Olga Marie had done.

Andrew was admittedly getting a bit giddy about the whole thing. Summoning the Heroes of yesteryear to be at his beck and call in combating evil still held a certain joy to it despite all of the literally everything else happening and the reason for summoning them in the first place. "Ok, do the quantum thing." He said to Mash.

"Yes, Senpai connecting to FATE system now, generating summoning room," Mash said and just like before they were seemingly in the summoning room located in Chaldea.

"So, you're summoning another Servant? Good luck hope you get a good one." Came the sudden call from Da Vinci through the phone. Before she seemingly disappeared.

Andrew was decidedly nonplussed about Da Vinci's comment. "I need all the luck I can get…" He looked over at Caster. "Actually, Cu Chulainn, would you mind leaving the room while I'm summoning? Just in case. And then you can keep watch and make sure no one interferes." He said a slightly apologetic look on his face.

"You know Master I should be insulted by that, but you're kinda right. I'm smart enough to recognize that my luck is horrible and infects others. With me, in here you probably wouldn't even get a Servant. Some reason Black Keys come to mind, but I don't know why." The hound of Chulainn said as he left the room.

"Black keys…?" Andrew said under his breath as he left. Was he supposed to know what those were? Whatever.

Andrew walked over to the circle and pumped his Prana into it, initiating the summon.

The circle lit up and created the standard smoke that obscured the summon for some reason.

Andrew felt another connection form like the one he had with the others. The smoke cleared revealing a familiar looking face to Andrew. "Servant Assassin Sasaki Kojiro at your service Master."

Andrew looked at the blue haired Assassin who had been able to give Saber a pretty good fight in the original with more than a bit of excitement. The absolutely bonkers length sword he was holding had nothing to do with that reaction. Nope. Not all at. "Thank you for answering my call, Assassin," Andrew said, doing his best to avoid overtly ogling the sword. He knew very well that if a real person tried wielding a blade like that they'd need to be mounted or have devoted so much of their life training with it, they may as well have just not. But that the Servant in front of him could wield the sword so well he could cut in three completely separate angles simultaneously and use that reach to his advantage.

He then remembered to use his Stat-o-vision on the newly acquired Servant, which was in no way an excuse to look more at the sword. Nope. Not at all.

[spoiler=Sasaki Kojiro's Stat Sheet] **True Name:** Sasaki Kojiro

 **Master:** Andrew Murphy

 **Class:** Assassin

 **Parameters:**

Strength: C

Endurance: E

Agility: A+

Mana: E

Luck: A

Noble Phantasm: -

 **Class Skills:**

Presence Concealment: D

 **Personal Skills:**

Eye of The Mind(False): A

Knowledge of Respect and Harmony: B++

Vitrification: B+

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Hiken: Tsubame Gaeshi(Anti-Unit): -[/spoiler]

Andrew sifted through the stat sheet, taking note of the A rank Luck and the rankless Noble Phantasm. "Assassin, to get it out of the way with, what do your personal skills do?" He asked of the newly summoned Servant. "And your Noble Phantasm, of course." He said after a moment.

"How could I not resist the call Master, to save the world and fight great fights who could resist." Assassin said. "And it seems you have already summoned other Servants to assist you, though you look familiar have we meet before?"

"I have never seen you before," Lily said.

"It was just a thought, but Master if you wish to know my Skills, I shall tell you. It would be bad for a commander to not know his troops. My Eye of The Mind(False) is like a sixth sense that tells where everything is an area. My second skill is one that allows my attacks to not be truly perceived by my enemies and allows me to use the same techniques without my opponent learning how to counter it. My third skill is a form of mental skill that allows me to harmed, by the mental skills of others. And with it, I can increase the power of my Presence Concealment. As for my Noble Phantasm, it is not truly one, as it is more of a skill than anything really. It is my ultimate sword technique I developed trying to cut down a swallow."

"Was it African or European." Came the voice of Lily who immediately closed her mouth shut after it, placing her hand on it. Andrew could hear her scream into it. But she removed it second later. "You will forget I ever said, that is that understood. Why did I even say that?"

Andrew suppressed his laughter down to a snort. "Monty Python was also a hero in search of the Holy Grail, so I guess that makes sense…" he said, more to himself.

And it seemed that Mash also got as she seemed to also holding down a burst of laughter. "Yes, Lily we didn't hear anything right Senpai?"

Andrew hastily nodded. "That's right Kouhai. We heard nothing." He said, doing his best not to incite the wrath of his smallest Servant.

"Good," Lily said. "That is good to hear Master. Now shall we join our Caster outside and assist the people of France?"

"Right! Right, let's go do that then." Andrew said before turning to Assassin. "How much do you know from the summoning, Assassin?"

"The thing knows as SHEBA has informed me about our current status," Kojiro replied.

Andrew nodded. "Good. Then follow us in spirit form or using Presence Concealment, whichever you feel is easier to react from. It would be a bit suspicious to the soldiers outside if we suddenly had a sword-wielding stranger join our group inside the castle."

"I shall do that the Master," And as second later Andrew saw Kojiro vanish. Afterwards, Mash took down the room and picked up her shield.

But before they could leave the shack and join Cu outside, Dr. Roman spoke up but did not appear. "Guys we have detected several Phantasm Beasts converging on your location, it seems to be-."

Roman's voice was interrupted by roars and people screaming. _"The beasts have come, the beasts of the Dragon Witch have come."_

"Dragons." Roman finished.

Xxx


	9. A Holy Maiden

"Shit! Everyone, get out there now! This place is like a china shop, and _there are dragons in it."_ Andrew said, panicking just a bit. On one level he was excited to be able to see an actual, real dragon, but on every other level, he really didn't want to have to _fight_ dragons.

"Yes, Master!"

Everyone quickly left the shack, going outside where Cu Chulainn was waiting for them. Next to him were the soldiers that had escorted Andrew and his group to Vaucouleurs. "Hey, Master! The soldiers are asking us for assistance in dealing with the dragons that are about to break down the front Gate." Cu informed them.

"Shit, alright, Caster you use your magic to take down the dragons from a distance, preferably before they get in the castle. Mash, you'll be holding the vanguard to block any that get through. Saber, you'll fight off any that get through." He paused for a moment. "It would be nice if we had another sword or two to use directly against them, but that just isn't feasible right now." He said, putting emphasis on the word 'sword.'

"Orders are understood, Master." They all said.

The group moved quickly towards the front Gates, where Cu and Andrew took a position on top of the walls. To get a better viewpoint so he could coordinate.

Andrew saw Lily jump over the walls landing on the other side ready to engage the flying beasts that he now got a good look at.

Andrew gazed down at what he counted as ten dragons, some of which were green, others red or brown, and some black. The dragons had two wings, and two legs, which meant if Andrew remembered his mythology right meant they weren't 'proper' dragons. Some sort of subspecies. He turned towards his blue semi-druid. "Alright Caster. Go biblical on their asses."

"Sure thing Master, they seem to just be Wyverns and true dragons, so this should be more manageable, though their scales are still Magic Resistant, so I have to aim for their mouths. But I think I'm not going to get much use here Lily, and your new Servant has already taken down one each."

Andrew saw that was indeed the case as he saw two of the wyverns laying on the ground dead already their bodies split into various pieces

He watched as Lily and Kojiro went to their next target, jumping into the air with grace. But the two of them had different ways of taking down the mythical beasts.

Lily went for weak points where their joints were, cutting off the arm wings, making them crash land on the ground before going into the kill.

There as Kojiro was seemingly able to cut the thick scales of the wyverns with no problem as he swung his incredibly long sword, with impossible movements his body should not be able to pull off.

It seemed that Nippon steel beat dragon scales.

"It seems Master, that I get to show off my skills earlier than I thought, but worry not about these beasts so long as it has the ability to fly I can cut them down." Kojiro boasted as he cut down his third wyvern.

"Don't get ahead of yourself Samurai!" Came Cu's voice. Andrew saw him move his hand as runes appeared in the air. "HAGALAZ!" With that shout, Andrew watched as small orbs of white shot from the runes landing in the mouths of three wyverns.

Andrew watched with morbid fascination as Ice sickles shout out the beast's skulls killing them.

"Master, I can another wave of Wyverns heading our way, another ten or so it seems." Cu stated as Andrew watched the last of the current group being eviscerated by his three Servants.

Andrew snapped out of his reverie of awe at how quickly and easily his servants tore through the dragons. "Well, you guys seem to be handling this pretty well so far. Try and get a few right now before they get close to the castle though."

"It's because they are Wyverns Master," Came Lily's voice from down at the bottom of the wall. "Despite being members of the Transcendent Kind, they have only the strength of standard Monstrous Beast. If we were dealing with a True Dragon, one at the level of Phantasmal or even Divine level. We would need an actual Dragon Slaying Heroic Spirit." Lily finished her speech.

Andrew nodded, before remembering she probably couldn't see him from the angle of the wall. "Understood, Lily, thank you," he said at the same volume as before, since she had been able to hear him talking with Caster moments prior.

"And Master, they are still too far out for me to hit, they should arrive in a minute." Cu answered Andrew's previous question. And now he could see the wyverns to, flying in the air and hear their roars.

"Alright, try and knock em down once they're in range so the swordmasters can hit them." Andrew said though he was trying to be more commandery, he still had trouble with the whole 'ordering around people shaped weapons of mass destruction' thing.

"Orders understood and received Master." The three Servants responded.

But that was also when he heard Mash's voice from behind him.

"Miss, what are you doing here? It is dangerous being close to the gate… Wait you are?" Andrew heard another female voice speak up.

"I have calmed the people, and they are no longer panicking, and I have come here to help my fellow Servants. I am Servant Ruler." That was when Andrew heard the sound of something moving. The spot he and Cu stood was quickly shadowed over by a figure.

And on the side of the gate and wall where Lily and Kojiro was, he saw the figure land and turn towards the group.

Andrew's eyes widened as he saw the figure land among his servants. The instantly recognizable, blonde, battle-standard flag wielding Saint of Orleans, Jeanne d'Arc, _the one which the soldiers said was summoning the dragons._ "Saber, Assassin, get away from her now!" He yelled out, panicking more than a little. If those soldiers were right- and the look on the one's face when recounting the witch implied they were- the holder of the Grail was _right there_.

But, to Andrew's surprise, he saw her face turn into one of panic. "No! Wait! I'm not the enemy I'm here to help!"

Andrew was confused at her reaction for a moment before realizing a very crucial detail- she had jumped over the wall _from the inside_ , meaning she had already been in the castle. Meaning if she were the Grail holder who was calling forth the dragons she would have just slaughtered them all herself. But then, who was the actual Grail Holder? Not important for the moment. "Caster, get me down there," He said, motioning to the blue Servant.

"Gotta wait for that Master! We got Wyverns inbound." Cu said Andrew took notice that the beasts were right on top of them.

Andrew saw as his Servants got into combat along with Jeanne who went and smacked a dragon down with her flag before impaling it.

The second fight, went the same as the first with a decisive victory for his Servants. Ending with Mash coming up to Andrew and Cu informing them that Dr. Roman had told her that no more Wyverns were coming towards them.

"Is that who I think it is Senpai?" Mash asked as she looked at the blond haired woman, that stood in front of Lily and Kojiro.

Andrew nodded. "Yeah. There's no doubt about it, that's Jeanne D'Arc." He then realized his revelation might not have occurred to Mash. "But she helped us and jumped _out_ of the city, so if she were the Grail Holder, the people would have already been dead."

"But, the soldiers said that she had turned evil? I'm confused." Mash stated.

"I agree with the little lady, there is something fishy about the situation, but as she doesn't seem to be hostile… You wanted to talk to right Master?" Cu Chulainn said as his eyes were also locked on the Saint down below.

"Yeah, but I want you guys ready to defend in case she does turn out to be hostile," Andrew said before turning to Mash. "Mash, could you help me get down there?" He asked, motioning towards the outer side of the wall. "Caster, stay here or come down as well. Wherever you feel you can best do combat."

"Yes, Senpai I will carry you." Mash placed her shield on her back before putting Andrew in bridal carry, where she then proceeded to jump off the wall they had been standing on.

They landed on the ground with a loud thump, Cu following them down to the ground. Mash let go of Andrew.

He stumbled a bit before regaining his balance, after doing so they walked over to the Saint to confront the young looking women.

Andrew dusted himself off before addressing the holy woman before him. "Greetings, Servant Jeanne d'Arc." He said, trying to sound as official and formal as he could. "Thank you for your assistance in defending this castle. But I ask of you- what is your purpose here?"

"Greetings to you too Master of these Servants, and please do not thank me I merely did my duty in protecting the people of France. Though I can not answer the last question, I just came here by happenstance after I materialized a few hours ago." The Maiden answered.

"When you say materialized, are you implying that you were summoned by a Master?" Andrew asked. He needed to know as many details of what was going on as he could, and another Master running around could be very bad news.

Jeanne shook her head. "No I do not have any Master, I just appeared in the forest when dawn broke. I tried to find out why I had appeared, then I heard the people and soldiers talking while I was in Spirit form that "I" was burning France down with hoards of dragons. Do you know anything about that?" She asked.

"I only know that one of the soldiers who fought alongside you saw the 'Jeanne' with the dragons and said it was, in fact, you. Beyond that, I know about as much as you do." Andrew answered as best he could. A thought then occurred to him. "If the reason you had been materialized were to mediate a Great Holy Grail War you would be aware of it, correct?"

"Yes, the Holy Grail is normally the one to summon a Ruler such as I to do such a thing. But I have no knowledge of such a thing occurring right now. And to make it worse, my body is like that of a new Heroic Spirit my Parameters are one rank lower than they should be. And I have lost two of my Skills I would have as Ruler. My True Name Discernment and my God's Resolution which would have given me Command Seals to use on other Servants." Jeanne informed them.

"...Most likely your body is like that of a new Heroic Spirit because it is a new one, Holy Maiden. It's only been a week since your death." Andrew said after some thought. He was pretty sure she hadn't even been canonized as a saint yet and wouldn't be for a while.

"Yes, that is true, but the Throne of Heroes exists outside of Time/Space so that shouldn't matter," Jeanne said.

"Actually you're both right kinda." Came Dr. Romans voice and second later his hologram appeared.

"Hello, Doctor." Mash greeted the strawberry-blond haired man.

"Oh, is this a form of communication Magecraft?" Jeanne asked as she looked at the see-through form of Dr. Roman in his chair.

"...Yeah sure let's go with that." Andrew said. He wasn't actually sure how much of the communicator was operating off of magic or off of technology, so he wasn't actually sure. "Doctor, would you care to explain what you mean?"

"Right, first of Miss d'Arc, the era here has been turned into a Singularity, in simple terms kind of stain on the history of humanity that has altered its form it should be and were trying to correct it. And as to why your Parameters and Skills have been messed with is because of the Singularity. I'm not quite sure, but I believe because of it, and your abnormal summon you aren't able to access all fame you have. There is also the chance that the second Jeanne d'Arc that seems to run around is taking most of the power. While the same Heroic Spirit can be summoned at the same time in different Classes, I never believed that a Heroic Spirit summoned in the same Class simultaneously could exist at the same time." Dr. Roman tried to explain the situation. "Though this only a theory, it could be wrong. I have Da Vinci look over the data you're gathering."

"Shit, okay so we could be dealing with an imposter or an actual evil twin situation here okay." Andrew than processed the other part of what Doctor Roman had just said and turned towards Jeanne. "Holy Maiden, forgive my insolence, but if you are having troubles with your mana supply, perhaps I could be of assistance?" He asked, remembering how he could have contracted Cu Chulainn in Fuyuki according to said Caster and hoping to acquire another servant.

"Please don't call me that my name is Jeanne, and yes my supply of magical energy is rather low, and while the amount I'm gathering from the air is enough to sustain my existence, a fight would drain them. And make unable to function for some time. So yes, I would like to make a temporary contract with you… What's your name actually?" Jeanne asked.

"O-oh, my apologies, I am Andrew Murphy, Master of Chaldea." He replied. He was a bit disappointed at her stipulation for a temporary contract, but a temporary Servant was better than no Servant. "Forgive my ignorance, but how would we make the Contract, Hol-Jeanne." He said, correcting himself. It was finally registering he was talking to a Saint, and it was a bit hard to keep that out of his thoughts.

It was Dr. Roman who came to the rescue for that one. "Since you have Command Seals Andrew a simple handshake and verbal agreement will suffice. Also, did any of you guys know where Fou ran off to before you Rayshifted, 'cause we can't find him here?"

The question was answered by the creature itself who seemingly jumped out from behind Mash Shield. "Fou were you hiding in my shield?" Mash asked as she saw the fluffy critter ran up and placed itself on her shoulder. "I think he ran into my Coffin while we weren't looking Doctor." Mash stated.

"Well, at least he's okay at the moment. Well, I'll talk to you all later when you make more progress." At that, the hologram disappeared from view.

Andrew turned towards Jeanne. "Shall we commence the creation of the contract?" He asked.

"That we shall."

Andrew reached out with the hand that had the Command Seals on it and took notice that there was three usable again. It seemed these were capable of regenerating and coming back.

That would be very useful.

Jeanne took Andrew's hand and shook it. Andrew blushed a bit at the physical contact with a literal saint. "I, Jeanne d'Arc shall become your Servant Ruler."

"And I shall become your Master," Andrew responded with what sounded most natural to say back to that. And as they did he saw the Command Seals briefly lit up, along with a pull on his Magic Circuits taking a bit of his Prana. If he had to guess he had about half of his reserves left after also summoning Kojiro.

"The contract has been created, and my reserves are all most full Master Andrew," Jeanne spoke as she disengaged their hands from each other.

"Good," Andrew said simply. It was getting very hard not to think about the whole 'literal Saint' thing now that she was under his command. It almost felt...wrong. He rested his other hand over where the silver cross around his neck lay.

"So, Master the Wyverns has been defeated, and we have gained a new ally. What do you wish for us to do now? If you to seek out the enemy, I shall cut them down with my blade." Kojiro spoke as he awaited new orders from Andrew.

Andrew turned towards the Assassin as he addressed him. "Thank you for your enthusiasm Assassin, but we should harvest as much of the Wyverns as we can before we head out. They may not be very strong, but they could have some parts that could be very useful just by virtue of being from a Wyvern." He said as he pictured a suit of scale mail made from actual dragon scales.

"That's a good idea Master, I might not be able to do much with them. But that Da Vinci might be able to use them, and other Casters you might be able to summon later." Cu said.

"I heard the conversation you were having, and the barbarian is right I am able to use them." Came Da Vinci's voice from Mash armband phone. "Just pile them together, and we will be able to Rayshift them as they like Servants are mostly Spiritual in nature they can easily be Rayshifted without a problem. Da Vinci the genius out."

"Alright then. Let's pile as much of them up as we can," Andrew said. "And make sure their dead first. Don't want to be sending angry enemies directly into Chaldea." He said, remembering the most important rule of combat- Double Tap. He wouldn't make the same mistake.

"Yes, Master." All his Servants said as they began to move out across the battlefield, to collect the bodies of the Wyverns.

As Andrew watched them pile the bodies up, he had tried to help, but the bodies had been too heavy for him to lift. He was approached by Jeanne who had just dropped a lower body on the pile.

"Master Andrew, I want to talk to you about something," Jeanne said.

"Of course, Jeanne," Andrew said, remembering to refer to her by name. "You are always free to speak your mind."

"It's about my seemingly evil twin as you said, I want us to deal with her as fast as possible. She is causing so much suffering, and want it to stop. I heard the Soldiers in the castle say that she is currently holed up in Orleans. I want us to get there as fast as possible, and stop her from destroying everything I fought to protect."

"O-of course!" Andrew said, moved by the emotion and determination in her words. "My plan was to hunt her down after checking on the castle quickly anyway." He said.

"And the people are safe now thankfully. Though on the way to Orleans we will pass through the city of La Charite, I want to see if we're able to gather more information about my other-self before we attack. So, that we are not underprepared in the coming fight." Jeanne suggested.

"Yes, that seems like a good idea," Andrew said. 'How am I supposed to disagree with _her_?' Andrew thought to himself. It was rather hard considering her earnest personality, noble heart, and the fact that God himself had spoken to her. It all made Andrew a bit light-headed with her technically being under his command and the fact that the Command Spells he had seemed to regenerate made his head spin with possibilities. Or maybe it was the prana drain. Hopefully that.

"Hmm, it seems that the others have finished the task," Jeanne spoke, and Andrew saw she was right as he looked at the pile of dead Wyverns.

The two walked over the others, and Mash using her armband was able to mark the area where Wyverns lay before a second later they saw them disappear from their sight.

Afterward, Andrew informed his Servant that they were heading towards city La Charite to gather information about the Evil Jeanne, before fighting her.

They had all agreed to the plan, and so they had also gotten a wagon from the soldiers for Andrew to sit in as Mash had informed them that the city was a continuous day of walking away from their current position. And that her Senpai's feet would fall off if he walked the entire way. And while they had obtained it Jeanne had been introduced to the other Servants.

"Might I ask why I'm the mule here?" Cu asked he held ropes that connected to the wagon, Andrew was currently sitting in with Fou on his lap.

"Because you're the only sturdy man here," Lily said. "Assassin while agile looks like a slight breeze would knock him down."

"Oy," Two male Servants spoke at the same time.

"Well, think of it this way," Andrew said, doing his best to fight down a smirk. "One of the best vehicles before cars is a dog sled."

"Master, you are going to get bit in the ass for all those jokes someday." Cu spoke.

"Enough dicking around dog, we are wasting daylight." Came Lily's voice. The comment making Mash and Jeanne blush.

"Watch your language young lady!" Andrew said (somewhat) jokingly.

"To think the king of Britain spoke such language." Andrew heard Jeanne mutter.

"Blame the dog for it, the amount of curses that left his mouth during yesterday sparring match could make for a dictionary," Lily said seriously.

Andrew turned to his blue servant. "You were only using curse words, right? You better not have pulled out a Geas or anything or so help me…"

"Calm down Master, now hold on your riding the Cu Chulainn express today. Now I think a 100 kilometer an hour is going to make us arrive at La Charite before sundown."

Andrew did some quick math in his head and paled. "Kouhai, could you be a dear and set up your shield as a windshield? I don't want to die to something stupid like a high-speed bug collision." Andrew asked his first Servant.

"Yes, Senpai," Mash said, took and jumped up to Andrew sat in front of him the shield in front of them both.

"Alright, you're both in now let's go everyone." As he said that Andrew saw runes appearing all over the wooden wagon. The wood also came alive and seemed to make a seat belt around him and Mash. Holding them both in place.

Andrew felt the pull as Cu began to run, dragging them with him.

Oddly enough, Andrew found moving at that speed almost comfortable. It was like driving down the highway in a convertible (which he'd only ever been the passenger of but still). He let himself relax with the familiar sensation, ignoring the scenario they were in in the first place. It was the closest thing to 'normal' he'd gotten since this whole thing started that wasn't banter. It was nice.

All his other Servants had gone into Spirit form, while they kept up with the wagon.

And so it was five hours later that they arrived at the city of La Charite.

But where a city was supposed to be, they all only saw a smoldering city, smoke rising into the air.

"Guys I'm detecting a Servant leaving the city," Came Roman's voice.


	10. Jeanne Alter

Andrew felt a moment of indecision. One part of him wanted to go into the smoldering city to try and rescue any survivors. The rest of him wanted to make whoever did this pay with blood. "Roman, approximate location on that Servant; Caster, head straight for the bastard if you can already feel it."

"I'm sorry to say it Andrew, but the Servant is already out of range I think it was Rider to be able to move so fast." Dr. Romans voice came from the armband.

"Dammit!" Andrew said, slamming his fist down on the cart. Making Fou jump. "Then we're heading into that city, and we're going to look for any survivors and get them out of that mess."

"Yes, Master!" All Servants said, as they quickly moved closer to the city in ruins. When they all arrived in the span of a few seconds, Andrew and Mash left the cart and now stood on the hard ground.

They entered the city proper and just before Andrew could give orders for his Servants to look for survivors in the city, Roman spoke up again.

"Guys I think there is something wrong with the scanners, it keeps saying that there isn't any life, but it's still detecting movement. So, what I'm saying is be careful."

"No…" Andrew said as the pieces clicked in his mind. Ravaged city. No life. Signs of movement. _Magic Bullshit_. The only reasonable conclusion was...

"Master Andrew, have you realized something?" Jeanne asked as she stood next to him, her flag in hand.

" _Undead._ " Andrew spat out vehemently. In fiction, they were just another type of enemy, something to be cut down, or an unending mass of bodies thrown at humanity until its last breath. But here, now, this was real. They were _people_ , actually real, living people. Andrew felt a sickness that was equal parts anger and disgust at the mere idea, let alone the most likely reality.

It was precisely when Andrew said that, the sound of scrapping and steps could be heard by his ears and everyone else's.

And now from the ruined buildings and streets, Andrew saw humans began walking out en masse towards them. But they were not normal, even with little remaining sunlight that now he could clearly see their red eyes, wrinkled dead skin, and fangs that sprouted from their mouths.

"DEAD!" Came the shout of hatred and disgust from Jeanne, much to Andrew's shock. "This must be the work of an Apostle, they are the only ones who can make them."

"But, Dr. Roman just said that a Servant just left the city. How can a Vampire be a Servant?" Mash asked.

"Dracula," Andrew said, partially in surprise. The only person known _historically_ as a vampire, the one who impaled thousands as an intimidation tactic. And more than capable of being summoned as a Servant.

"Yes, that logically makes sense, Master. I have fought against the King of Wallachia before in a Grail War, and if my dark-self activated that Noble Phantasm of his then, he would be capable of such a thing we are seeing. But Master Andrew we need to act quickly and eliminate the Dead before they can spread to other cities."

"Right." Andre practically growled, not in anger towards the Saint. "Servants of Chaldea! Cleanse this city of the undead!" He yelled, his voice filled with anger at the injustice done to these people.

There was only silent acknowledgment as Andrew's Servants went to do their work. Cu ignited his staff and went to incinerating the undead monsters. Kojiro cut them down with his blade so that they were no longer able to move around. Lily did the same, but as Caliburn cut through the dead, their remains combusted afterward. Jeanne, however, didn't smack them with her flag but instead began to speak prayers instead that seemingly made the Dead collapse and be paralyzed.

That was then Andrew himself stepped into the fray to take care of the Dead Jeanne had frozen by using the Fire Runestones that Cu had made for him. Mash did the least to the horde as she stuck to Andrews side and made sure that he didn't get attacked by any dead that managed to sneak up.

"Argh!" Mash shouted as slammed her shield into and undead making crash into a wall, which Andrew followed with another of his Fire Runestones, which he now had only a few left of. He didn't think that the Ice and Electricity would do much good against the horde of undead.

"Great, job guys I'm unable to detect anymore moving targets within the city." Dr. Roman informed them.

"Ohthankgod" Andrew sighed. It had been emotionally draining to incinerate the bodies of those poor people, and he would be happy if he never saw another undead again. After he burned Dracula himself after shoving a stake through his heart of course.

At that everyone regrouped at the center of the city, having split off to take care of all the undead.

"Are, you okay Master?" Lily asked as she walked over to Andrew, her white dress and armor covered in blood.

Andrew was shaking like a leaf in a hurricane. "No. No, I'm not," He said, his voice quivering as what had just occurred properly caught up with him. Andrew managed to focus on one emotion in particular in the cocktail of emotions he was feeling-anger. "And I won't be until we find the _monster_ who did this and reduce it to _elementary particles_." He said, pushing away the rest of what he was feeling with his anger.

"I hear you, Master, I like fighting, but this wasn't fun at all, just sadness and mercy towards the people of this city. I also feel like crap at the moment. So, after we eliminate the enemy, how about we raid storage for some alcohol to drink?" Cu asked as he arrived, his body smelling of burnt meat like Andrew's own.

Andrew considered the fact that he never had drunk alcohol before for about 0.005 seconds before replying. "Yeah..., yeah I think that sounds like a fantastic idea Caster. As soon as we're out of this mess." He promised Caster.

"Child of Light, you should not turn our Master into a drunk," Jeanne said. "Now the suffering undead has been put to rest before we find a place to make camp for the night I would like to speak some burial prayers if that is okay?"

"I think some prayer is more than appropriate right now, please go ahead," Andrew said.

"Thank you, Master Andrew." Jeanne got down on her knees and began to pray, placing her flag in front of her. "Oh, Father in heaven, your sheep has been unjustly slaughtered by, a wolf, and now their spirits seek their shepherd, O' Lord guide them to eternal life in their new garden, and let them be forever more Amen."

"Amen," Andrew said quietly. He waited for a moment before speaking again in respect to the dead. "We're moving out. We're going in whatever direction that Servant was heading, and then to Orleans after we introduce the vampire to the holy power of a Saint and the Sword of Selection."

"There is no need for that plan Andrew, cause the Servant is coming back right now!" Dr. Roman shouted. "And there are four more following him. You have Servants to match them in numbers Andrew, but I have no idea if you can beat them. What do we do, quick Magi Mari give me a plan? What do you mean I should kill myself? You're so cruel. The wait is the com still on? You didn't hear that, speak to you later if you survive." That was then Dr. Roman cut out, and the armband went silent.

Andrew filed the end of that exchange away for later when he wasn't being set upon by 5 Servants. Speaking of. "Assassin, hide and prepare to strike. Mash, stay by my side. Caster, start charging your bigger blasts. Lily, we might be using your Noble Phantasm so get ready. And Jeanne…" He turned towards the Saint as he spoke. "I'm going to need you to put everything you've got in helping that Vampire achieve enlightenment and _experience nothingness_." He said, with vitriol in his voice.

"I will do the best I can Master Andrew," Jeanne said as she took a combat stance. Andrew saw Assassin go into Spirit Form.

 _*Ching*_

That was the sound Andrew heard, as he saw Lily standing right in front of him, in a combat pose with her sword swung to the side like she had just batted something away.

And she had as Andrew saw a bleach white stake as tall as his body now piercing the ground right beside him.

Before he had time to react Jeanne grabbed his body and jumped back with him as for where he had stood more stakes had sprouted out of the ground.

They landed a few feet away from there stakes had sprouted, and almost turned into a kebab.

"Yeahthat'sDraculaalright," Andrew said rapidly out of fear.

That was then a male voice spoke up that simply oozed upper-class elite to Andrew's ears. "Hmm, it seemed that I missed?"

"You did you useless vampire, but now I got to ask how something like this could happen?" Asked a female voice that sounded exactly like Jeanne's but more twisted, cruel and cold. One that delighted in the suffering of others.

The enemy had arrived, and Andrew saw the five Servants that Dr. Roman had detected.

Andrew observed all five intently, in no small part due to fear, and upon laying eyes on the man, he instantly knew to be Dracula the fear began to be overwhelmed by anger. The woman with the cross-shaped spear was a bit confusing; she must have been some sort of insurance policy against the Vampire if he proved uncontrollable. The evil Jeanne admittedly did look almost identical to the Jeanne next to him, save for the palette swap and the look of sadistic glee. The obvious Saber, wielding a rapier looked as out of place among the obviously evil Servants as the assumed holy woman with the cross spear did; they looked more like a musketeer than a monster. The same could not be said of the fifth Servant however as she carried what appeared to be an entire Iron Maiden on her back and wearing what looked like bondage gear and a decidedly _crimson_ dress.

Andrew then focused more intently on the one that mattered the most, using his Stat-o-Vision on the Jeanne doppelganger.

 **True Name:** Jeanne d'Arc

 **Master:**?

 **Class:** Ruler

 **Parameters:**

Strength: A

Endurance: C

Agility: A

Mana: A+

Luck: E

Noble Phantasm: A+

 **Class Skills:**

Magic Resistance: EX

 **Personal Skills:**

Dragon Witch: EX

Charisma: E

 **Noble Phantasm:**

La Grondement Du Haine: Roar 'O Rage of Mine(Anti-Army): A+

Andrew then turned his Stat-o-Vision towards the monster he wanted to return to the Throne of Heroes personally, Dracula.

 **True Name:** Vlad 'Dracula' Tepes III

 **Master:** Jeanne d'Arc

 **Class:** Berserker

 **Parameters:**

Strength: A

Endurance: A

Agility: C

Mana: B

Luck: E

Noble Phantasm: A+

 **Class Skills:**

Mad Enhancement: EX

 **Personal Skills:**

Vampirism: A

Shapeshift: C

Battle Continuation: A

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Kazikli Bey: Bloodstained King Demon(Anti-Unit): C+

Legend of Dracula: The Succession of Blood(Anti-Unit(self)): A+

Andrew did not like what he saw. At all. But he did like that they were pretty close together. "With this Command Seal," He began under his breath. "I order you, Saber Lily, to use your Noble Phantasm and _destroy them._ "

The Command Seal lit up on his hand, immediately taking effect.

"As you wish Master, **Caliburn!** " Lily shouted as she did not resist the command but embraced it wholeheartedly. She thrusted her sword forward and fired the gold beam from it, sending straight towards the group of evil Servants.

But Jeanne Alter, as she looked like Saber Alter, just smiled instead.

"Rider." Came her voice.

That was when the holy woman acted on her order. "Come Tarasque and be my shield!" She shouted before Lily's Noble Phantasm hit, a massive shield that looked like a turtle's shell appeared, and the attack hit it instead.

Doing no damage to the enemy.

"You know Mister Master, it is rude to interrupt a lady when she is talking, how about you all take a break, while I talk. Saber would you." Spoke Jeanne Alter.

"Yes, Master. **Fleur de Lys!** " As the Saber spoke seemingly, a white lily appeared behind the knight Servant.

It was the most beautiful thing that Andrew had ever seen.

But as he looked at it he immediately felt himself weaken and unable to move his body.

"Master, my body is frozen I can not move." Spoke Lily worryingly.

"Same here Senpai I can't move," Mash said too.

"I can't either, what an unfair Noble Phantasm." Cu voiced his situation.

And Andrew guessed that the same also held true for the hidden Kojiro, along with Jeanne.

"Now while you're under Saber's Noble Phantasm at least, for the time being, I can't interrupt me by attacking." Jeanne Alter said a gleeful smile on her face.

That was Jeanne spoke up. "Chevalier d'Eon, Saint Martha, why are you obeying her?"

The only reason Andrew didn't react physically to the revelation that Saint Martha, as in biblical Martha, as in _actually met Jesus Martha_ was being used by the enemy (and wearing….that) was because of Saber's Noble Phantasm keeping him immobilized. But his anger towards Jeanne Alter redoubled when he realized she was using the saint to harm people. (Or at the very least protect herself) and more and more he felt he wanted to rip the Grail from her cold dead hands himself and then destroy the vile mockery of the saint he had (temporarily) contracted.

"Oh, you want to know why they are listening to me? Well, that would be because of the Mad Enhancement I put them under. And the fact I'm Jeanne d'Arc the Holy Saint devoted to France, who wouldn't follow me."

"What? That's nonsense. You are no saint. Just as I am no saint. But, that is a thing of the past. Why did you attack this town, and turn the citizens into monsters?" Jeanne asked her Altered counterpart.

"Why you, as we're Jeanne d'Arc, after all, I thought it would be obvious." Jeanne Alter began to monologue but as there was nothing Andrew could do to take advantage of Talking-Is-Not-a-Free-Action. He just let her continue. "Did you mind get scrambled or something. It's obvious, isn't? Don't you think so Gilles?" She turned her head around before quickly turning it back. "Oh, we forgot to take him with us. Anyway, it is for the sole purpose of destroying France. I am, after all, a Servant. Politically, economically, these methods take to long, so is it not better to just destroy everything physically." She grinned maniacally.

"Foolishness!" Jeanne retorted.

Andrew saw Jeanne Alter's face turn angry. "'Foolishness' the foolish ones are us, Jeanne d'Arc. Why did you want to save this country? Why did you want to bring these people salvation? All while knowing they are one who betrayed and spit on us."

"That is-" Jeanne started by was cut off, by the other her.

"I will be fooled no longer. I will be betrayed no longer." She growled. "I no longer hear the voice of the Lord. The fact that I cannot hear His voice means the Lord no longer blesses this Country." She revealed, and Andrew saw Jeanne's face become one of shock. "So, I will destroy it, in accordance with the Lord's grief. I will cut away the roots. For as long as the human race exists, so will my hatred. I will remake this France into a land of the dead."

"How, can you be so full of hatred, are you really me?" Jeanne asked as she looked at the hate-filled woman.

"You still have, doubts? Well, let me tell you this you cannot understand my hatred, for you are not, Ruler of Jeanne d'Arc, you're just the leftover pieces that I have discarded, then I embraced my hatred." Jeanne Alter spoke.

To Andrew, her words made a disturbing amount of sense; Jeanne had said she had just suddenly materialized and had been weakened from what she should be, but on a fundamental level he absolutely despised the idea of the twisted version of Jeanne being correct, so he decided that this was wholly untrue. Instead, Andrew decided that the Alter was simply taking most of the power for herself from the shared legend of 'Jeanne d'Arc' and thus was preventing the good Jeanne from being at full strength. Yes, that seemed much more likely to Andrew, as Jeanne Alter seemed to have fully embraced the beliefs of the people who had her burned alive. Yes, that seemed correct. She had to be lying.

"For I we were truly the same person, there would have been a created a connection between us. But there has not. Now I think I've talked enough. Berserker, Assassin kill them before Saber's Noble Phantasm, no longer works. Drain of their blood and their Souls." Jeanne Alter ordered the two vampire Servants.

"My dear Count, I want the females, I hate those that are prettier than, It disgust me. I'm supposed to be most beautiful here." Said, the female vampire, that Jeanne Alter had revealed to be an Assassin.

"My dear Bathory don't be greedy you get three, and I only get two, how about we share the Saint?" Dracula casually talked to his fellow vampire.

"And here you go revealing my identity to the enemy oh, well not like it matters they are about to be dinner anyway. So, I shall introduce myself fully. I am the Assassin Class Servant Elizabeth Bathory, but you can just call me Carmilla." Carmilla introduced herself.

"The Countess of Blood, the woman who slaughtered countless girls inside her castle bathing their blood to retain her youth." Andrew heard Mash say.

"Can anyone move at all?" Andrew asked of his Servants, fear increasing as the vampires spoke.

The answer he got was a resounding NO. From all of his Servants.

The fear was not alleviated as they heard Dr. Romans voice. "Guys two more Servants just entered the city." They heard him say.

"It seems that we have a buzzing fly." Jeanne Alter said glaring.

"Ah, my instruments are on fire, she set fire to them by glaring. Scary, I'm Rayshifting you out of there now." Dr. Roman said.

"No need to fear a true Hero of Justice has arrived." Came a loud female voice. " **Guillotine Breaker!** "

That was then Andrew felt himself move again, as Dracula was kicked in the face by a giant crystal horse.

A woman riding on top of it wearing a ridiculous hat.

And following with by hitting Carmilla in the stomach before she could act.

"Don't worry I have come to save you all, despite shaking in fear of strong opponents. But worry not I shall defeat all those that invade my nation." She declared.

"Wait you are?" Spoke the enemy, Saber.

"Oh no this heroes identity has been found out how unsightly. Hit it, Caster!" The apparent Rider Servant shouted.

"As you wish my Queen." Spoke a male voice. And in front of them appeared the called upon Caster, wearing some garish ropes. "Hear my Noble Phantasm **Requiem of Death!** " An entire symphony orchestra appeared and seemed to cause Jeanne Alter and her Servants extreme pain.

"Quick let's go while they are distracted," Said the Rider and pulled Andrew onto her horse.

Andrew heard Jeanne Alter scream in rage as they escaped.


	11. Abusive Dragon Saint

Andrew clung to the horse for dear life as it rode away from the town, with all of his Servant's following troop. But they all came to a stop as they approached a forest.

"It seems that we have gotten away from them for now." The Rider of the crystal horse spoke as she left her mount Andrew following suit, though less gracefully than the girl.

Andrew stood up after he slid off and quickly went over everyone to check if they hadn't actually been left behind, and he hadn't miscounted when he had been on the horse.

And thankfully they all were accounted for.

" _The Lady is correct I'm no longer able to detect them, and they seem to not be following us for the moment. Thank god you're all okay, that was getting rather scary back than Andrew, are you holding up?"_ Asked Dr. Roman from the armband.

"I honestly have no idea right now doc," Andrew said. His head was still spinning from the semi-literal whiplash of going from 'about to die slowly and painfully to sadistic vampires' to 'running away at high speed on Buttstalion's cousin.' "I think...I'm okay enough for right now. More importantly." He turned towards the white-haired woman by the crystal horse and the man in extravagant clothing. "Not that I'm complaining ma'am, and in fact, I am extremely thankful, but why did you save us? Who are you?"

"Quite simply I'm a Queen, and so I need heroes like yourself to help me save my country. I can do no such thing alone, and my dear Caster here is basically useless in fighting." She answered cheerfully.

"That hurts deep my love, but it is true I'm a support Servant best at helping others. I'm not even much of a hero, great I might be, but there are other artists, besides myself that would be more useful." The long-haired blond man, who kinda looked like french Legolas now that Andrew thought about it.

"As for who I am." She took a dramatic breath. "I'm Rider Class Servant Marie Antoinette, and dear friend here is-."

"I am Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart nice to meet you all," Mozart said with a smile.

"The Flower of Vassili and the World's greatest composer," Mash said in shock as she looked at the two Servants.

" _Marie Antoinette? I hadn't expected her to be eligible to become a Heroic Spirit or even be summoned as a Servant. But still, it's a pleasure to meet you, your majesty."_ Said, the holographic form of Dr. Roman having appeared to talk to the French Servants.

"Why thank you mister it is a pleasure to meet all of you too," Marie said, her gloved hand held daintily over her mouth.

" _Now, Andrew, you should head into the forest and make camp for the night, and I'll Rayshift you some rations to eat."_ Roman, suggested.

"Oh, you're going to send us food, can you send cake?" Marie asked.

" _Sure thing, your majesty,"_ Roman said before he disappeared.

Andrew glanced over at his new allies as he walked over to Mash, using his Stat-o-Vision on them both, Marie first and then Mozart.

[spoiler=Marie's Stat Sheet]

 **True Name:** Marie Antoinette

 **Class:** Rider

 **Master:** -

 **Parameters:**

Strength: D

Endurance: D

Agility: B

Mana: B

Luck: B/B+

Noble Phantasm: A+

 **Class Skills:**

Riding: A+

Magic Resistance: C

 **Personal Skills:**

Alluring Nightingale: C

Princess of Loveliness: A

God's Grace: B

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Guillotine Breaker: Glory To The Crown of Lilies(Anti-Army): A+

Crystal Palace: Precious Brilliance Everlasting(Barrier): B+

[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Mozart's Stat Sheet]

 **True Name:** Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

 **Class:** Caster

 **Master:** -

 **Parameters:**

Strength: D

Endurance: E

Agility: B

Mana: B+

Luck: D

Noble Phantasm: B

 **Class Skills:**

Territory Creation: B

 **Personal Skills:**

Protection of The Muses(False): EX

Eye for Art: B

A Little Night Music: EX

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Requiem for Death: A Funeral March For the Death God(Anti-Army): B

[/spoiler]

He filed that information away for later. Right now there was something more important he needed to do. "Mash, how are you holding up?" He asked the Shielder.

"A bit frightened, I thought that you were going to die, and that was nothing I could do to stop it. Thankfully Marie and Mozart managed to save us." She answered.

"No need to thank us, dear." Came Marie's voice.

"But, anyway I'm happy that you're safe now Senpai. And I think the others are too."

"She is right in that Master," Came Sasaki's voice. "I had not expected the enemy to have such a Noble Phantasm it even froze me while in spiritual form. But it's a trick that won't work a second time. For it seems to be based on sight for it to work, so next time his head will leave his shoulders that I promise you."

"The same goes for me Master, and don't worry next time the Count won't survive." Cu said. And Andrew saw Lily give a silent agreement, she probably wanted a piece out of Carmilla and Saint Martha, for her having blocked her attack.

"Now, Master Andrew you heard the Doctor, we should make camp inside the forest so that you can have some rest," Jeanne said, but Andrew could tell that she looked troubled.

"Jeanne…" Andrew started before realizing he had no real idea what to say. "...She was lying. She's just a fake that's been corrupted by the Holy Grail who's stealing your power through sharing your legend. And we _will_ beat her." He said, trying to convince himself as much as Jeanne.

"Thank you for your kind words, Andrew, I appreciate them, and I will think about them. Now you should soon get some rest after you have eaten."

"Yeah, that's probably a good idea," Andrew said.

And so they all headed into the forest and there they found a clearing to use as a camp. They set up a fire to light up the area, while Cu planted down some defenses using his Magecraft, in case any creatures decided to attack during the night.

After they had done so, Dr. Roman had sent them supplies to eat, which meant some high nutrient military like rations and a large cake for them to eat for dessert as requested by Marie. As they were doing so, Andrew was fawning over Fou, partially to calm his nerves from the events which had transpired, and partially because the little thing was just that cute.

"You like animals, Andrew?" Marie asked taking a seat to his right, as Mash occupied his left.

Andrew looked up at the Queen, still petting Fou as he did. "Yes, your Majesty." He said, doing his best to be as respectful as possible to the woman who had saved his and his Servant's lives.

"I do too, I love animals just as much as do my country and my family, they are some greatest things that the Lord has given life to," Marie said, as she too began to scratch Fou behind his right ear.

"That is true, my Marie has loved animals since we were children, why I even remember one of my proposals involved making an orchestra of birds by using Magecraft along with my music." Mozart quipped in from the other side of the fire.

"Yes, I remember that too, but it seems that you forgot that it ended with them exploding when you played the wrong tune." Marie retorted.

"Heheheh." Mozart laughed, looking rather embarrassed.

"Don't make throw you into the dungeon again."

"Ah, please have mercy, my queen, Sanson bullied me relentlessly after that."

Andrew couldn't help but smile at the back and forth the two had.

"Ah, excuse me your Majesty, but may I be so bold as to ask what the nature of your noble steed is? Such a majestic creature is surely a Noble Phantasm." He said, trying to get the two to tell him what they could do without being rude to them.

"It's good to see that you have excellent manners, Andrew, despite being a peasant. I would very tell you about my Noble Phantasm. That steed is indeed my Noble Phantasm its name is Guillotine Breaker, it is the ultimate symbol of nobility of France and its monarchy. It allows me to stampede on my enemies and it also able rid my allies of negative effects along with restoring their health and Mana." She said.

Andrew ignored the peasant comment; it was technically true after all. "So your Noble Phantasm can act as a direct counter to that of the enemy Saber-that's how you were able to get us out of there earlier right?"

Marie smiled. "You're right my horse is a helpful thing is he not?"

"Indeed it is your Majesty. Truly a fitting Noble Phantasm for one as virtuous as yourself." Andrew said, ignoring his own knowledge of her history in life.

"It is indeed, thank you for the praise Andrew, as a reward, while it might be unbecoming of one of my station. You can use my lap as a pillow to sleep on if you wish." Marie offered.

Andrew pretended to not notice the stink eye Mozart gave him. He did get a discreet thumbs up from Cu.

Andrew mulled it over for a moment before responding. "I would be honored, your Majesty, to have such an opportunity." He said aloud. 'One does not simply deny the offer of a queen.'

"Then please lay your head and rest it is no good if the hero who shall save my country is too tired to do so." Andrew did as she said, and to his surprise, her skin was rather soft to the touch. But before he closed his eyes, he swore he saw a look of jealousy in Mash and Lily's eyes, but that couldn't be true.

Andrew quickly fell asleep.

Xxx

"Senpai, wake up!" Andrew's eyes Immediately shot open, and he sat up from his sleeping position.

He saw the early morning sun through the trees.

"Mash! What's wrong?" He said as he looked around frantically. Had the enemy caught up with them?

"Dr. Roman called and said that a Servant had just entered the detection perimeter and one of Cu Chulainn's traps went off a few seconds ago. It seemed that an enemy Servant has found our location." She said her shield in hand and ready to be bashed against somebodies face.

Andrew was fully awake and alert now. "Alright everyone, get ready to fight off a Mad Enhanced servant of unknown capabilities. Assassin, hide. Everyone else, try and get the enemy to show their hand before we play ours." He ordered his Servants.

"Yes, Master!" They all shouted and got into battle positions.

"Senpai, I'm able to sense the Servant, it will arrive in the clearing in 3..2..1. Now." Mash counted down.

"Finally I was able to find you, I was starting to worry that I had gotten a bit lost in the forest." The voice of Saint Martha spoke as she came through the trees and now stood at the edge of the clearing. "I hope that you're ready for me."

"Saint Martha, the woman who defeated a dragon through prayers, why are you working with that hateful person?" Jeanne asked.

"It's not like I wanted to really, she's got my mind full of that Mad Enhancement, it's taking all of my willpower to not attack right now, and beat you to death." She admitted.

"Beat us to death?" Marie asked. "Such uncouth words to be said by a woman, but you seem like the person to say such things. Why I believe you didn't even beat the dragon with prayers, you just pummeled it into submission after peaking on you while bathing, didn't you?" Marie asked.

"Why would believe, such a stupid rumor, nothing of sorts happened, despite what _he_ says otherwise," Martha said.

" _He?_ " Andrew said, worried. She didn't mean…

"She's talking about me." Came a deep and mellow voice from the woods.

"Tarasque didn't I tell you to stay silent until I called you didn't I?" Came Martha's voice which was bordering on threatening.

"Please don't hit me again."

"Knew it." Said Marie in joy as her previous words were confirmed.

"Well, it seems that my surprise attack has been ruined, stupid dragon. Anyway this piece of information for you if you manage to survive me trying to kill you in a few moments. The key to your victory against the Witch is in Lyon."

It was at this moment Andrew realized that they were about to fight a dragon; not a wyvern, an honest-to-god (no pun intended) dragon along with a Servant known as a Saint. If it weren't for his numbers advantage, he would probably have run by now. As is, he decided to instead see just what Saint Martha had at her disposal with his Stat-o-Vision.

[spoiler= Martha's Stat Sheet]

 **True Name:** Saint Martha

 **Class:** Rider

 **Master:** Jeanne d'Arc Alter

 **Parameters:**

Strength: D

Endurance: C

Agility: B

Mana: A

Luck: A+

Noble Phantasm: A+

 **Class Skills:**

Riding: A++

Magic Resistance: A

Mad Enhancement: C

 **Personal Skills:**

Protection of Faith: A

Miracles: D+

Saint of the Waterside: C

Vows of the Saint: C

Divinity: C

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Tarasque: The Dragon Shield that a Blade Shall Not Pass(Barrier): C

Tarasque: O' Tragic Drake Who Knew Naught of Love(Anti-Army): A+

[/spoiler]

'The Dragon Shield that a Blade Shall Not Pass' must have been what she had blocked Caliburn with earlier. The Tarasque must have an insanely tough shell to have just not been affected by the Command Spell boosted Noble Phantasm. Andrew did note the phrasing though. "Caster, blast her!" He ordered.

"I was hoping you would say that Master," Cu responded as he lifted up his staff.

" **Tarasque!** " Saint Martha shouted. And from the trees behind her Andrew saw the dragon coming _spinning_ out of the forest.

"I prepared this just in case. **Ochd Deug Odin!** " Caster shouted runes became visible as if they had been hidden before. They were formed in a circle, and from it, Andrew saw blue-white beam being shot from it. Going directly towards the spinning dragon and the saint.

It utterly consumed the dragon and Martha, but before it did Andrew heard her shout. "Goddamn, you Pagan!" And it was then silenced, but the beam continued forward cutting straight through the forest before it exploded at the end.

It was definitely an Anti-Fortress attack.

"Whew, I've been waiting to get to finally use that." Cu said as everyone looked at the destruction his Noble Phantasm had caused.

"Yes, that is all well and good, but we need to move now, for we definitely revealed our location," Jeanne said.

Getting a "Yeah." From everyone at the statement. While Andrew just saw Cu shrug.

"Before we do, is the Servant confirmed dead? Most things shouldn't be able to survive something like that, but Servants aren't most things." Andrew said rapidly. He refused to even potentially make the same mistake twice.

"She is Senpai, I can see a Saint Quartz lying where she stood, remember to pick it up," Mash said.

"Thank you, Mash," Andrew said as he went over to retrieve the Quartz. "Alright, _now_ let's book it."

"That is good idea Andrew, you can sit on my horse again so that we can be quicker," Marie said.

"Thank you, your Majesty," Andrew said. Hopefully this time he'd be able to at least somewhat enjoy the experience of riding the crystal horse now that he would be a passenger instead of cargo.

Xxx

"So, what the villagers said was, true. Lyon has indeed been destroyed just like La Charite." Jeanne said as they stood in front of another ruined city.

They had managed to get shown the way, by coming across a town that was thankfully intact and filled with alive people. They had been happy to show the way, after Andrew and his Servant's had managed to deal with some bandits harassing the town. They had told the group that the town had been under attack, but then a knight wielding a massive greatsword had shown up and beaten back the wyverns and other monsters keeping the city safe for a few days. But then one day the witch had shown up personally and destroyed the town, leaving behind a monster that struck down any that approached Lyon.

The group had reasoned that the knight probably was a Servant, but had been wounded by Jeanne Alter, and thus unable to defend Lyon from her attack.

Now they were here, and they didn't have an idea about what the Alter Servant had left behind in the town of Lyon.

Andrew had been mulling over the information, trying to work out a plan. "Assassin, do you think you can hide well enough to scout out the town and at least get us a visual on the enemy?" He asked.

"Espionage and stealth is not my area of expertise, but my skills are good enough for scouting purposes," Kojiro answered.

"Alright, that'll work," Andrew said before having an idea. "Actually, Mozart, you use sound-based Magecraft, correct? Could you perhaps dampen or cancel Assassin's noise to further his stealth capabilities?"

"Sorry Andrew, but that I can't do, my music is meant to enhance others not quiet them, but to show off in the full glory, the sound is meant to be heard. You understand?" Mozart responded.

"Of course," Andrew said. "I meant no offense to your music, I was just wondering if it were possible given the wide berth of abilities Magecraft can possess around a theme, especially for Servants." He said, explaining his reasoning to the musician.

"A true Magus with their research focused on sound could do what you're saying, but I'm an artist first and foremost. It would be against my very nature to not let myself and others be heard."

"And a truly magnificent artist at that, from what I've seen of your abilities so far," Andrew said.

"Please do not praise Amadeus further would you Andrew? I do not want his ego to get any bigger." Marie said. "If it did he would begin to float with so much air in it."

"Your words hurt terribly my Marie, but my love for you shall make the pain go away. Now Mr. Assassin did you not have a job to do?" Mozart asked Kojiro.

"Sorry, I'm just not used to free entertainment like that, much better than any Kabuki show I've seen," Kojiro said and went into spirit form. _"Now, Master do summon a proper Assassin next would you not?"_ Andrew heard Kojiro's voice inside his head.

"I'd rather have one of each type of Servant first Assassin, but sure," Andrew replied to the even more ghostly than normal dead man.

" _Now, that you've sent Assassin in I can tell you that I can detect two Servant's inside the city, though one is rather weaker than the other. And also Andrew did you ever get taught the technique to hear and see through a Servant's eyes and ears?"_ Dr. Roman said, his holographic form appearing in front of the group.

And all the Servant's greeted him.

"Negative, Doctor. I have no idea how I'm supposed to do it." Andrew responded to the Doctor turned director. He was his boss after all, and Chaldea was primarily a military operation now.

" _Okay, it's not very hard, because you already have a contract with the Servant's senses you wish to experience. You just gotta focus on that spiritual connection you share with Sasaki Kojiro, and then want to hear and see what he does. And it should help you better respond telepathically with him."_ Dr. Roman explained. _"Now, try it out and see if you can get it to work."_

"Got it," Andrew said before he began to focus on his hidden Servant, and the connection with him, visualizing his mental image of Sasaki Kojiro. Mostly he focused on the sword, but he was still focusing on the Servant.

And it seemed to work as Andrew no longer could see the darkness of his eyelids but, stone and destroyed houses.

"Whoa-oh- _oh_." He inadvertently said aloud at the disorientation brought on by suddenly seeing through another beings eyes in a literal sense; he'd have likened it to VR, but it was too foreign a sensation to properly contextualize at that moment.

" _What is Master I heard your voice? Is there something you want to say to me?"_ Andrew heard Kojiro mentally ask him.

"N-no," Andrew began aloud before forcing himself to instead speak mentally. Aka thinking really hard. _"No, I was just caught off guard by using your senses. Please proceed as previously planned."_

" _Yes, Master I shall, I can feel the presence of a Servant, it's a high chance-."_

"Christine!"

" _Master, did you hear that too?"_

" _They're your ears, Kojiro,"_ Andrew replied. _"But yes. Try and investigate, but do not engage unless you are forced too, in which case you are to retreat ASAP."_

" _Understood_ , _Master,"_ Kojiro answered. And Andrew saw what he saw the change as Kojiro began to move towards the shouting voice.

"Christine, Christine, Christine! Where are you, I can not hear your song, I have been listening for days, but I still cannot hear it. Please come to your Erik." Andrew and Kojiro heard the voice speak.

" _Kojiro, can you tell where that Servant is with your other senses? I can't see it with just your eyes."_ Andrew asked. It was honestly pretty creepy how he could only hear the obviously deranged Servant.

" _He is in the middle of the town walking around something in circles, I'm guessing a tree, going to get a visual of him now,"_ Kojiro said, and he turned his head around the corner. Andrew along with Kojiro got a good look at the Servant that was indeed walking around a tree. And he was a place where they could see the front of him.

Andrew looked over the obviously deranged man in the half mask and fine suit through Kojiro's eyes, taking note of how the mask specifically covered about half of his face, and the wicked looking Krueger-esque knife gloves/hands -he couldn't tell which-which he wore. Given his appearance and the talk of 'Christine' and calling himself 'Erik,' he likely had something to do with the Phantom of the Opera, though what specifically he was was unclear to Andrew at the moment. He tried to use his Stat-o-Vision through Kojiro's eyes, hoping the name of 'Erik' would be sufficient.

And it thankfully seemed to work as he saw the stat sheet appear. And Erik, was apparently enough along with the knowledge he had of the Phantom of the Opera, was enough to get the Skills, Noble Phantasm and Class to appear.

[spoiler=Phantom of the Opera's Stat Sheet]

 **True Name:** Phantom of the Opera/Erik

 **Class:** Assassin

 **Master:** Jeanne d'Arc Alter

 **Parameters:**

Strength: B

Endurance: C

Agility: A

Mana: D

Luck: D

Noble Phantasm: B

 **Class Skills:**

Presence Concealment: A

 **Personal Skills:**

Innocent Monster: D

Alluring Nightingale: B

Mental Pollution: A

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Christine, Christine: Surely My Love Song Shall Resound Even Through Hell(Anti-Army): B

[/spoiler]

Andrew didn't have time to further think over the stats he saw then Erik spoke again. "Who are you? You're not my Christine. Die, and let me slit your throat." And the fact he was now looking _directly at_ the Ronin, whose eyes Andrew was currently looking through.

And suddenly Andrew found himself using his own eyes, as after blinking once he had seen Erik right up in Kojiro's face.

The Ronin apparently having cut Andrew's connection to his senses.

" _Kojiro get out of there now!"_ Andrew frantically 'said' to Kojiro through the connection. "Kojiro just ran into a second enemy Assassin. We need to get over there and destroy it before it can tell Alter!" He said aloud.

"Where is precisely the enemy, Master?" Lily asked.

"Right in the middle of the town," Andrew responded. "Your Majesty, may I be so bold as to ask for your assistance in this matter? Overwhelming the enemy with superior numbers and firepower will make victory much more assured." He beseeched the queen.

"Of course Andrew I shall lend my assistance. Join me on my steed." As she said that the crystal horse appeared once again.

Andrew gave his thanks, and he got onto the horse with Marie, and the entire group headed into the town center as fast as possible.

But it seemed their panic was for naught as Andrew saw Kojiro in very familiar stance. Erik looked to be a few feet away from Andrew's Assassin.

" **Hiken: Tsubame Gaeshi.** " Came Kojiro's calm voice, and within in a split second, Andrew saw Erik break into three pieces.

"Oh my Christine, where is your warm touch, I feel so cold." He said before he disappeared into golden motes of light leaving only behind a Saint Quartz.

" _I can confirm the elimination of the enemy Servant Andrew, only the weaker is still present in the city. I can confirm its location in the nearby Church."_ Dr. Roman informed them.

"Well it seems, that we were worried for nothing, Assassin seemed to have this in the bag Anti-Climatic if you ask me." Cu said in disappointment.

Andrew retrieved the Saint Quartz off of the ground before responding. "Yeah, I guess you're right." He turned to face his Assassin. "Kojiro, sorry for doubting you. I guess I'm just a bit paranoid about all of these buffed up enemy Servants running around. That was amazing work."

"That, you should not Master, I'm most capable of fighting against Knight Class Servant an Assassin like is, but a dove to me. But you should know Druid, that a battle between most Servants in not an hour lasting brawl but, a few blows and then the finishing move." Kojiro said.

"I know, I kinda have to in this Class. I wish I had my spear." Cu lamented.

"Yeah, that blast earlier with your Noble Phantasm was like starting a fist fight with a grenade," Andrew said to his Caster. "Very, very effective."

"It is Senpai, but I believe Cu Chulainn doesn't find that form of combat enjoyable. Though I wish, I could fight like that. Ending every fight in one move, like that anime I watched with Leonardo." Mash said.

"Oh no, I got that part Kouhai I was just trying to praise our dog for what he _can_ do," Andrew said before processing what she had said fully. "Wait, you watched anime? With Da Vinci?"

"Yes, when Leonardo got summoned she wanted to experience every part of the modern world. And she roped me into watching various movies, and series with her. Though for some reason she always did watch more eastern media than western ones." She said with a tone of curiosity. "Though she was banned by the Director to access internet forums and posting her inventions to them, and for something called 'Trolling.'" Mash informed Andrew.

Andrew snorted. "Of course Da Vinci's a troll online." He then remembered something very, very important. "Shit, we forgot about the Servant still in the Church! We need to head over there now, though if it is weaker than this one was, it won't be too much of a problem."

"I was about to remind you, Master Andrew, we still have a mission to complete, but I'm glad that you refocused," Jeanne said, with a smile. "Now I can see the bell tower over that way." Jeanne pointed her banner to the north.

Andrew followed it, and looking up he indeed saw the old bell tower sticking up between the more intact houses.

"Thank you, Jeanne," Andrew said to his temporary Servant before turning to his allies. "Your Majesty, if you would be so kind as to allow me to ride your noble steed once again?"

"Of course Andrew, you can ride it whenever you please, it seems to enjoy your presence. So, I see no problem with it." Marie responded.

"Thank you, Your Majesty." He said before once again mounting the crystal horse behind the Queen, his vision somewhat obscured by the massive hat she wore. "Now, to the church!"

At that they headed for it, only taking them a couple dozen seconds for them to do so.

But as they, approached the church doors, they were pushed open as the Servant walked out. One that Andrew recognized, his form looking bloody and battered. Only standing up by using is greatsword as a crutch.

Andrew instantly recognized the form of Siegfried with his distinctive appearance and armaments- 'That sword…' - And hoped that somehow he wouldn't have to fight the dragon-slaying hero. A dragon slayer would be incredibly useful given all of the dragons running around.

"Hail, and well-met Servant Saber." He began. "From your injured state, I take it that you oppose the Dragon Witch as well?"

"I do, her and her Servants attacked the city riding my enemy, giving me these injuries. I sensed the death of the Phantom, I'm guessing his slayers are you?" Siegfried asked.

"Indeed. One of my Servants was able to end that menace in one strike." Andrew said, admittedly trying to impress the fully heroic Heroic Spirit before him. "I take it you two fought?"

"Yes, he gave me most of my injuries using his Noble Phantasm, after the Dragon Witch cursed taking away my abilities and my Armor. I am sorry to ask but do one of you have the ability heal my wounds, I'm sorry if such a request is too much." Siegfried requested, with a high degree of humility.

"I do my dear hero, Guillotine Breaker, do your thing," Marie said, and the horse pulsed sending outward a light that hit Siegfried. Andrew watched as his wounds were magically mended.

"Thank you, my wounds and Mana have been restored. But I'm sorry to say that the curse is still in effect. But I will still do my best to assist you." Siegfried said.

" _If it's a Curse, we need to find someone capable of breaking it. We probably need a Servant that is capable of using Miracles to do such a thing. Though there be other options, it's the only one I can think of at the moment. Wait for Guy's you need to leave now I'm detecting three Servants heading your way and a Dragon they are approaching fast."_ Dr. Roman's call of advice turned to one of warning.

Xxx

 **Passive's Reactions:**

Passive: How the fuck is Miss Let them eat cake a Heroic Spirit.

Passive: Wow Mozart is metal as fuck isn't he.

Passive: I've just noticed, Martha got white Jesus treatment didn't she.

Passive: Great Siegfried is useless.

Siegfried: Sumenai.


	12. Dirty Executioner and Mad Knight

"Shit, already? That was fast.." Andrew said. "Everyone, get ready! This will be a lot harder to deal with than the Rider and Assassin." He turned his focus to the Servant directly in front of him whose steed he sat upon. "Your Majesty, would myself remaining on your noble steed reduce your combat effectiveness?"

"No, Andrew you would probably be safest on it, during the fight. And do not worry about falling off, Guillotine Breaker will keep you on it." Marie answered.

Andrew took note of Fou leaving his shoulder and leaping over to Mash to take cover inside her shield where he seemingly usually hid while he responded. "Thank you, your Majesty." He then turned to address the musician. "Mozart, could you start with your music now?" He asked.

"Yes, I can use it to assist your Servants Andrew, for I do not think it can do anything against that beast," Mozart spoke as he looked towards the northern horizon.

Andrew followed his gaze to see an absolutely massive dragon with scales dark as the night and a large green glowing sigil on its chest _flying towards them at high speed._ The green marking was what made the connection easy; that was- "Fafnir." He said aloud, in awe and fear at the dragon. The wyverns were nothing compared to the _real_ dragon coming at them.

And for a moment, Andrew felt a type of dread he'd never felt before. Lev, the Alters, they'd been human shaped. Human-sized. Easy to contextualize into a normal person's mind. This? This was an actual, living, breathing, _ready to tear him to shreds_ _ **dragon**_.

As the dragon approached, and the dread grew, it clicked. And Andrew began to laugh. A hysterical laugh, like the laugh of a man at his own execution who was just pardoned.

"Fear is an appropriate response to seeing, him, but do not fret Master by the name of Andrew, even weakened as I am that dragon _fears_ me more still," Siegfried spoke with utter confidence.

Andrew turned to the Saber, a twisted mirth in his expression. "And that is _exactly_ why I'm _not afraid in the slightest anymore,_ " Andrew said, spreading his arms wide in a dramatic gesture. "You killed Fafnir in life with the same, if not less than what you have right now, so you could probably kill it one-on-one no problem, but we have an entire _squadron_ 's worth of Servants to take it down! Against the dragon, our victory is practically assured!" Some of the elation he felt left him as he spoke. "Its the three servants that I'm worried about. Hopefully, they go down as easily as the others."

Andrew saw Siegfried walk past him and Marie as he spoke again. "Ah, sorry I misjudged your laughter like that of fear." Andrew saw Fafnir land at such a distance he could see Jeanne Alter standing on top of the dragon's head. "But I will have to admit, I don't remember how I beat Fafnir the first time," Siegfried admitted. "Sorry."

That was then Jeanne Alter decided to speak up her voice loud enough for everyone of them to hear. "Dammit, you're still alive Dragon Slayer, I thought my curse and wounds would have killed you already. Fafnir get back into the air you big stupid ass dragon!" Jeanne Alter commanded the dragon, which Andrew noticed was actually shaking a bit.

"You won't leave unscathed. **O' Sword Let thee be Filled Balmung!** " Siegfried shouted as he activated the Noble Phantasm and unleashed the sword beam on the evil dragon. The blue cleaved through the town destroying more of it. But it didn't manage to kill Fafnir as the dragon was still in the air, but Andrew could see the wound it had sustained, and it would take some time for it to heal properly. "To think that the curse has weakened me and Balmung power this much," Siegfried said.

And got a response in the form of an angry Jeanne Alter. "Damn you, Siegfried, how dare you hurt my Faf, Assassin, Berserker kill them all, and summon you wyverns and Carmilla to this location. Fafnir let us retreat for now." And the dragon obeyed as it turned around in the air.

Andrew heard the sound of two things landing on the ground in front of them.

"Well, guess we'll get to our Assured Victory later," Andrew said, honestly a bit disappointed now that he'd have to wait after turning his fear into excitement. "In the meantime, let's get rid of these two pests before we move on to the main prize. Caster, incinerate them." He ordered.

"Sure thing Master." Cu said, which was followed by an announcement from Dr. Roman.

" _Guys a new Servant entered the perimeter of the town, and I'm detecting a hoard of wyverns approaching at least over a hundred of them."_

Andrew grinned as he redirected his excitement from earlier. "Wyverns? No problem. They may have a hundred, but we have 8 Servants, one of which has the legend of slaying dragons baked into his existence! This'll be a piece of cake." He said. "Now, let's get these Servants out of the way first, and then we can focus on the _fun_ part."

At that Cu fired a fireball using the rune _Ansuz_ at the cloud of dust thatthe two Servants had created.

But before it could connect at blow whoever it was, it was destroyed as a figure of smoke and darkness seemingly came running through it, doing nothing to hurt or impede it.

"ARRRRRRR!" The figure screamed as it rushed the group in its hands Andrew could see two swords, one in each hand. But their form was twisted, as they were now black with red lines running through them.

"What in the world?" Cu asked in surprise as the dark figure rushed at him with its weapons. Cu dodged the attack by doing something with his feet as blasted himself backward. The figure smashed the corrupted looking weapons down into the ground making a small crater. That was then Andrew got a good look at the smoky figure. Who was now looking directly at Lily, seemingly shaking as it did.

"Shitshitshitshitshit EVERYONE MOVE NOW!" Andrew shouted at his Servants upon recognizing the most likely identity of just which Berserker stood before them. One who had bitch-smacked Gilgamesh with a fighter jet. "AND LILY STICK TO MASH!"

As he shouted that the Berserker Lancelot blasted towards said Servant, but thankfully the first attack was blocked by Mash. But the next one pushed her back a bit. Though that was when the rest of combat able Servants moved to attack Lancelot, with inhuman grace, the Berserker blocked and parried every single attack. But he seemingly kept his focus on trying to attack Lily and Jeanne switching between the two.

Andrew stared at the action with wide eyes trying to think of a way to kill Lancelot quickly before he could harm his Servants. He quickly tried to use his Stat-o-Vision on the dark knight.

But he got nothing; not a single stat was visible to him, it was like he was trying to see invisitext without the proper add-on.

That was when he heard a male voice speak up. "While you might outnumber us, you don't outpower us. Not against this Berserker my Master has summoned."

Andrew turned his head towards the Servant that had spoken, who he had forgotten about completely for a moment.

His voice and appearance also got a response from Marie and Mozart.

"It can't be?" Asked Marie.

"Why are you working with the enemy Sanson?" Mozart asked.

"Why hello Mozart, Marie it has been a long time since we've seen each other. After all, you both died before I did. Well, Mozart, you died of disease and Marie, my beautiful queen Marie I cut your head off." Spoke Sanson with a calm and sophisticated tone, one of high society like Marie and Mozart. Andrew decided to use his monologuing as a good time to use his Stat-o-Vision. "As for why I work with the Dragon Witch it's quite simple. It's the job I've been hired for. I'm an executioner, after all, it's my job, to kill even if it's an entire country. Now, what about you Mozart do you still think human beings are trash?" Sanson asked the musician.

[spoiler= Charles-Henri Sanson]

 **True Name:** Charles-Henri Sanson

 **Class** : Assassin

 **Master:** Jeanne d'Arc Alter

 **Parameters:**

Strength: D

Endurance: D

Agility: C

Mana: D

Luck: A

Noble Phantasm: B

 **Class Skills:**

Presence Concealment: D

Mad Enhancement: C

 **Personal Skills:**

Executioner: A++

Medical Techniques: A

Human Anatomy Research: B

 **Noble Phantasm:**

La Mort Espoir: Death is Hope for Tomorrow(Anti-Unit): A

[/spoiler]

Andrew had the feeling this guy had some sort of insta-kill move with that A++ Executioner skill and that Noble Phantasm. He and his Servants would probably have to keep their distance.

"Of course humans are and always will be trash, but since I'm human too, I'm also trash. But we're beautiful trash, and we will continue to be so, as longs as we have vices and desires." The composer answered.

"Hmm, and you still give the same answer every time. But as you continue to spout that I will continue to hate you, Amadeus. For, despite being an executioner I find human life precious, and life no matter how low should not be spit upon. And for a thing, I never got to say to you before you died." Sanson took in a breath. "Your music sucks."

"Ouch, I just felt a part of me die, you truly are an executioner Sanson killing my pride like that." Mozart bemoaned. Which Andrew saw caused Sanson's eyebrow to twitch.

"You don't know how to be quiet do you, Mozart."

"Nope, my mouth is like a waterfall when you get it going."

"Then I shall be delighted to cut your head off to stop it. This truly must be destiny or the work of god hand for me to experience this. But before I kill you again Marie can you answer a question for me?" Sanson asked.

"What is it you wish to know Sanson?" Marie asked, and for the first time, Andrew heard her sound serious.

"How did it feel when I cut your head off? What did you feel and think at that moment then my Guillotine blade met your neck? I always wanted to know what the people I executed felt like in those last moments. But then I did the autopsy on your body, I think it was orgasmic wasn't it?" Sanson's faced turned absolutely creepy as he said that.

Andrew felt Marie's body tense as she sat on the horse.

"Ah," Andrew said flatly. "You're one of _those_ creeps aren't you." He stated rather than asked. As he did, he grabbed a Runestone-ice-from his bag and got ready to toss it using Marie and her steed to block the Assassin's line of sight. It wouldn't do much, but it would probably make for a great distraction.

"Please, do think me of participating in necrophilia, I'm merely just commenting on what I saw. I have much respect for the dead to even have such thoughts. Especially towards Marie, for that, I shall cut your head of first. Well, we have played around enough the wyverns are here, and Carmilla is hiding behind me. Berserker use your most powerful Noble Phantasm!"

And it was true, Andrew looked up for a second, and he saw the mass off wyverns circling the town ready to strike.

"Shit," Andrew said. He'd gotten too distracted, and now they were going to be swarmed by a mass of wyverns, dealing with Lancelot, Sanson, and that vampire lady from earlier. "Well, guess there's only one real thing to do." He chose that moment to throw the already-activated Runestone at the Assassin, using his old skill as a little league baseball pitcher.

The stone flew towards Sanson, who blocked it using his weapon. It exploded surrounding the claymore-like weapon he had and his hand in thick magical ice.

"Damn, brat," Sanson said.

And that was when pandemonium happened. "Fire the cannon, drive the monsters away, for France and for our Maiden!" Shouted a male voice, and Andrew heard the sound of cannons beings fired. And the sound of wyverns screeching in pain.

"No, it can't be, Sir Lancelot how could this have happened to you?" Andrew heard the sound of Lily's voice.

Andrew looked over at where his Servants were busy fighting off Lancelot, to see that the smoke had disappeared around the Knight of the Round, and his face was visible for all to see. The mad knight was surrounded in a semi-circle by his Servants and in his hand was now a single sword different from those he had used before. It was long, a greatsword like Balmung, almost the length of the man's body.

"Arthur," Andrew heard the Berserker growl.

Though its name escaped him, Andrew knew the sword was able to clash with Excalibur with no problem, meaning they needed to kill the knight quickly if they wanted to get out alive. But there was still the Executioner before him. He could either focus on the disabled Assassin first while he was weakened or on the much more of a threat Lancelot. He was conflicted.

Then he made his decision. "Your Majesty, my deepest apologies but I'm going to have to ask you to help in killing that Berserker over there. I don't know if my Servants can handle him for long and I'd rather kill him as quickly as possible." He asked the queen whose steed he still rode.

That was then Andrew heard the voice of the man who had shouted earlier speak again this time right behind Andrew, Marie, and Mozart. "Go, fight the knight whose heart has been blackened by grief." Andrew turned around to see who was speaking. It was a man he had never seen before wearing most of a suit of plate armor with some pieces seeming to be missing.

Pressed for time, he decided to take the man's offer. "Thank you, kind stranger." He said before motioning to Marie to go towards Lancelot to help defeat the Berserker.

As they turned around went towards Lancelot to fight they heard the clash of steel. Andrew heard Sanson, and the stranger speaks to each other.

"Who, are you Servant to prevent me from my duty as an executioner."

"I am Servant Saber Gilles de Rais, a proud knight of France and loyal soldier to Jeanne d'Arc."

"I see, you looked familiar, so this is you while sane? Very well then I Servant Assassin Charles-Henri Sanson! I shall have your head!"

Andrew decided to deal with that later when he wasn't dealing with an enemy Lancelot with infinite mana. Instead, he palmed another ice Runestone to try and pull off the same trick if he could.

The fighting between Lancelot and his Servants had resumed, and it looked to be going so much worse now. Where before they were able to reliably defend against him and even get a few hits. Now they had to try with all their might and not die to the most skillful Knight of the Round.

Andrew waited for the right moment before throwing the Runestone at Lancelot with all his might, hoping to disrupt the Berserker for even a moment.

"Mozart it's for use to assist and help." Andrew heard Marie say. As he threw the Runestone of ice at Lancelot. Guillotine Breaker began to pulse with energy again, as the stone flew, and to his surprise, it landed on the ground right at Lancelot's feet. The earth and his legs were frozen instantly, right before Lily would have been skewered by the black blade.

It lasted only for a second, but it along with Guillotine Breaker and Mozart's music a second wind was granted.

Andrew saw a look of determination in Lily's eyes as she thrusted Caliburn right into Lancelot's chest.

The Holy blade piercing all the way through.

Andrew felt a sense of relief as Lancelot's blade fell out of his hands down to the ground.

And Lancelot himself began to disappear, but before he did Andrew saw one of his hands caress Lily's cheek before he disappeared completely.

Leaving only behind a Saint Quartz which fell to the floor and Lily picked it up. She turned her gaze towards Andrew, and he saw a few tears appear in her eyes.

Andrew really, really wanted to comfort her right now, but they were still surrounded by Wyverns, and there were two enemy Assassins still nearby. "I'm so, _so_ sorry Lily, but we have to focus on defeating the enemy right now." He said, motioning to the surrounding chaos.

"Your right Master, there can be time for tears later. We need to stop the enemies forces here." Lily spoke, but before she could say more Dr. Roman popped up.

" _Good, news the Assassins have retreated with the death of Berserker Lancelot. The other Servant is approaching you, though you need to deal with wyverns quickly before they manage to kill the rest of what is probably the French Army."_

"Affirmative," Andrew responded, before turning towards the horde of wyverns, trying to bring back that excitement he'd felt earlier, though most of it had faded after Lancelot and Sanson. "Let's kill some wyverns!" He said, chucking a lightning Runestone into a small group of the wyverns, the shock didn't harm them, but it made them fall out of the air.

And what followed was a massacre of the wyverns as all of Andrew's Servants were able to put their focus on them. Which took all of five minutes to do.

God, wyverns were so weak, it wasn't even funny to Andrew as he just watched his Servants butcher them.

Which now just left Andrew to confront the Saber Gilles de Rais and the army he had brought.

"You're Jeanne d'Arc, aren't you the true one, and not the Dragon Witch, what am I saying. Yes, of course, it's you, my dear Jeanne. I could never forget those eyes of steel that you possess, that banner of undefying determination." Gilles spoke, with a voice that sounded heavy with memories.

"Yes, it is me, Gilles," Jeanne answered.

And that was then the much taller man hugged her.

"There Gilles its okay, its okay. There is no need to cry." She patted him on the back.

"Right, we have much bigger problems. You boy?" Gilles turned his attention towards Andrew.

"Yes, sir?" Andrew said, showing the man who had allowed for them to kill Lancelot so quickly and who was close to Jeanne some respect.

"I can see that you're the Master of most of these Servants. So, do you have information, about the Dragon Witch that we can use to fight her?" He asked.

"Right. A quick summary of what we know right now: she has summoned several Servants so far, which of the survivors we've confirmed to include Count Dracula as a Berserker, Carmilla as an Assassin, Chevalier d'Eon as a Saber being coerced into obeying via Mad Enhancement, and Charles-Henri Sanson as Assassin. Alongside a massive army of Wyverns and the True Dragon Fafnir. On top of all this, she seems to be straining on our Jeanne's legend, actively making her weaker than she should be. And she intends to wipe out humanity due to no longer being able to hear the voice of God." Andrew explained to the Saber before him.

Andrew saw Gilles' face turn grim at the last part. "Thank you for telling me boy, I have been trying to gather the remaining French Army to fight her, but we have nothing to fight against a legendary Dragon such as Fafnir."

Andrew grinned at that. "Oh, we won't have to worry about Fafnir. _We_ have his slayer, along with 8 other Servants, including yourself. Our victory is practically assured against the dragon." His grin turned downwards somewhat. "It's the Witch I'm worried about. We've been able to take down her Servants pretty easily so far, relatively, but I have this sinking feeling she has something hidden up her sleeve that has to do with that-" he pointed at the hole in the sky "-which we still haven't been able to figure out. And she has a Grail, so she has practically unlimited Mana."

"Andrew, you have to remember that I'm still cursed, so if I do not get that lifted, I might not be able to kill Fafnir in one strike. And you're underestimating Dragons, the wyverns are easy to kill as they are pretty much newborn babies. But Fafnir is Dragon with a legend attached to him, making him more like a Servant than a Phantasmal Beast." Siegfried said.

Andrew turned towards the dragon slayer. "Are you absolutely certain that we can't just stab him in the shoulder and be done with it while you're still cursed?"

"No, it would not I would need to obliterate him in one strike as he is now. Or he would be able to come back. And besides, I really don't like being in constant pain, due to the curse." Siegfried answered.

Andrew's eyes widened somewhat at that. "I'm so sorry, I didn't realize the curse was causing you pain as well. We'll find some way to lift the curse, then slay Fafnir, and then we'll kill the Witch with everyone together bearing their full power." He said as sincerely as he could to the Saber. "But first, Mash how do you contact Chaldea from this side with your armband?" He said, addressing his Kouhai.

"I just need to press the button here to initiate conversation," Mash said as she pressed a certain part of the armband.

" _Hey, everyone did you need something?"_ Asked the holographic form of Dr. Roman.

"Hmm, Impressive communication Magecraft. I wish the church weren't so stingy with good mages joining or we could have something like this." Gilles grumbled.

Andrew ignored Gilles as he spoke. "Doctor, how many Wyvern corpses do you think Da Vinci can make use of? And for that matter, how many do you think we could actually contain?"

" _Well, the ones you already sent are enough for her to last, but we can contain about twice more what you sent, for other Casters you could summon."_

"So about 40?"

" _Yes, that is the room we have able in cold storage for them."_

"Alright then, we'll be sending over about 30 wyvern corpses then, so we still have some room in storage," Andrew said after a moment.

" _We'll get ready for Rayshifting them."_ Dr. Roman said as he disappeared.

"Well, I'll have my men help collect the bodies for you to transport to our headquarters. But concerning Mr. Siegfried's curse, my men have heard rumors of a Holy Knight defending the town of Bordeaux, at the eastern side of the country." Gilles said. "Perhaps he can be of help?"

"Thank you for your continued assistance, sir. That seems like it will be our best bet in breaking the curse; we'll head over there once these wyverns are dealt with." Andrew said.

"I recommend that you just send a small party to seek out the knight, while the rest of us head towards Orleans to fight the Dragon Witch, as with your Servants our fighting chance has increased tremendously." Gilles offered his opinion.

Andrew considered his suggestion before turning to his Servants and speaking. "Obviously Siegfried would be in that party, but who else would be best to accompany him? And should I go with as well?"

"No, I shall go get the Holy Knight for you," Marie said.

Andrew turned to the queen. "Are you sure Your Majesty?" He asked of the Red Rider. "We know not of any potential enemies who could be lurking near the Knight's position, waiting to strike."

Marie just shook her head. "Oh, Andrew you worry too much, I will be fine. With Guillotine Breaker I'll make the journey in a few hours. If I took anyone with me, I would just be slowed down. Guillotine is normally a one-seater and even with you on your slowing him down tremendously. So if Siegfried came along, all his muscle would make me slow as a snail." She grinned at Andrew while saying that. "And the sword and armor too."

Andrew glanced over at the Saber in question before responding. "Yeah, that is quite a lot of muscle." He paused. "And the sword and armor," he said with a similar grin.

"Oh my, Andrew you make it sound like you like muscled men?" Came Mozart.

Andrew's face turned about 15 shades redder. "N-no, I'm just able to appreciate certain aesthetics, I'm sure you'd understand." He said to the musician.

"Master, you're just digging the hole deeper, but look at Mash she looks so sad to find out her Senpai is more into men than her." Came Cu's voice.

"What! No, I'm not." Mash said, with a firm denial.

"Shut it dog, Siegfried's just eye candy I barely know the guy," Andrew said, before realizing what he had just said and deepening another 20 shades of red. "Just. Just shut up."

All he got was a laugh from everyone, even Jeanne looked like she was about to crack into laughter.

"Come on, like you all are any better! I'm willing to bet most of you don't follow the 'other gender only' thing either!" He said, incredibly flustered.

"Sorry about that Master, but none of us actually have done it with the same gender. And Mash, Jeanne and Lily here are virgins." Cu said as he pointed at his fellow Servants.

"I-I mean neither have I but wow, bold claim coming from the Irishman," Andrew said, before seeing the rest of his Servants and smiling. "Oh, poor Cu Chulainn, narrowly avoiding death by Lancelot only to be defeated by his own allies."

"Oh, tell me I can feel their glare trying to set my soul on fire. But actually, I have never done it with a man. I actually only had sex with Scatach, Aife, and Emer. And I never did it with Medb for unlike Fergus I know not to stick my dick in crazy." Cu answered bluntly.

"Okay, just forget anyone said anything alright? Marie is heading to get that knight, we're going to gather up these corpses and send them off to Chaldea, and _you_ -" Andrew pointed at the Child of Light "-are going to be training with _them_." He said, pointing at the trio the Caster had insulted.

"And I don't think you mean normal training Master?" Cu asked nervously.

Andrew glared at Cu Chulainn at the underlying implication of his words. "Girls, go all out on Cu Chulainn, everything short of your Noble Phantasms. Cu Chulainn, you're aren't allowed to retaliate."

And then everyone was witness to Cu being beaten on by the three woman, and Andrew bade farewell for now to Marie, as she took off to find the Knight.


	13. Your Kouhai and Internet

And so after Gilles soldiers had piled up all the wyverns they were able to send to Chaldea, the group joined the army in the march towards Orleans. Though thankfully they had been given a horse to ride on so that Andrew at least didn't have to walk.

Right now he was sharing the seat with Lily, the white Saber quiet as they rode. Andrew had been silent trying to come up with words to say to her, and he thought he had finally found some good ones to say.

"...Arturia." Andrew said, calling the Saber by her actual name. It was the first time he'd done so since her summoning.

"What is it, Master?" Lily asked, her voice solemn as if she was currently weighed down by something heavy.

"I know what happened earlier has to have been difficult," Andrew said, hoping he was saying the right thing. "I can't fully comprehend the kind of emotions you must be feeling. But I have l lost people before. People close to me. And for a rather long time afterward, I didn't talk about it. I just bottled up the grief, and the anger, and the sorrow, until one day I just _burst_. I…" Andrew hesitated before continuing; the past was the past. "I almost tried to kill myself then. But my family, they were what stopped me. That night I cried and screamed out everything that I'd been holding in for years, and my parents listened." Andrew took a shaky breath. He hadn't told anyone about that in a while. "And that was what got me through it. From then on I decided to talk out my emotions, to someone, that I wouldn't bottle them up like that again." He shook his head, though he knew she couldn't see it. "What I'm trying to say is, you have to talk about things like these. Keeping them bottled up inside will just lead to mistakes later."

As he finished speaking Lily turned her head around, so that his face was looking at hers. And Lily's face was one of shock, sadness, and many other emotions. "I-I'm sorry to hear about that, Andrew and you have my sympathies. And thank you for telling me such a personal thing. But for me, it's just not the fact that I killed Lancelot, but that it was my fault, the decision I made during my life. As I said before, I have yet to experience it, but I know how it goes. It is my actions as King, that makes him mad with grief if I… I don't know what to say, Andrew, I can't find the words. The words to say how I have failed my kingdom and my men. Sometimes when I view my legend to try and learn from it, I think that perhaps me pulling the sword out the stone should never have happened."

Andrew shook his head. "Every good thing has to come to an end. Just because it didn't end _well_ doesn't mean that all the good that came from it before doesn't matter anymore. Like, didn't you kill a dragon and all sorts of Phantasmal Beasts in life? Who would have slain those beasts and protected the people? And I don't think there was anyone else alive who could have united the Knights of the Round Table like how you did, earning the loyalty of the greatest in your era. I'm not saying that the good invalidates your grief, but shouldn't it at least be considered? Correct me if I'm wrong, but the Knights of the Round Table, lead by King Arturia, codified what it meant to _be_ a Knight, to be virtuous and chivalrous and kind, right? And that wouldn't have happened without you. So, I for one am glad you pulled the sword from the stone." Andrew said.

"You are right Andrew, we did a lot of good for Briton, and perhaps all of that outways the end. But, even if I despaired about it to the end of time, there is nothing that can be done about it. The past is the past, and so it should stay that way. And besides, in this form, I'm unbound from my legend so I can get to live a little be a person. And not end up a moody mess like I did before." Lily said, the last part with a smile, her face shining like the sun.

Andrew nodded. "Let's look on towards the future with hope, learning from the past." He said.

"That's a good quote Andrew, where did you get it from, for it's certainly not something you just came up with?" Lily asked.

"Oh, it's just something my grandmother used to say. I paraphrased it a bit though." Andrew replied.

"Sounds like a wise woman, and perhaps it's where you got such a way with words from, if you had lived in my time you would have been a Bard," Lily said.

"My grandmother knows her way around the heart better than words. But your too kind, I'm nowhere good enough of an orator to have been a Bard." Andrew said.

"Perhaps, perhaps not with a bit of training you can become anything, Andrew unless you're Merlin, then you are just cheating, those are the correct modern words to describe him."

Andrew rubbed his chin in faux-thought. "Having someone like Merlin around to help us cheat a bit would probably be pretty useful…" He said, only half-joking.

"If the Wizard wants to help us he will help us you can't force him to do anything, trust me I've tried numerous times. And despite Kay will say if you manage to summon him, I'm not the reason the messes we got into got worse okay?" Lily said pointedly.

"Suuurree," Andrew said sarcastically before fully processing her words. "You say that as if Merlin's still alive and kickin'."

"He is. My Witch of a sister trapped him within Avalon inside a tower prison. But with the whole Incineration of mankind going on he probably managed to escape, and is now hanging around one of the Singularities, trying to have sex with every woman he comes across." Lily's turned sour at the last part.

Andrew stifled a laugh at that. "Of course one of the best wizards of all time is a complete womanizer." Andrew's thoughts slammed to a halt. "He didn't..do anything to…?"

Lily caught on to what Andrew was saying. "No he didn't have sex with me is that what your asking? No despite how I might sound like I hate him. He is more my father than Uther ever was, along with Ector. He was the one who taught me how to wield a blade and how to weave my armor and use Mana Burst. The only thing remotely sexual he did to me, was giving me a penis for me to impregnate Guinevere, but then my bitch of a sister extracted it and used it to make Mordred. Speaking of Mordred, I hope you summon him so that I can apologize for how my older-self treated him." Lily went on a bit of a tangent, revealing things Andrew did not expect to hear.

Andrew_ had crashed, and it took a few minutes for him to mentally reboot. "...The more I find out about the 'real history' of the world, the less I want to know." He said. "Though I do hope we eventually run into Mordred in some way like you said. Lord knows they'd need it…" He said, thinking back to Apocrypha. Yeah, Mordred definitely needed Saber Lily.

"I do too. Hopefully, he will accept the apology."

"Hopefully."

That was then they heard Gilles shouting. "The sun is going down soon, we shall make camp and move again in the morning."

" _Yes, Sir!"_ Came the response in French from the soldiers which Lily translated for him.

With a quick thank you to Lily, Andrew soon slumped off of the horse after they stopped. He liked riding horseback, but after a while, it became rather tiring. And riding a normal horse was nothing like riding Guillotine Breaker. With everything that had happened, he just wanted to eat something and then sleep, but there was something he wanted to check first.

He headed over to his Kouhai. "Mash, can you call up Chaldea? I want to ask Da Vinci something."

"Sure thing Senpai. Dr. Roman, could you put Leonardo on for us?" She spoke into the armband.

" _You want to speak to her? Yeah, sure patching you through to her workshop."_ Dr. Roman said, and after a few seconds, the holographic image of the Renaissance (Wo)man appeared.

" _Hello, Andrew what knowledge do you want from my genius mind, and I got something for you when you return, but that's a surprise"_ Da Vinci spoke with her ever so hyper voice.

"Ciao, Da Vinci. I was calling in for two things. First, have you made anything useful with those Wyvern corpses?" He asked, cutting straight to the point.

" _I have it's one of my two current projects, and they shall be done then you have collected the Grail and beaten Jalter."_ She answered.

"J-Jalter?" Andrew said, trying (and failing) to suppress his laughter if he was right about who she meant.

" _Yes, Jeanne d'Arc Alter is such mouthful to think, say and write, so I decided to shorten it. So, what is the second thing you wanted to know? I am busy here."_

"Ah, yet another great invention by the wonderful Da Vinci," Andrew said jokingly at her response. "But the second thing I wanted to ask about was about summoning Servants. Olga Marie said I shouldn't have more than 5 at a time, but I'm guessing there's a way to have more than that without me suffering from Prana drain or whatever it was called? Because I have more of those Saint Quartz and my current 'fifth servant' is only a temporary contract even if I can't have more than 5." He explained.

" _You could take more Servants if you wanted to but Mash+5 is what we have determined to be the Safety Threshold, so with those you're reliably able to use their Noble Phantasm. And while my Mana Generators are providing most of the stuff for maintaining them like about 80%. You're providing the rest. Though don't worry about summoning more than five Servants, I'm working on something together with the Rayshift so that you can change out the Servants in your party periodically so that they suit the situation."_ Da Vinci explained, and Andrew liked what he heard.

"So just to confirm, I am clear to summon another Servant before you complete that thing with Rayshifting?" He asked to be absolutely certain; he really didn't want to have his body cannibalize itself for Prana or whatever.

" _Yes, you can, but as it stands right now, you won't be able to summon more before returning to Chaldea. I'm going to give it an additional day before you're done in France, at the speed you're are going. Nice moves on the wagon and riding on Guillotine Breaker or else the trip from the various location would have taken days on foot."_

"Hm, good to know," Andrew said as he mulled over the semantics of her words. "So I can't _summon_ any more Servants here in France, but could I make a contract with existing ones?"

" _You could, but you would have to be a lot more conservative with Noble Phantasm use they are your trump card, and should always be available for use. But don't take my advice as legit not like a genius or anything."_ Da Vinci said.

Andrew thought back to what had happened in Fuyuki. "So, more precisely, could I perhaps contract a Servant or two right before we leave the Singularity after we already have the Grail? Since then they won't be being used directly in combat and will be brought back to Chaldea that much sooner." He asked.

" _I like the way you are thinking Andrew, but you have to act quick, as the Grail what is holding the Servants to this Era and maintains the Singularity and the events inside of it. For the moment it enters Mash's shield it will be disabled. Handy little thing isn't it. So many uses besides bashing people's faces in."_

"Yes, I agree Leonardo, my shield is more than a weapon, it can even be used a table. Look at all its non-violent functions." Andrew couldn't tell from Mash's tone of voice if she was being sarcastic or not.

"Grazie, Da Vinci, for answering my questions when you're so busy," Andrew said, trying to change the subject.

" _I was happy to answer and lord my superior knowledge over you, now excuse me it's time to SCIENCE some wyverns."_ And Da Vinci's image disappeared.

"It's good to see that the power of SCIENCE is known even to the magic-based Servants," Andrew said haughtily.

"I think she just got it from the Internet Senpai, though she is probably mad she can't access it anymore," Mash said.

"Yeah, probably," Andrew said before realizing something. "Then wait a minute, what the hell was Dr. Roman talking about before with that 'Magi Mari' thing or whatever?" He'd thought it was some silly 'ask me anything' robot thing on the internet, but now he wasn't sure.

"I-I'm not sure Senpai, you would have to ask the doctor."

"Right, could you dial him up? I also have something that's actually kind of important I wanted to ask him about something that I just remembered." Andrew asked. He should have talked to Roman first and then Da Vinci, but he had forgotten at the time.

Mash quickly did. _"Hey again Andrew, you want to talk to me about something?"_

"Yeah, one important thing and one maybe important thing. I'll start with the important one- could I get one of these armbands? It would be far more convenient to have two of them in the field, especially if I ever get separated from Mash." He asked of the acting director.

" _Knew I forgot to give you something,"_ Andrew saw Roman turn around his chair. _"Why didn't any of you remind me of that?"_

" _Sorry boss, it slipped our minds to, but we were busy making sure they Rayshifted safely."_

" _Okay, writing that one down. So, what's the other thing?"_ The doctor asked.

"Well, something Mash said made me wonder. What the heck is that Magi Mari thing you said about earlier over the comms?" Andrew asked.

" _... Okay fine, but you don't have a right to judge me. Magi Mari is an AI of an internet Idol. There I said it."_

"Then how in the hell were you using it before?"

" _Didn't you hear the underlying words, it's an AI I made based on the real Magi Mari. How could you interpret it any other way?"_

Andrew looked deadpan into the projection's eyes, hoping the effect wasn't lost through the transmission. "You made an AI of an internet idol that told you to kill yourself when you asked it for advice." He asked, trying to make sure he understood that right.

" _I said you couldn't judge, Mari just has an eccentric personality."_

Andrew began to rub his temples with his hand as if to massage the stupid out of his head. "...Is she at least cute?" He asked, deciding to just throw rationality to the wind. Nothing else made sense anymore with all the Servant bullshit.

" _Of course she is, she the greatest cutest thing created by mankind. A pure net-Idol."_ Dr. Roman answered, and Andrew swore he saw Roman's face become a bit dreamy looking.

Andrew scoffed. "Pics or GTFO." He said, welcoming a stupid distraction like this as a way to wind down from the events of the day.

" _Have a look if you don't believe me."_ At that, a picture popped up next to Roman.

Andrew stared at the picture for a moment, mostly in disbelief. "Come on, Doc! From the sounds of it, she only gives you shitty advice and is just cute at best." Andrew put on his best shit-eating grin. "In other words, from here it looks like your waifu is shit."

The hologram disappeared.

"I think you made the doctor sad Senpai, but what is a waifu?" Mash asked.

Andrew turned towards her. "Weell, you see Kouhai, some people like Roman will take fictional characters who they have crushes on and practically obsess over them, and they're then called 'waifu's' or 'husbando's.' It's a pretty common joke/insult on the internet to say that someone's 'waifu is shit' as a joke about that character's personality or just as a joke in general." He said, explaining as best as he could.

"Ah, I see the internet is weird place Senpai. I only have been using for a bit before I met you Senpai. So, I don't know a lot about it, so when we fix history and save the world could you teach me about it? I would like to know about some the things I heard from people on it. Like what is Rule 34 and what does it mean?"

Andrew just about keeled over at that. "W-w-w-wherein the hell d-did y-you hear t-t-that?!" Andrew said.

"Well, one guy kept mentioning it then they talked about my profile picture and other pictures, and some guy named Shadman? Didn't look it up but he sounds like an artist. So I'm guessing it's about making pictures of things." Mash explained as innocently as someone could sound.

"What was your profile picture to get that kind of reaction? Better yet what website was that on?" Andrew asked, anger overcoming his shock at the mention of _that 'ARTIST'_!

"Well, it was a picture of me posing in my uniform, that Leonardo took and made the profile for me. As for the website it was called MySpace."

"Who the hell still uses MySpace? And more importantly, _who in the fuck would have suggested anything related to_ _ **him**_ when talking about a _real teenager?!"_ He asked, his anger bubbling to the surface.

"Why not Senpai, Leonardo said that is a very popular site used by billions of humans to communicate with each other. But, why is he so bad? Dr. Roman also was then I mentioned it to him, and then that guy didn't post anymore messages on the discussion board, about me I think I got very popular on it, over a million people liked and followed me."

Andrew's respect for Roman went back up a bit after hearing that. "Well of course you did, you have a winning personality, but I could have sworn MySpace died out after Facebook became popular."

"What's Facebook Senpai?" Mash asked.

Andrew then remembered that this was, in fact, not the same world as his own, so it made sense with all of the historical differences that some things wouldn't exist. But of course, he was still a thing. "Nothing, never mind about that for right now Kouhai. Just, never, ever, ever, ever look up Rule 34 or...Shadman-" saying it out loud felt like eating sandpaper or drinking acid, "-when the internet comes back if you want to keep your sanity."

"Okay, Senpai I promise and oh the others have set up camp now let's get something to eat."

"Yeah, let's go do that."

After they ate dinner, Andrew told, his Servants that he wanted to sleep as he was tired.

They all bade each other goodnight after Jeanne gave an evening prayer with him.

xxx

"Senpai wake up." Came Mash's voice to his sleepy mind just like it had the previous morning.

Andrew blearily rubbed his eyes with one hand while moving his other hand in a shushing motion in her direction. "I'm up, I'm up, just give me a moment."

Andrew stood up after getting the sleep out his eyes and saw that all his other Servants plus Mozart and Siegfried were up and rather tense. Their group had slept separately from the French Soldiers as they were strangers to them.

Andrew glanced down at the back of his hand, checking his Command Seals. He knew the one he had used in Fuyuki had regenerated, and he was hoping the one he had used here had done so as well. And to his pleasant surprise, it was in fact there, and he was back to three Command Seals, confirming his suspicion that they did in fact regenerate. Probably about once a day or something like that.

"Alright everyone, let's eat quickly and then head out. Marie should be returning any time now with that Knight, and in addition to Fafnir, we still have at least 5 Servants enhanced by the Dragon Witch's Grail and Mad Enhancement. So if we run into the enemy before her Majesty's return, we'll have to focus on those." Andrew said to his Servants (plus Mozart and Siegfried).

"Hear you Master/Andrew." was the replies he got back.

But it was while cleaning up the camp after eating breakfast and getting ready to move out, Dr. Roman popped up. _"Guys a Servant just entered the perimeter along with… that can't be right, with the Magical Signature emitted by Guillotine Breaker."_ Dr. Roman said in confusion.

"Please tell me that means it's only Marie…" Andrew said worriedly as he looked over towards the direction his Servants had turned towards.

What Andrew saw was the form of Guillotine Breaker right next to a man riding a horse of his own. The man was wearing a suit of crimson armor with a white cape and half-tabard and riding upon a white horse. But… why was he alongside a Rider-less Guillotine Breaker?

As the knight came closer to the group, they heard him speak up as he dismounted his steed. His voice sounded like one would expect from a knight, calm and polite. "Which one of you is Andrew and Mozart?" He asked.

Andrew stepped forward with no hesitation. "I am Andrew Murphy, Master of Chaldea. Who, pray tell, are you? And what are you doing with Her Majesty's Noble Steed?" He asked, remaining polite upon seeing that Guillotine Breaker didn't seem too ornery, meaning it was likely there of its own will.

"And I am Mozart." The musician stepped up beside Andrew.

The knight spoke again. "Then you're the ones I've been looking for. I am Georgios, though you may know me as Saint George. I was sent to assist you by her Majesty, who even after meeting her end at the hands of the Dragon Witch her Noble Phantasm stuck around and guided me to you. She said this before I left. "Please apologize to Andrew and Mozart for me would you, now then Viva La France." those were her last words before she was consumed by the evil dragon after summoning her palace. I barely managed to survive the attack on her and me, only by the effect of this Guillotine Breaker and Bayard I was able to live." Saint George explained.

Andrew's heart plummeted at the Saint's words before soaring back upwards upon realizing something very important. "Bullshit. Noble Phantasms don't continue to exist after a Servant dies, and Guillotine Breaker seems fine from here so that just means we'll have to cut her out of Fafnir's insides before we kill it." Andrew said, a surge of confidence filling him. He desperately hoped he was right.

"Sorry if my words pain you Lord Andrew, but I felt her presence disappear then she entrapped herself and the dragon within her Crystal Palace. She must have done the impossible and somehow made her steed into an independent entity." At that Guillotine ran over to Andrew and nuzzled his cheek.

Andrew gently pets the crystal horse with one hand. "I refuse to believe such a thing." He said resolutely. "She has to still be alive. And if she isn't…" Andrew looked into-through-the crystal horse's eyes. "We have the best damn catalyst possible to summon her ourselves."

"Be as it may if you believe me or not Lord Andrew, but she did tell me that there was another Dragon Slayer in need of assistance?" Saint George asked.

Andrew didn't respond immediately, instead of continuing to pet Guillotine Breaker. "Yes, indeed we do. My apologies." He pointed at the Saber in question. "Siegfried there has been cursed by the Dragon Witch, and we thought you would be the one best able to lift it."

"I see the slayer of Fafnir, yes that is a good ally to have. Now let me see what we're dealing with my adoptive mother was a Witch, so I know a fair bit of the Magical Arts." Saint George said as he walked towards Siegfried, the two men seemingly were measuring each other before George spoke again. "Ah I see, the curse suppresses the draconic traits that you possess, and so it lowers your dragon slaying abilities."

"Yes, I have noticed that."

"Then to break it, shall be simple. One of my Noble Phantasms can enhance and give the aspect of a dragon to another. I shall simply enhance yours until the curse can no longer suppress it." Saint George explained.

"That...sounds like it will work? Probably?" Andrew said. "It's probably our best bet though, so I'm fine with it." He paused for a moment. "Though I'm not Siegfried's Master."

"Do it." Siegfried requested.

"Fine, but do not complain about anything unexpected happening. **Abyssus Draconis: Thou Shalt a Serpent Become!** " Saint George intoned, the pauldron on his shoulder shot out the spike in the dragon's mouth which hit Siegfried.

"Argh." The Norse warrior groaned in pain, and Andrew watched as Siegfried's body changed a bit.

"Siegfried, you okay there?" Andrew asked of the dragonslayer. He had said before that the curse had been causing him pain, so Andrew hoped this wasn't worsening it.

"I am fine now Andrew the curse has been broken, and I feel even more powerful than I have ever been. And I can live with the changes; Fafnir and I are truly the opposite sides of the same coin." He spoke.

Andrew decided now would probably be a good time to use his Stat-o-Vision on the two dragon-slaying knights, starting with the newly curse-free Siegfried.

 **True Name:** Siegfried

 **Class:** Saber

 **Master:** -

 **Parameters:**

Strength: B+

Endurance: A

Agility: B

Mana: C

Luck: E

Noble Phantasm: EX

 **Class Skills:**

Magic Resistance: -

Riding: B

 **Personal Skills:**

Golden Rule: C-

Disengage: A

Dragon Slayer: A++

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Balmung: Phantasmal Greatsword, Felling of the Sky Demon(Anti-Army): EX

Armor of Fafnir: Blood Armor of the Evil Dragon(Anti-Unit(self)): B+

Das Rheingold: ?

 **True Name:** Georgios

 **Class:** Rider

 **Master:** -

 **Parameters:**

Strength: D

Endurance: A+

Agility: C++

Mana: D

Luck: A+

Noble Phantasm: B

 **Class Skills:**

Magic Resistance: A

Riding: B

 **Personal Skills:**

Guardian Knight: A+

Soul of a Martyr: B+

Battle Continuation: A

Instinct: C

Divinity: C

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Ascalon: The Blessed Sword By Which Force is Slain(Anti-Unit): B

Abyssus Draconis: Thou Shalt a Serpent Become(Anti-Army): C

Interfectum Dracones: Dragon Slayer(Anti-Unit): C

Bayard: The Phantom War Horse(Anti-Unit): C

And Andrew liked most of what he saw. Siegfried having E-Rank Luck made sense (the poor guy) and that Das Rheingold Noble Phantasm seemed to be unquantifiable, but everything else on both of them looked good. Especially all of those Skills and Noble Phantasms Georgios was packing combined with his A+ Luck and Endurance.

"Thank you for your assistance Georgios, your help so far has been a great boon to our forces." Andrew pet Guillotine Breaker a bit faster. "And...thank you for delivering Guillotine Breaker to us."

"You are welcome Lord Andrew. I have completed this task. Now I shall assist you in taking down the Witch, and this mad rampage of hers." Georgios spoke.

xxx

 _Donate to my P A Treon. (slash)TheBlacklihtProjekt to help support me._


	14. Andrew Got A Girlfriend

Andrew gave the knight his most grateful look. "Your assistance would be very much so appreciated against the Witch. Thank you."

"No need, for thanks Master, now I believe that Saber coming over here want to speak to you," Georgios said, and Andrew turned around to see Gilles walking towards them.

Andrew turned towards the Saber in question. Practically the only things he knew about the man were that he had practically been a father to Jeanne in life, and the way his Caster incarnation went out in Fate/Zero. He assumed that, since he was helping them, this was the version from before Jeanne died. He hoped he was right. "Greetings, commander." He said, greeting the Saber in what he hoped was an appropriate manner.

"Greetings to you Lord Andrew, my men, have finished packing up the camp, and I see you managed to fix Lord Siegfried's curse problem." He spoke in a calm manner.

"Indeed, Georgios here was able to use one of his Noble Phantasms to overload the curse." He sighed. "However, Marie did not return with him, and though she is not lost to us, I do not believe she will be able to assist in the upcoming battle. Georgios, however, has agreed to join our forces."

"That is both good and bad news, but we will have made our way to Orleans in the afternoon. We are close to the abandoned village of Theirs. We, hope to scavenge a bit of supply before we attack. Now get ready we are riding out in five." He told them before he turned around and walked back to his troops.

Andrew turned to address his Servants. "You heard the man, we're heading out!"

Andrew got the usual replies to his orders.

He then turned to look the crystal horse still beside him in the eyes. "Guillotine Breaker. I know I'm not Marie, but, I do intend to get her back one way or another. Could you help me out and allow me to ride you?"

The horse neighed before it bowed down to allow Andrew to mount it.

"Thank you."

Xxx

It was close to 10 o'clock according to Mash then Gilles announced that Theirs was within sight. And indeed it was, as Andrew could see the village from his spot on the back of Guillotine Breaker.

It looked like the others, but it was in fact rather intact, despite being so close to Jeanne Alter's base of operation.

Probably because the people had run away before she could torch it with the people inside.

And it seemed he thought to soon, as he saw the village burst into fire, and loud music could be heard coming from it.

"What the hell?" Andrew said upon the village spontaneously combusting. "Can anyone tell how many Servants are in there?" He asked.

"Senpai, Dr. Roman says that he just detected two Servants and they seem to be fighting. Should we interfere?" Mash asked.

"I vote yes, for I need to smack the behind of the one who decided that is music, urgh my soul is bleeding," Mozart said with disgust in his voice.

Andrew weighed his options. "If two Servants are fighting, we should get down there and take down whichever one is the Witch's and get the other to try and help us. The more Servants we have and the less the Witch have, the easier it will be to kill her and her forces."

They all agreed to that, though Gilles interjected a bit. "Jeanne and I will stay behind with the men until the coast is clear they can fight Wyverns and undead, but a Servant is a bit too much for them."

"Of course commander," Andrew said. "I wouldn't want to endanger the lives of your men like that."

At that Andrew along with his Servants rode towards the fight plus the extra he wasn't contracted with at the moment.

But as they came to town limits, they saw the two Servants fighting each other.

As they neared the two, they stopped fighting for a moment and began to 'talk' to each other.

"You, you cheeky squirrel from the East!" Shouted the pink Servant with the tail.

"Me a cheeky squirrel? My don't you mean yourself for how can a failure like you beat a real dragon like me?" Asked the girl in the kimono, with what seemed to be horns on her head. She launched a fireball using the fan she carried at the pink dragon girl, who dodged it. "Isn't that right Elizabeth?"

"Alright I deal with Carmilla later, but I'm going to kill you now, you creepy stalker!" Shouted Elizabeth.

The white one seemed to take a hit from that statement. "I am not a stalker. I am a devoted bodyguard who acts as a spy. I Kiyohime, am a woman who lives for love."

"Your love violates human rights!"

"I don't want to hear that from a pervert with a fetish for blood torture." The two Servants went back and forth. "But it seems out little spat has gained an audience."

"Of course it would have you set the village on fire, of course, somebody would investigate. You stupid stalker." That was when Elizabeth turned to look at Andrew and his group. "Hey, Master would you put your Servants to work and help me kill this bitch?"

"Now, why would they do that? They are the heroes, and your the villain so obviously they should help me beat you?" Kiyohime said. "And besides, they got that knight I met earlier with them, so he'll convince them to help beat you of Blood Countess."

"Stop calling me that I'm not 'her' and I never will be. For I'm the greatest Idol, the world has ever seen!" Elizabeth shouted.

Andrew turned towards Siegfried and Georgios. "The blue one said she met one of you- do you know if she is working with the Witch?" He asked of the two knights she could be talking about.

"Yes, I meet the girl who became a dragon a few days earlier," Answered Georgios. "Though neither of them is working for her, this is just what you call a 'cat' fight I believe between woman. Though replace the cat with dragons."

Andrew looked back over to the two draconic servants and tried to use his Stat-o-Vision on the both of them to try and get some more information before he intervened.

 **True Name:** Elizabeth Bathory

 **Class:** Lancer

 **Master:** -

 **Parameters:**

Strength: C

Endurance: D

Agility: E

Mana: A

Luck: B

Noble Phantasm: E+

 **Class Skills:**

Magic Resistance: A

Territory Creation: B

 **Personal Skills:**

Innocent Monster: A

Sadistic Charisma: A

Torture Techniques: A

Battle Continuation: B

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Báthory Erzsébet: Fresh Blood Demoness(Anti-Unit): E+

 **True Name:** Kiyohime

 **Class:** Berserker

 **Master:** -

 **Parameters:**

Strength: E

Endurance: E

Agility: C

Mana: E

Luck: E

Noble Phantasm: EX

 **Class Skills:**

Mad Enhancement: EX

 **Personal Skills:**

Shapeshift: C

Stalking: B

Flame-Colored Kiss: A

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Samadhi Through Transforming Flames(Anti-Unit(Self)): EX

Andrew looked at the stat sheets, and then realized he should probably just de-escalate the situation. "Um, ladies, forgive me for intruding, but why are you fighting in the first place?" He asked, raising his voice somewhat to make sure he was heard what with the fire and the fury.

"Well, Master who is a pig, she started insulting me-." Started Elizabeth

"-And you then insulted me." Kiyohime continued.

"And then it just ended with everything on fire." Elizabeth finished.

"Mhm," Andrew said, ignoring the insult directed at him for now. "Is there any chance the two of you would be willing to put aside your differences to combat the Dragon Witch who calls herself 'Jeanne d'Arc' who has been ravaging these lands?"

"Well, I was going to since she summoned Carmilla," Elizabeth answered.

"I was too since she tried to control, me and she just kept lying, so I have to burn her," Kiyohime answered afterward.

"So yes, we can work with you, and you be our temporary Master. For you want to a proper one, you have to summon." Elizabeth said.

And she and Kiyohime walked over to Andrew.

"I just need you to hold out your little finger." Kiyohime requested.

"Ah, right," Andrew said, not really thinking about it due to the adorableness of her making the contract through a literal pinky promise.

"Thank you, now as you know this is a pinkie promise. Now if you break it, I will make you swallow a thousand needles. And I will make you do it if you lie to me or break it." She said with a sweet and innocent voice. "Now, take good care of me, Anchin my love."

"Um, excuse me?" Andrew said, honestly more confused about being called the wrong name than worried about the needles thing for the moment. "My name is Andrew. Andrew Murphy. Not Anchin."

"Oh, I don't care you're my Anchin now, my love for only you can have a contract with me, and you feel like him, so you are him. Now shall we have a wedding after this is over."

"You certainly know how to pick them, Master." Said Cu, seemingly speaking for his Servants.

"I fear for Senpai's safety." Andrew could hear the concern in Mash's voice.

"Now's not the time dog!" Andrew said to the Child of Light before turning back to address the Berserker in front of him. "Now, Miss Kiyohime, I'm not going to plan, promise, or even discuss a wedding until certain criteria are met, alright?" He said, knowing how to deal with this flavor of crazy from experience.

"Ah, I understand Anchin, you want our love to bloom first I understand," Kiyohime said while nodding. Surprisingly (to Andrew) more reasonable than his experience would suggest of her type.

"You're truly insane aren't you?" Asked Elizabeth.

"I'm a Berserker, what excuse do you have a miss, bathing in the blood of young women to have eternal youth?" Snipped Kiyohime back.

"Hey-hey I didn't know what I was doing was bad, nobody told me it was until killed that noble girl and they locked me in that tower to die," Elizabeth said.

"...What kind of upbringing did you have that you didn't know killing people was bad?" Andrew asked.

"I was a noble girl, and they were peasants pigs to us, I could do anything to them without consequence for nobody cared. Though now thanks to Hakuno I don't want to have eternal youth anymore I want to be an Idol." She explained.

" _Now_ thanks to Hakuno?" Andrew asked, curious about what she meant. Was there yet another Servant running around?

"She was my previous Master," Elizabeth said.

"Do you mean to say you were summoned here by a Master?"

"No she was my Master in another time, another place, but that is hardly relevant to the situation. Now I want to kill that monster of my older-self." She growled that last part.

Andrew filed that first bit away for later. "Wait, are you saying that you're Carmilla Lily?"

"If you want to think of it like that, but we're fundamentally different people, she fused with the aspect of our legend that inspired the Vampire." She admitted. "And I hate her with a passion."

"Ah, I think I understand," Andrew said. "Oh, before I forget, we should tell you everything we know about the Witch so that we can find out if the two of you have any information we don't." He then had a thought. "And the two of you are to remain on opposite sides of the formation afterward."

"Yes, that be for the best Anchin, but I really don't know a lot about the dark bitch. But you can talk to me all you want forever." Kiyohime said.

"I can't believe I agree with her, but I don't want to accidentally stab her. But I don't need to know anything, I only want to kill her." Elizabeth said.

Andrew just smiled as best he could as he spoke. "Thank you for your assistance in our endeavor to kill the Witch. Your contributions will be very appreciated." He then realized something very important. "Oh, right, also, there is another Jeanne who is on our side. The Witch is making her weaker, but her morals are still there unlike the Witch."

"Oh is this a potential rival," Kiyohime muttered. "The blond and pink are already too much."

"Is having evil versions of yourself starting to become a theme or is just me," Elizabeth said to herself.

She did have a point, but more worrying to Andrew was what he had heard Kiyohime say. "Ah, Miss Kiyohime, just to make sure you're aware, one of those criteria is that you don't kill any of our allies unless that they have betrayed us AND you have my permission. Understood?"

"I understand Anchin. Then just have to show that I'm the superior wife and that they will never measure up to me." She whispered, but Andrew could still hear her. And going by the anime like ticks of sweat on everyone's faces they heard it too.

That was...probably the best possible way of her going about things, in Andrew's opinion. He had no intention of acquiescing to her 'love' unless she put a _lot_ of effort to show she was a good person and wasn't just lusting after him because he was her Master. So, just trying to one-up everyone seemed to be an okay outlet of her energy for now.

"Alright, since we're done here, and the town is on fire-" He glanced over at Kiyohime upon saying that, who had the decency to look a little bit embarrassed. "-we're going to head back to Commander Gilles and his troops and move towards Orleans to slay the Dragon Witch and her minions."

He got "Yes, Master." From his Servants now plus even more extra. Though Kiyohime had decided to take a backseat on Guillotine Breaker and was currently holding her arms around his waist. Deliberately pressing her rather medium sized bosom against his back. "I'm riding with you Anchin."

Andrew just sighed and tried to ignore it. "I'll allow it only if Guillotine Breaker is okay with it."

But the horse didn't seem to protest rather it sounded like it was enjoying his little bit of suffering.

"Alright. Guillotine Breaker said it's okay, so it's okay." Andrew said, rather easily guessing the reason as to why. Which was to say, the fact that he hadn't gotten Marie back in one way or another.

They rode back to Gilles and Jeanne, telling the army leader and Maiden that the situation had been resolved and that they had managed to recruit two more Servants for the fight against Alter.

The two had approved though they were off-put by the two Servants.

But they continued on with the journey towards Orleans.

Xxx

Though as they got closer to the stronghold, Andrew saw what the Witch had done to the surrounding area. Where there had once been green fields and forest like behind them. What met the group was a desolate landscape devoid of life. The looming Castle that was Orleans could be seen in the distance.

Andrew grimaced at the landscape. It wasn't really anything new per say, but it was still a grim reminder of what Jeanne Alter wanted. As they rode through it, Andrew decided to ask Kiyohime about her Skills and such so as to get a better gauge of her abilities. "So, Miss Kiyohime, what all can you do? It's rather difficult to glean what some of the Skills on a Servant's Stat Sheet actually mean." He asked.

"I can't do much Anchin, my third skill is just a wish of what I want from you, and my second allows me to track you down and find you no matter what. My first Skill I combine with my Noble Phantasm, to utilize it more, and I can make myself bigger if you want?"

Andrew thought about that. "Bigger as in a dragon, like what Georgios said?"

"That I can, but it's an ugly form I don't like to use it, but for you, I will Anchin. But what I meant is that I can make myself 'bigger," She pressed forward for emphasis.

Andrew did his best to ignore that. "I mean, I always thought dragons were pretty cool." He said.

"Really?" Andrew couldn't see her face, but he could tell Kiyohime was surprised at his statement.

He nodded. "Really. I always loved how, in most stories, dragons always protected something. Whether it was gold, a princess, or a town, and whether it was from good guys or bad guys, I've always associated dragons with being powerful protectors of something or other."

"Then I Kiyohime shall be your guardian Anchin. No harm shall come to you." Kiyohime vowed.

Andrew smiled. He was _very_ thankful he knew how to deal with her type, though he could tell it was going to be a lot more difficult than a normal person, what with the 'dragon' thing, so he was going to steer her away from the path of the Yandere as much as he could. "Thank you, Miss Kiyohime. I accept your guardianship in our endeavors to save human history, and I am grateful for it."

"Senpai Wyverns detected." Shouted Mash, and Andrew turned his attention towards his Kouhai who was riding next to him now. He looked up in the air to and saw indeed flying lizards in the air of various colors.

Andrew and his group were serving as the vanguard of the army so, they would be the first to see and respond to enemy attacks.

"Everyone lets swat some flies! Mozart, start playing! Cu, send up the signal, and the start blasting, but focus more on knocking them down so the others can hit them than killing them outright! Everyone who isn't them, attack any that get close enough!" Andrew said. He then turned his focus towards the newer additions to the group. "Rider, Lancer, if you have anything that can hit them from this range, do it." He said to the two, not on Guillotine Breaker.

" _Sorry to interrupt everyone Servant inbound at high speed… It's flying and coming in fast."_ Andrew heard the voice of Roman from Mash's armband.

He really wished he had his own that could be called to.

That was then Andrew saw and heard something land in front of the group. "I kill you all! **Tauropolos!** " Andrew saw a mad Atalanta clad in the skin of the boar point her bow into the sky and fired.

Xxx

 _Reaction to learning Kiyohime is a Yandere:_

 **Shit I did not think this through enough.**


	15. The Power of Love

And a second later Andrew watched the rain of arrows fall down towards them. Andrew was about to call out for his Servants to get out of dodge or block them.

But before the arrows came all the way down, they came to a screeching halt.

"Don't worry Master I got this!" Shouted Cu.

Andrew turned his head towards the Celt and saw him holding out his hand a circle of blue runes right above it.

"Nice one Cu! Keep it up! Everyone else who doesn't have an Anti-Dragon something or other, attack that Archer! Everyone who does, focus on taking out those wyverns!" Andrew ordered his Servants and allies.

They gave a verbal agreement, and Andrew heard Gilles and Jeanne shout something in French, and the army responding behind him.

Guess they were about to assist in taking down the wyverns in a few moments.

"Lily combo! **Wickerman!** " Cu shouted as he activated his Noble Phantasm.

Andrew watched it rise from the ground and grabbing the hide enhanced Atalanta, who was trying to fly away.

It threw her into its stomach area which was followed by Lily using her Noble Phantasm. " **Caliburn!** " The golden beam from the holy blade struck the cage obliterating it for maximum damage against the insane Archer.

"Holy shit that's a cool combo! Good job guys, but confirm the kill!" Andrew said, unable to see the results beyond the explosion itself for the moment.

It was as the giant straw man disappeared that Andrew saw something glinting land on the slightly on fire ground made by Wickerman.

"Never mind, kill confirmed. Now then, everyone take down those wyverns!" Andrew ordered as he rode over to the spot where Atalanta's Saint Quartz had fallen. "Miss Kiyohime could you be a dear and pick that shiny stone up for me as we pass?" He asked of the Berserker also on Guillotine Breaker upon realizing he wouldn't be able to grab it and stay on said steed.

"Of course Anchin." The Berserker replied, with the sweet tone that she had. She left the horse landing on the ground ignoring the flames and picked up the precious gem.

And quickly handed it over to Andrew the stone not even hot to the touch.

"Thank you, Miss Kiyohime," Andrew said as he pocketed the Quartz. "Do you feel you would be more effective in combating our foes from the ground for now?"

"Of course Anchin, anything dies if you set in on fire hard enough." She answered.

"Wise words, but just focus those flames on the Wyverns for now," Andrew said.

"If that is what you-." Her voice was interrupted by a loud roar.

Andrew turned his head towards it and saw a very familiar dragon flying their way.

"Everyone! Change of plans, we're focusing on taking down the big guy! Everyone with ranged attacks, shoot it out of the sky! Everyone else, defend the soldier's and hit anything that gets close until Fafnir is grounded!" He ordered. He was very happy he'd had plenty of time to think over some strategies on how to deal with the Witch's forces on the way here. He then realized he was a bit too far away from the main group and sent Guillotine Breaker back towards them. It would be really, really stupid for the most vulnerable/valuable person on their side to be out in the open.

"All, just die already, die you stupid, die, Master of Chaldea and your Servants, die, Siegfried. All of you shall go to hell. Fafnir turn them all into ashes." Was the raging voice of Jeanne d'Arc Alter. Andrew turned his head backward as he rode on Guillotine Breaker, Kiyohime running beside him.

And it was just in time to see a blue light appear in Fafnir's mouth.

"Senpai/ Andrew!" Shouted Mash and Jeanne at the same time.

He looked forward to seeing the two Servants run towards him, followed them with his head as they came to a stop.

" **Lord Chaldea/Luminosite Eternelle!** " They activated their barrier Noble Phantasms at the same time. Making a defense that was able to stop Fafnir's breath attack.

Andrew watched as the blue beam of probably magical plasma did nothing and was simply stopped dead in its track.

"Argh! Why won't you die you stupid Saint!" Jeanne Alter shouted in rage once again.

"Nice one girls!" Andrew said, throwing a thumbs up their way. "Let's hope it can't do that again for a bit." He then pointed at its wings. "Cu, ice its wings! The quicker we get it on the ground, the quicker the swords can start killing it!"

"On it Master. Hagalaz Eihwaz Isa!" Cu chanted the runic spell.

And Andrew watched as Cu decided to cast Blizzard on Fafnir's wings and getting a frozen status effect. As he saw them seemingly instantly get coated in ice so dense that he couldn't see the wings inside of it.

"Damned Pagan!" Jeanne Alter shouted as she crashed down with Fafnir and fell off the dragon's head.

"To think I have to fight you a fourth time of Evil Dragon." Came Siegfried's noble voice.

"No, you broke the curse!" This shout was one of surprise. "Oh no." Andrew saw the face of realization appear on hers a little too late.

" **O' Sword Be Filled! Balmung!** " Siegfried activated his Noble Phantasm, and Andrew bore witness to the awesome beam sword again.

This time though there was no escape for Fafnir this time.

Andrew heard the beast scream out in pain as it was consumed by the dragon-slaying hero's attack.

Though Jeanne Alter managed to dodge away in the last second.

As the dust and debris cleared Fafnir was nowhere to be seen, only a new gorge was added to the French landscape.

"And so the dragon has been ended once again," Siegfried spoke as he relaxed his posture a bit.

Andrew grinned widely. "I told you, our Victory was Assured! Now, let's take down the Witch and the rest of her forces!" He said enthusiastically, though he was a bit disappointed that Fafnir didn't leave anything behind after it died. Any part of its body would have been immensely useful for Da Vinci to get her hands on.

Andrew could see Jeanne Alter staring at the gorge Siegfried had created in disbelief. "You-You!" She turned towards Andrew. "You killed my Fafnir! How dare you! I'm going to have Gilles skin you alive, torture you until your mind breaks, and then feed you to his monsters. I am-."

"FRANCE KICK!" Came a shout and Andrew watch as Marie kicked Jeanne Alter in the head from behind. And quickly sprinted over to Andrew. "Thanks for taking care of Guillotine Breaker Andrew. Being inside that dragon's stomach. Though thankfully my Crystal Palace protected me from the acids. It was so nasty, not befitting a queen. And I'm covered in dragon gob. This is going to take forever to clean." Marie's mouth ran like a waterfall, making it so Andrew wouldn't think to interrupt her. He was just so happy to see her alive.

Andrew immediately fell off of Guillotine Breaker in his excitement as he tried to dismount the crystal horse. "I knew you were still alive!" He said as he got up and hugged the Rider, happy to see her alive and well.

"Yes, I'm happy to see you again to Andrew-."

"Anchin who is this hussy you're hugging?" Came the question of Kiyohime from behind him.

Andrew immediately felt the record scratch inside his head play. He let go of the Rider and quickly spun around to face the Berserker. "Miss Kiyohime, p-please don't insult our allies! This is Rider Marie Antoinette, it was her Steed I've been riding on, and many thought her dead after she was attacked by the dragon Siegfried just slew, and I don't like losing people, so I just reacted the way I would have if it were any ally as close as her Royal Majesty in the same situation." He said rapidly in an attempt to diffuse the potential bomb before it was lit. Or more aptly, add more time to the timer of the existing bomb.

Though it seemed to work as Kiyohime went from angry to pleased. "So, she is the one who allowed me to ride with you Anchin. Then it is okay so long as I get one too." She gave her ultimatum.

"With 'one' being a hug, right?" Andrew said, making sure there was no ambiguity in her demands that she could exploit.

"Yes, of course, I shall save anything else for our wedding night." She said.

That was...actually somewhat reassuring, considering everything. "Alright, but I just remembered we still have an angry Alter holding a Grail right over there, so it's happening right now." He said as he hugged the Berserker.

He heard the beam of joy as he did, and when he let go Kiyohime looked so _very_ pleased. It was like handling a dog, that always wanted treats.

"Alright now, everyone! And I mean everyone! Right there-" He pointed directly at Jalter. "-is our target! As soon as we take the Witch out, we win instantly! So everyone, full-scale assault, holds nothing back! I'll worry about the consequences later, right now we just have to BURN. THAT. WITCH!" Andrew yelled.

"Like hell, you won't! By the power of my Command Seals my Servants come forth, by the power of the rest of my Command Seals. KILL. THEM. ALL!"

And it was so in flashes of light that the Servants appeared.

Dracula.

Carmilla.

Chevalier d'Eon.

Charles-Henri Sanson.

The four Servants she had left.

"And I'm out, see yeah!" Jalter shouted as she began to run away.

"Get back here you cowardly Witch!" Shouted Saber Gilles as he came running up to the side of them. But the callout fell on deaf ears as she continued to run away, leaving them to deal with her Servants.

But, still, against them, Andrew was more than prepared now. They significantly outnumbered the Witch's Servants; he hoped their numbers would be enough to counteract the Command Seals. "Lord Andrew, my men, are able to handle the rest of Wyverns, so I can join you in the fight."

"Thank you for your assistance, Commander." Andrew then used his Stat-o-Vision on the presumed Saber to determine whether his hunch was correct about what the Witch had said.

 **True Name:** Gilles de Rais

 **Class:** Saber

 **Master:** -

 **Parameters:**

Strength: B

Endurance: C

Agility: C

Mana: D

Luck: D

Noble Phantasm: B

 **Class Skills:**

Magic Resistance: B

Riding: B

Mad Enhancement: EX

 **Personal Skills:**

Military Tactics: C

Golden Rule: B

Prelati's Encouragement: A

 **Noble Phantasms:**

Saint War Order: Rally Upon the Holy Banner and Roar(Anti-Unit(Self)): B

Prelati's Spellbook: Textbook of the Sunken Spiral Castle(Anti-Army): C

Andrew was both reassured and newly worried. Partly due to knowing that this Giles wouldn't betray them for the witch, partly due to seeing that EX rank Mad Enhancement, and partly due to the confirmation that there was a second Giles who was on the Witch's side that she was likely running to right now. "Commander, if you feel your men need some help, feel free to send Siegfried back to slay more Wyverns. He's practically made for dragon slaying."

"That is true, and I wouldn't like for more of my men to die. Lord Siegfried, I ask that you assist my men. These enemies shall not be a problem. The scourge of these beasts needs to end once and for all."

"Of course I shall assist. That is what I do best." At that Siegfried, ran to help the French soldiers kill the remaining Wyverns.

"What a shame I would have like to have thought that dragon slayer that once served as part of my team." Came the voice of Dracula and Andrew turned his attention to the vampire.

"Ohshitrightthereare4angryServantsboostedbylike20CommandSealsfuck" Andrew breathed as he turned to face said, Servants. And then he grinned. "Let's try this one again. Lily! With this-"

"Hold it now no need to be rash." Dracula interrupted. "Now, while our dear dark Saint has ordered us to kill you. It is a very broad one, that can be interpreted in many ways. So, how about we have a proper Holy Grail War. We go one at a time against a few of your Servants, and we see if we can kill you, now doesn't that sound like a fun idea."

Andrew thought about his offer. "Quantify 'a few.'" He asked of the vampire, putting his personal feelings aside for the moment.

"About two to three, now I believe that our French Spy wants to go first," Dracula said as he motioned to Chevalier.

"Yes, though my heart might be filled with unbridled rage my sword is still pure. Now, who shall fight me in a duel of blades?" He asked as he stepped forward.

Andrew decided now would be a good time to use his Stat-o-Vision on the maddened Saber to determine who was best to fight them.

 **True Name:** Chevalier d'Eon

 **Class:** Saber

 **Master:** Jeanne d'Arc Alter

 **Parameters:**

Strength: A/A+

Endurance: B/B+

Agility: B/B+

Mana: C

Luck: A

Noble Phantasm: C

 **Class Skills:**

Magic Resistance: C

Riding: A

Mad Enhancement: C

 **Personal Skills:**

Eye of the Mind(True): C

Self-Suggestion: A

Looks of Loveliness: C

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Fleur de Lys: Sword Dance of Falling Lilies(Anti-Unit): C

Fleur de Lys: Gorgeous Splendor of Blooming Lilies(Anti-Army): C

Those stats were worryingly high, and the two Noble Phantasm's with the same name would probably be annoying. Andrew was a bit surprised at the Looks of Loveliness skill though; the Saber was pretty cute sure, but not Skill worthy from what he'd seen. He'd have to look out for that. But it looked like the best Servants to use would be- "Mash, Assassin, you'll be fighting the Saber." He then turned towards Marie. "And Your Majesty, if I may be so bold as to ask, would you assist in taking down this Saber? Guillotine Breaker would be very useful in this fight."

"No, Andrew, against Chevalier I will not fight, he is the friend I will not do so against. And besides, you will not use your Noble Phantasm like before won't you my dear spy?" She asked the enemy Servant.

"Not I shall not my Queen. Despite the anger burning inside of me, this shall be a fight of sword skills. So I shall only use the anti-unit version if he pulls out his." The hate-filled spy answered.

"Ah. I will respect your wishes then." Andrew said, deciding to honor the good-natured spy constrained by the Witch's foul magic. "Then, in that case, Saber Lily, would you please join Mash and Assassin?"

"Yes, Master I shall, I couldn't work my anger out on Martha so he? She? Shall be an excellent substitute." Lily said as she walked with Mash and Kojiro to face the Saber.

"Thank you, Master, it shall be good to test my skill against one of the Saber Class." Spoke Kojiro.

"And I will do my best Senpai to help Assassin and Lily," Mash said as she stood resolutely with her shield.

"Right. I believe in the three of you." Andrew said as he used Instant Reinforcement on the three. _'Assassin, hide now and go for the back. Saber and Mash will keep 'em distracted so you can get a Tsubame Gaeshi in from behind.'_ He thought of Assassin as he relayed the related orders to the other two.

" _Sorry, Master, but I will not dishonor this duel by using such cowardly tactics,"_ Kojiro responded.

' _Ah.'_ Andrew responded before speaking aloud. "Never mind my previous orders then, and attack now!"

"Yes let the fight begin!" Shouted Dracula.

At that, the fight began.

Andrew was barely able to keep up with his eyes as the Servants moved at incredible speeds managing only to get proper looks when the Servants parried and blocked the attacks made.

But it was still obvious to see that Lily and Kojiro did most of the fighting with Mash blocking most of Chevalier's attack. His Kouhai's face was one of steel as he saw how she blocked the deadly swings of the spy's blade.

Sparks flew off the metallic grey shield everytime it happened. Though it was thanks to Mash, Kojiro and Lily had barely managed to take damage while d'Eon was bleeding from a few places. And victory was assured as Andrew saw Lily deliver a cut to the Frenchman's forehead.

Blood ran from the shallow wound in great amounts, which for second blinded d'Eon. And that was then Kojiro made his move.

" **Hiken: Tsubame Gaeshi**!" Came the shout of the ultimate sword technique, and for a second Andrew saw three katana blades exist at the same time.

"Nice one guys!" Andrew called out to his Servants. "And I'm sorry we had to fight in the first place, Chevalier. Any friend of Marie's must be a good person." He said to the dissipating Saber.

"Then summon me if you think so. Though I must say, warrior of the East. What did you fight to develop such a technique?"

"Swallows." Was the answer.

"Whaaaa…" Was the only thing d'Eon got to say as the spy disappeared. His face one of utter confusion.

"...I'm not sure if that was a good or bad last thought, considering the circumstances," Andrew said after a moment of silence to honor the spy.

"I don't know Andrew, I think Chevalier would find it amusing if it got time to sink in. I definitely do." Said Marie, with a small laugh.

Andrew smiled at the Rider. "If all goes well, we all might be able to laugh it off together after this. I think." He said, assuming Servant's remembering previous summonings was universal. He had Assassin quickly grab the Saint Quartz as the three came back, which he pocketed. "So, which of you will face us next?" Andrew asked of Dracula and the others.

"I will." Said, Sanson, as he stepped forward.

Andrew thought about what he knew about the executioner as he picked which Servants would face him. His only armament seemed to be that oddly shaped sword, so ranged attacks would be good. Shame he only really had Cu and maybe Kiyohime. "Alright, my Caster and Berserker for sure, but who else to join them…" He looked over the assembled Servants under his command. "Mozart, would you care to assist in executing the executioner?" He asked of the musician.

"Hmm, word plays. Alright, I'll play a good number for the two of you." Mozart said as he stood behind Kiyohime and Cu on the battlefield. "You two just make sure he doesn't cut my head off, I can't play if he does that."

"I'm doing this because Anchin said I should so be grateful that I will even bother to help you." Kiyohime, spit at the composer.

"Just, stay in the back you useless Caster." Cu said.

"Why does everyone bully me, what did I do to deserve such a thing." Mozart lamented.

"Because you don't shut the fuck up Amadeus, god I can't wait to be rid of you. After this, I'm going to kill Marie and you two's Master. That brat is sickening to look at. God, he is almost as pathetic as you Amadeus." Sanson spoke coldly.

"Ah," Andrew said in response. "Well then. In that case." Andrew took a deep breath. "Kiyohime darling, if you work together with our Casters are burn that brute to a crisp I'll give you a kiss."

 _Kiyohime Bond Level: 0_ _10_

And that was then Andrew swore he could hear Ode to Joy just go, but that was made by Beethoven and Mozart didn't have his orchestra out.

"YES!" Shouted Kiyohime. " **SAMADHI!** " Kiyohime shouted the name of her Noble Phantasm. And that was when he saw her body burst into blue flames and a long eastern dragon rose into the air covered in flames.

Andrew saw the look of panic in Sanson's eyes. "Oh, crab baskets." Was all he said as the draconic form of Kiyohime coiled around him in a tornado of flames.

And as quickly as it had started the dragon girl was back to normal and staring intently into Andrew's face beaming.

Andrew was smiling wide the whole time in awe at the destruction she had wrought. The bastard executioner deserved it for insulting him and his allies. "Incredible job Kiyohime!" He said as he pats her on the head. "Now, close your eyes."

The Berserker did while she stood on her toes to reach up higher.

Andrew leaned down, and kissed the dragon girl on the forehead, carefully avoiding impaling himself on her horns.

But it seemed to have worked as afterward, as Kiyohime then fell backward bliss on her face. Andrew caught the falling girl. 'Okay, damn. That's adorable.' He thought to himself, especially considering he wasn't sure if he was going to get roasted for it when he had done it. Aloud he said. "Thank you, Kiyohime." And then realized she had actually fallen unconscious. He decided, partially because it was funny, to then hold the surprisingly light girl in a bridal carry.

"Oh, Casters, can one of you grab the Quartz?" He asked of the two Servants still standing there, having been left in the dust by Kiyohime.

"Sure thing Master." Cu said as he tapped the ground with his staff and where Sanson had been the Quartz flew up in the air and down into his hand. "Here Master." Cu dropped it into Andrew's pocket where he kept the others then he and Mozart walked back to the group.

Though now the area where the Servants were was completely silent and Andrew was able to hear the Wyverns that were being slaughtered by Siegfried in the background dying.

Andrew looked around at the faces of the surrounding Servants on both sides. And they were all those that said. 'Did that really just happen.'.

"What? He insulted us, and Kiyo deserved a little treat." Andrew said indignantly.

"That was rather an extreme reaction Andrew," Jeanne said.

"Yes, if I didn't know any better I would say she was possessed by a demon of love and lust," Gilles commented.

"Hmm, I agree. But I say, dragons be dragons. That is something Carmilla, and I can confirm. Our emotions are much stronger than those of normal humans. And speaking of the lovely Blood Countess who wish to fight against her?" Dracula spoke.

"Mine, mine, mine, mine!" Andrew heard Elizabeth shout as she ran towards her eviler older-self.

"Hmm, it seems that younger-self wishes to die a quick death! **Phantom Ma-**." Carmilla began to activate what was probably her Noble Phantasm.

But it was interrupted by Elizabeth who threw her spear at the Vampire's head. "No you don't, shut up and die." Elizabeth grabbed her spear again before planting it down into the ground and standing on it.

Andrew saw dragon wings spring from her back as she bowed backward. "Ooh, this is going to be good. Mozart, put aside your feelings for this and start boosting her." He said quickly.

Mozart obeyed with a grunt and began to wave his conductor's baton, and music could be heard.

Andrew saw as Elizabeth now bowed forwards and screamed.

And from her mouth, high-pressure sound waves were launched like a sonic cannon or a directed sonic boom. It was actually pretty similar to Danny Phantom's Ghost Wail or Black Canary's scream.

The waves tore through the ground and hit the dazed Carmilla head on. It was a gruesome sight to see as her skin and flesh was stripped from her body. Though after some time she did dissipate into those golden particles.

"Hmm, good to be rid of the trash I say," Elizabeth said as she picked her spear backup.

"Damn, and I thought Lily's were supposed to at least be nominally weaker than the full-grown version," Andrew said before realizing what he had said. "N-no offense Saber I just meant because they have higher parameters and stuff."

"No, it is true Andrew I am weaker than my adult-self. But Elizabeth isn't a Lily like me, she is more like a person with two separate legends to her name."

Andrew glanced over to the last remaining enemy. "Like _him_ ," he said, no longer restraining his emotions.

"Yes, like the King of Wallachia, Andrew. A hero to his countrymen, a monster to the rest of the world. An Image that got even worse with the release of Dracula by Bram Stoker. He has become something he never was in life. The same goes for Carmilla, she neither became a Vampire or her family even had dragon blood in their veins. But the belief of humanity made it such." Jeanne spoke.

"You speak true words Saint. That is true Elizabeth is not a true dragon. Properties given to her by the nickname of being the Countess Dracula the Daughter of the dragon." Dracula spoke. "Though now I believe it is my time to fight. Who do you wish to send against the one who is called a dragon, one who is called a devil."

Andrew had to take a moment to clear his head a bit before he thought about it. One part of him wanted to just send all of his Servants after the Vampire at once to just off him like that. Another, smaller, quieter, and far less angry part of him wanted to honor the Count's terms since they were the only reason the other three had died so quickly and easily (relatively).

"...Jeanne, Gilles, and Georgios." Andrew said, deciding to pick the holiest Servants he could. "Cleanse the earth of the abomination against the Lord known as the Vampire." He said, anger leaking into his voice. He was being honorable, not cordial.

"Ah. Excellent choice and you are right I am an abomination. Though I will say this for being able to keep you cool against me Andrew. I would ask for you to summon me at some point, you would make for a much better Master than my previous ones. Now **Kazikli Bey!** "

Xxx

 **Reactions from Passive:**

 _Poor Atalanta comes in swinging and then just gets eliminated._

 _Kiyohime Smash! She is the best Yandere._

 _Sure Dracula, if you come without Vampire bits._

A/N:

Donate to my **P A Troen. com (slash) TheBlacklightProjekt** if you want to help me as a creator. And now take commissions, which is you paying for me to write any one-shot you want. Price depends on the length of One-Shot.


	16. Ding, Dong The Witch Is Dead

The fight started off explosively.

Literally, as Andrew saw stakes explode from Dracula's body.

Colored in red and black, looking more like solid spears made out of blood.

They seemed to go directly for Jeanne, but midway they changed directions and headed for Georgios.

" **Bayard!** " The holy knight shouted activating his own Noble Phantasm. The horse he rode on gave a mighty neigh as they charged towards Dracula.

They met the stakes head on, but the moment they touched Georgios and his steed they were repelled away and slammed into the ground instead.

The earth was impaled instead of them.

They charged forward followed by Gilles and Jeanne.

"You shall end here now Vampire!" Gilles shouted. " **Saint War Order!** " Andrew seemingly saw the image of Jeanne's banner appear above him, its light shining down on him.

And then he moved.

And by moving, Andrew meant the saw the ground break apart as the man crashed right through the sound barrier.

It seemed that his Noble Phantasm was a self-buff.

And in a blink of an eye, Gilles had run past Georgios and was right up in Dracula's face.

The French knight could be seen swinging his sword with a ferocity befitting of a Berserker, seemingly not letting down until the enemy was brought down.

But it seemed that Dracula had a few vampiric tricks up his sleeve as his body turned into mist as he flowed right behind Gilles.

He was right about to strike the back of the man. But in his haste to strike the adjacent holy man, his back was now wide open.

" **Ascalon!** " Shouted Georgios as he activated another Noble Phantom of his.

The sword that slew a dragon struck with immense force and a hole was made right through Dracula's body.

Andrew could see that it was the entirety of the chest area that was gone; simply erased in that one strike.

Though much to Andrew's dismay the vampire wasn't down yet, as a stake bloomed from the palm of his left hand.

It rocketed forth, but Andrew guessed it was thanks to the knight's Instinct skill that he managed himself to dodge and be unhurt.

Though that could not be said for his horse as it pierced right through the horse's throat.

Georgios lashed out with his blade and cut the stake, so it was no longer connected to Dracula. Though that was too little too late as the man jumped from his steed, as but a moment later more black-red stakes sprouted out of the animal's body.

But, Andrew took a sigh of relief as the horse was immediately avenged by Jeanne who struck the final blow.

She pierced the Count's head with her banner, the tip going from chin to head. And though as to make sure that the vampire was dead. Jeanne seemed to make offensive use of her barrier Noble Phantasm, by making its holy light go through the banner.

The effect was instant to Andrew's relief as he saw the undead's body turn into ash.

He also swore that he just saw the vampire give a thumbs up in his direction.

"Oh thank God he's dead," Andrew said without a hint of irony. It was a half-literal prayer at that point because of the whole 'vampire' thing. "I felt bad for him near the end and all, and I'm grateful he let us kill them so easily, but _holy shit_ it was hard to not look at him and order everyone to just kill him." He paused for a moment. "Actually, let's go do that to the Witch now that she doesn't have any other Servants backing her up."

"That sounds like a great idea Senpai, though hopefully, we can get there before she manages to summon more." Mash.

"I agree with the Eggplant, Anchin." Said a now awake Kiyohime in Andrew's arms. "I wouldn't very much like more harm come to you, my love."

Andrew looked down at the dragon girl. "Oh good, you're awake." He frowned slightly. "But why eggplant?"

"My Anchin is concerned for me eh. But it's her hair color it almost has the same shade as one." Kiyohime answered.

"Do I really Senpai?"

"No," Andrew said simply. "Your hair's more of a...I wanna say mauve? Platinum? Not eggplant though."

"Thank you for being honest. Though are you going to continue to carry her? I think Kiyohime can walk on her own." Mash said.

"R-right. Miss Kiyohime I'm putting you down now." Andrew said as he carefully did so, setting her down upright.

"Aww, but I wanted him to carry me like I'm his bride." She grumbled, but not otherwise upset.

Andrew cleared his throat, not acknowledging what she had said before he spoke. "Alright, everyone! I think Siegfried has the Wyverns handled, the rest of us are going to go after the Witch and take her down once and for all!" He said enthusiastically.

"We hear you!"

Xxx

They had managed to reach the castle city of Orleans in less than ten minutes. Andrew and his group of Servant's plus the extra had made a dash for the city as fast as possible.

The French Army had been given orders by Gilles and Jeanne, to head to the city as fast they could and then occupy it. Then they got there.

They didn't have to worry about the Wyverns as they all seemed to have aggroed on Siegfried. Probably a fuck you to the Dragon-Slayer by the Witch for killing Fafnir. But it seemed the Saber hadn't minded as he had shouted to Andrew that they should just leave without him.

Though they had also lost a member of the group in the form of Elizabeth who had left them. As she had said she only wanted to kill Carmilla and she had done what she wanted. And so there wasn't a reason for her to assist them. As they seemed to have, it handled.

But she had repeated to Andrew, that if he summoned her, she would help them.

Andrew had also before they left Andrew remembered to pick up Carmilla's and Dracula's Saint Quartz that they had left behind.

On the way, Marie and Mozart had given each other a hug, and she apologized for having given them all such a scare.

Now though they were in the castle of Orleans itself. The trip to it through the city had been met without any opposition, as the place was practically a ghost town thanks to Jeanne Alter.

The sound of their steps could be heard clearly on the stone as they all walked through the Castle halls, led by Dr. Roman's and Jeanne's instructions, as they went to where Jeanne Alter and another Servant were held up.

On the way, Andrew had given Georgios his condolences over Bayard and decided to not contract the dragon-slaying saint at the end of the Singularity so as to allow him to regain his steed someday.

But after he did Andrew had had a more private chat with Gilles.

"Commander. There is something very important that I need to talk to you about concerning the Witch." Andrew said to the Saber.

"What is it you wish to speak about Lord Andrew?" Gilles asked from his spot beside Jeanne. He and she along with Mash lead the group's front. Cu, Kojiro, and Lily were in the back. With Marie, Mozart, and Georgios to Andrew's left and right side.

"Something that the Witch said has got me worried, so I'm going to ask you a question." Andrew took a breath to steady himself. "Do you remember the events of a previous summoning in the incarnation of a Caster?"

"No, I do not why do you ask?" He responded with his own question.

"Ah. Then, that spellbook Noble Phantasm. Did you possess such a book in life, or is it a posthumous addition?" Andrew asked.

"I did receive it in life then I went down the path of darkness after Jeanne's death. I do not know much of what I did- no my mind refuses to remember. But I know I did terrible things and that I deserved death." Gilles said with a voice of deep regret.

"Gilles." Came Jeanne's sympathetic voice.

"The fact that you feel any guilt over it means you can do better," Andrew said. "But, my point was, that the Witch has referred to on multiple occasions a 'Gilles' of her own, who was not summoned when she used her Command Seals. And nary a fortnight has passed since Jeanne's death. Which means…" Andrew deliberately trailed off.

"Oh my is somebody talking about me?" Came Gilles' voice but it was from further down the hall a place completely covered in darkness. "You know normal people would say that killing yourself twice is impossible, but I would beg to differ." And with that, the hallway lit up, the torches on the wall alight with green flames.

"That," Andrew said. He quickly tried to use his Stat-o-Vision on the other Gilles just in case.

 **True Name:** Gilles de "Bluebeard" Rais.

 **Class:** Caster

 **Master:**?

 **Parameters:**

Strength: D

Endurance: E

Agility: D

Mana: C

Luck: E

Noble Phantasm: A+

 **Class Skills:**

Territory Creation: B

Item Creation: -

 **Personal Skills:**

Eye for Art: E-

Mental Pollution: A

Evil Eye of the Abyss: C

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Prelati's Spellbook: Textbook of the Sunken Spiral Castle(Anti-Army): A+

"Oh shit, that's even worse," Andrew said. "Everyone, take out that other Gilles quickly!"

"Now, now you don't want to harm the children do you." He snapped his finger and Andrew heard the sound of heavy wooden doors opening.

"Please, Sir can we go home!" "I want mama!" "Daddy!" Andrew saw and heard the children between ages at least between ages eight and twelve. Stream out into the hallway, there had to be somewhere over three dozen or so kids.

"...Is that all of them?" Andrew asked, mostly towards Mash/Roman since the later could actually tell.

" _Maybe, I couldn't detect them before. Probably used some sort of concealment spell on the rooms they were in."_ Came Dr. Roman's answer.

"Mhm. And it looks like those are the only rooms adjacent to here, huh." Andrew said, his voice without emotion. He was about to order his Servants, but someone beat him to it.

"COWARD TO HIDE BEHIND CHILDREN!" Roared Saber Gilles in anger at his evil-self.

"If you call me a coward aren't you calling yourself that? We are after all the same person." The Caster said smugly his bug-fish eyes staring intently at them, a wicked smile on his face.

"You are not me if I would have known I would become someone like you I would have died together with Jeanne on that day."

"Well if that is what you wish. You can experience it now. Fhtagn! Have fun with the children." Caster Gilles said as he disappeared like a chameleon.

"Get back here!" Saber Gilles shouted, as he was about to run, but was stopped by Jeanne grabbing his hand.

"Gilles do not chase him in anger we need to deal with the children first." She told the commander.

"Yes, you are right Jeanne. Forgive me."

Andrew himself was about to speak up, but that was interrupted by the screams of pain that came from the children.

Andrew turned his head to look at them, and was met by the gruesome sight of their bodies exploding into showers of blood, and where they once stood…

Andrew took one look at the horrific tentacled masses and new one thing.

This castle needed to burn.

"Kill everything," Andrew said. "Burn this entire castle to the ground. And when we catch up with the Witch and the Demon-summoner, I'm going to personally pry the grail from her cold dead hands." He said, overwhelmed with pure hatred.

"Yes, Andrew we shall give mercy to these souls." Spoke Jeanne and that his Servant's quickly rushed forward.

Andrew stared at the spot where the other Gilles had stood as he heard the sound of flesh being carved and burned. He didn't know how long he had been looking down, but he stopped as he felt a hand on his shoulder. His face was wet with tears.

"Senpai, it over now, let's go stop them shall we." It was not a question that came from Mash's mouth, but a statement of certainty.

Andrew didn't dare to look at the place where the children had been. "Yes. We're going to utterly destroy the ones who did this."

Mash nodded, and before he knew it, she had picked him up. "Then we shall get there as fast possible," Mash said.

"Y-yeah, do that. Please." He said. "Thank you, Kouhai."

Mash just smiled.

She ran with him in her arms, and with the others, they made their way to the throne room quickly. As they did Andrew quickly communicated his plan to them-release hell when given a very specific gesture, which he was able to say right before Gilles kicked down the door.

The went into the room and was met with the sight of Jeanne Alter standing above a familiar looking magic circle.

"You already here? I thought Gilles would have kept you occupied for longer." She said in surprise.

"So, Dragon Witch. I know now that you have no shred of humanity or goodness left within you." Andrew said, ignoring her words. "Using children like that… almost as bad as forcing undeath upon the masses."

He was about to give the signal, but Jeanne spoke up quickly.

"Tell me do you remember our youth, do you remember our family, our friends or village?" Andrew saw a look of confusion appear on Jeanne Alters face like she didn't know what the good one was talking about. "That is all the answers, I needed. Andrew."

At that Andrew flipped her off. "Go fuck yourself in hell." And then all of the Servants attacked at once.

And it was a barrage of attacks and Noble Phantasms. Andrew could feel his Magic Circuits burn as they were almost drained entirely of Prana from the deluge of fire and fury.

But it was worth it as the dust cleared with a very large hole in the wall in front of them.

Andrew saw a golden cup fly in the air.

"Oh fuck to the hell yes finally," Andrew said. "Quickly, someone grab that before an enemy does."

But as he said that the Grail flew out of the hole made by the attack on Jeanne Alter.

"Motherfuckingshitdammitofcourse!" Andrew said angrily at the Grail fleeing. "Follow that cup!"

They all quickly ran over to the hole. And there they all looked down to see a lake down below and standing on it was Caster Gilles.

The Holy Grail was in his hand.

They could all hear his voice as now spoke despite being so far away. Andrew figured he was using the grail or Magecraft to enhance his voice. Like a super megaphone.

"Ah it seems that my dear Jeanne has been defeated, should have expected it really, a copy could not stand up to the original at all." He revealed.

"Mozart, can you make sure he hears me?" Andrew said, his voice hoarse. The musician nodded his face grim and swung his baton a few times while saying a few words to make the spell happen. Andrew thanked him quietly before speaking.

"Bluebeard. _We_ have the original Jeanne, so why don't you give her the Grail and she can fix everything, yeah?" Andrew said, hoping to convince the Caster and maybe prevent what he knew was about to happen.

"Of course I know that. I was the one who created Jeanne d'Arc Alter. After I was summoned by that man in green and he gave me the Grail and ordered me to destroy the Human Order I gladly accepted. So, with the Grail, I tried to summon Jeanne, a Jeanne that would unleash her hatred on the word for the betrayal she suffered. But that did not happen the Grail could not grant such a wish, for such a thing does not exist. There is no speck of pure wrath that exists in the heart of my Holy Virgin. So, instead, I used the Grail to make a Jeanne d'Arc that would do my vengeance."

"Did she know that she wasn't real?" Asked Jeanne.

"Of course not, she believed for the moment I bought her forth, she thought that she was the real thing. Such a beautiful blasphemous tragedy, I must say her existence turned out to be."

"So you don't care at all for the feelings of the _actual_ Jeanne?" Andrew asked of the madman.

"Of course not, she has been tainted by the words of God, those meaningless that killed her. So, now I shall enact the vengeance that she rightfully deserves. All shall die, humans and then God." He reached into his robes and pulled out a book. "Like a good friend once said. I SHALL SHOW YOU THE GREATEST COOLLLLLL! Ph'nglui mglw'nafh wgah'nagl fhtagn" The water beneath him boiled and a mass of flesh consumed him.

xxx

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	17. The End of Singularity 1

"Motherof _fuck,_ " Andrew said as he saw the Lovecraftian horror form around the mad Caster. Of course, something like this would happen with how easily they took down Jeanne Alter, and only _after_ he'd been practically drained dry of Prana. "Does anyone have any anti-demon Noble Phantasms perchance?" He asked, though he more or less knew the answer.

The answer was like he had expected a resounding no.

" _Andrew the readings I'm getting that thing is insane. Its magical signature is unlike anything that Chaldea has observed. And with the Grail, its power probably surpasses that of most Servants. Though the best strategy I can recommend is to blow it up with one attack. But to do that and its size the Noble Phantasm that has to be used at least need to be the highest rank of Anti-Fortress. Surpassing even that of Cu Chulainn's Ochd Deug Odin. I'm sorry Andrew, but I'm at a loss to defeat this-this thing."_ Said the holographic form of Dr. Roman that had appeared. His face was filled with worry.

"...What if I used all my Command Seals at once? These things can _teleport_ Servants, they can give a big enough power boost right?" Andrew said, throwing out any ideas that might even possibly work.

Roman was about to begin talking again, but he was interrupted by a voice shouting. " **BALMUNG!** " At that, everyone looked out of the hole to see a blue sideways beam cut the Lovecraftian monster in half.

But as Andrew watched the top half collapse, it was within a few seconds he saw a new top regenerate from the bottom.

At that, the tentacles at its side became active and lashed out into the air, where Andrew saw a flying Siegfried be knocked down to the ground by them. And quickly with speed, Andrew didn't think they quite possible of began to hammer on the area Siegfried had been knocked down.

"Hopefully those are B-rank attacks," Andrew said sincerely. "But that... _thing_ just regenerates instantly? So hitting it with anything less than an instant kill is just going to waste time…" Andrew thought out loud, hoping doing so might lead to an idea coming forth.

"Mr. Roman you said that a powerful enough attack that can annihilate it in a single strike will suffice?" Jeanne asked.

" _Yes, Ruler."_ The doctor answered.

"Don't," Andrew said, realizing what she was getting at. Since Jeanne Alter was no longer around, that meant she would probably be back at full strength. Which also meant…

"Oh, so you know about that Andrew?" Jeanne asked a smile on her face.

"Your sword," Andrew said, his voice even more hoarse than before. "Please, don't."

That was then Gilles reacted. "Jeanne, you cannot be thinking about using that?" His face was one of anguish.

"But, I have to it is the only thing that can stop the monster, that Gilles has summoned. Its flames can burn anything out of existence. Now Gilles would you please hold my banner?" Jeanne asked as she held out the flagpole to the Saber Class Servant.

"I shall carry it with honor, my lady," Gilles spoke as he reached out and took the banner into his own hands.

That was when Jeanne turned to Andrew again. "It was nice to fight with you Andrew, to fight with all of you. Now Andrew don't be sad."

Andrew held up the hand bearing his Command Seals. "Jeanne. Are you, absolutely, without a shadow of d-doubt, certain you want to do this?"

"More so than anything, this started because of my death, and so it shall end with my death. But don't worry this isn't truly the end of our partnership Andrew. Try to summon me then you can, and I shall answer the call. Now then goodbye, for now, my friends." At that Jeanne jumped out of the hole.

Andrew shakily spoke as he did. "W-with this C-command Seal, I o-order Servant Ruler to destroy that monster." He said to make _absolutely_ certain that Caster Gilles' demon died.

" **O' Lord I entrust this body to you. La Pucelle!** " And Andrew saw fire.

Fire that bloomed from Jeanne's now white clothed body.

It surged from her like a tornado as it headed towards the monster.

Andrew heard it scream in pain as the fire consumed its body.

The fire roared and burned with such ferocity that demon didn't have time to regenerate, and after a minute there was no monster left, and neither was Caster Gilles only the Holy Grail floating above the water of the lake which the monster had summoned from.

Andrew looked downwards and saw Jeanne smile before her body disappeared in golden motes of light.

"Thank you. Jeanne." Andrew said through tears. "I'll summon you myself. I promise."

Andrew felt a hand clutch his. "Don't be sad Anchin your Kiyohime shall comfort you." The dragon girl said with a beaming smile. But Andrew could see that it was a little forced on her part.

Andrew half-forced a smile of his own towards the Berserker. "T-thank you, Kiyohime. B-but, we need to grab the Grail first." He said as he rubbed away as many tears as he could with his sleeve. "Quick, before someone else decides to turn into a giant monster, someone grab that grail!" He said, the fear of such an occurrence overriding the sadness somewhat.

" _Yes, go grab that Grail quickly Andrew and then I Rayshift you back to Chaldea."_ Dr. Roman said as his holographic form disappeared.

"Lily, Cu, go grab the Grail," Andrew said urgently to the Saber and Caster in question.

"Of course Master!" The two said and left through the hole in the wall of the throne room.

Andrew turned towards the Servants who weren't his. "Would any of you, except Georgios we already spoke about this, wish to become my Servants and come back to Chaldea with me?" He asked. It would .be a shame about Siegfried, but Andrew wasn't even sure if he was conscious enough to do so.

"I shall come with you Andrew and await the arrival of the Maiden with you," Gilles said as he looked at his hand where the banner he had been holding had vanished with Jeanne's sacrifice.

"Thank you, commander," Andrew said as he held out his hand to the Saber. "I, Andrew Murphy, Master of Chaldea, shall become your Master."

Gilles responded to the offered hand and grabbed it with his own. "It shall be a pleasure to work with you Master. I Saber Class Servant Gilles de Rais shall fight at your side from now on." As he finished saying that Andrew felt the connection between him and Gilles be established.

"The contract is sealed. The forces of fate have brought the two of us together; may we ever triumph in our fight to save Human History." Andrew said with a slight smile. He'd come up with the lines after he realized how little he'd said when contracting Jeanne and had been working on it since.

"Hmm, Mozart what do you think? Saving the world sounds like it would be a grand adventure does it not?" Marie asked the musician.

"It sounds very dangerous my queen, but where you go, I shall follow and lighten the air with my music," Mozart responded.

"Then we shall go with you Andrew, and you can have all the lap pillows you want." She said with a smile.

Andrew let out a short, choked laugh at that. "Thank you, Marie, and Mozart as well." He cleared his throat again before extending his hand towards the two of them. "Then, I, Andrew Murphy, Master of Chaldea, shall become the Master of you both."

"We accept the contract Master." They answered in stereo as both of them took his hand. Marie doing the shake, and Mozart had his left hand on Andrew's backhand.

"Then the contract is sealed," Andrew said as he felt the connection established to both of them. "The forces of fate have brought us together; may we ever triumph in our fight to save Human History."

"We're back Master." Came the voice of Lily. Andrew turned around to see that Lily and Cu had made their way back up with the Grail.

Which the child of light was carrying in a magical bubble shield. Andrew could see rings of runes spinning around the bubble. Probably what allowed the thing to be carried like that.

"Thank you both," Andrew said. "You didn't happen to see Siegfried down there did you?" He asked, hoping the dragon slayer was still around to maybe be contracted.

"We did, the dude had been pummeled into unconsciousness. Guess the tentacles exceeded what his Armor could take." Cu answered.

"Damn. I don't know which would be crueler- contracting him while unconscious or leaving him here?" Andrew said, contemplating what to do about the twice-over slayer of Fafnir.

"Don't worry Senpai all non-contracted Servants will disappear then the Grail has been disabled as it is that is maintaining their existence in the world. And so Siegfried will return to the throne. And it should be possible to summon him through the FATE System at a later date." Mash said.

"...Yeah, you're right Kouhai. It just doesn't feel right." Andrew said, before turning to the remaining Servant. "Georgios, I'll try to summon you as well, but I hope you don't take offense if I try and summon Jeanne and d'Eon first."

"No, not at all Andrew. I will arrive when needed to assist you." The saint answered.

Andrew did his best to smile at the Rider. "How very saintly of you."

The dragon slayer smiled. "Thank you for the compliment."

"Senpai I will begin Grail Acquisition protocols now," Mash said.

Andrew turned to his Kouhai. "Yes, please, do so." He said, sounding incredibly tired. It was slight, but he could already feel his dwindling reserves moving towards 0 (or worse, negative).

Andrew watched as the procedure just amounted to Mash shoving the Grail inside of her shield after Fou left it. The critter had fallen asleep inside of the shields pocket space.

Though after doing so Roman had Rayshifted them out of the Singularity. Where he got to see the blue swirl again.

Andrew grunted as he left his Coffin with Mash following suit out of hers.

Where they were meet by Roman, Da Vinci and all of Andrew's contracted Servant standing in front of them.

"Okay, Andrew before you say anything take a bath go to sleep. And then we'll do the briefing in the morning. I'll make sure your Servants are shown their new rooms." Dr. Roman said holding a clipboard in his hand. "And that is a doctor's order."

"Yessir," Andrew said with a half-hearted salute. "But, could I maybe get some food? I feel like my body is trying to eat itself." He paused. "With how much Prana I used that might be literal."

"That is true, and if you had strained yourself with another Noble Phantasm, your circuits probably would have exploded as they tried to find more energy to convert." Da Vinci said, answering his unsaid question.

Andrew flinched at the thought. "Too soon, Da Vinci." He said, feeling a hundred times more tired.

"Sorry, now get some food, bath and then sleep." She apologized.

Andrew nodded and trudged off to do so, zombie-like in his gait.

xxx

"Good morning Senpai." Came the voice of Mash from the door to Andrew's room as he finished putting a clean set of clothes on after having woken from a good night's sleep.

"Ah, I wanted to greet Anchin first." Followed the voice of Kiyohime as the yandere entered the door frame.

"Good morning Kouhai, Kiyo," Andrew said sluggishly. He had slept like a rock, thankfully, but he still felt tired.

"The doctor has called for a meeting, before breakfast so, we are going to go down to the conference room." Mash said, "You went so quickly to bed last night that we didn't manage to give you the communication armband. SO Kiyohime and I went to get you. And here is the armband." At that Kiyohime pulled out a gray box from her kimono holding it out to Andrew.

"Thank you," Andrew said near automatically as he took the box and removed its contents, placing the band on his left wrist and began finagling with it. "...Kouhai, could you show me how to use this then?" He asked upon realizing he wasn't actually sure.

"Right it works similarly to a normal phone, but with a holographic interface. There are four buttons on it. The top right is the screens on and off button. Top left is the quick call button. Bottom right is the answer button, and finally, bottom left is the button for taking quick pictures." Mash answered.

"Ah, thank you Kouhai," Andrew said before pressing the top right button. He smiled somewhat as the holographic screen popped into existence. "Heh, despite all the magic and stuff going on, that's still pretty cool."

"Really Senpai? Well maybe I'm just used to it, and the novelty of it has worn off." Mash said.

"I agree with Anchin, this stuff is cool. We didn't anything thing like this then when I was alive. If I had such a thing I could have contacted Anchin anytime, I would have liked."

"...Actually, now that I think about, Kiyo, I don't actually...know...your legend." Andrew said slowly. He hoped he wasn't playing with fire.

"I really don't want to talk about it, but if Anchin wants to know, you have to come to my room and ask. I don't want others to hear." She explained.

"Ah, okay. I'll take you up on that offer sometime." Andrew said, carefully leaving the statement open-ended.

"Okay, Anchin just say when you want to, and I prepare some tea and snacks for you."

"Now, Senpai we have to be going, or we're going to be late," Mash told Andrew.

"Right, Kouhai. Lead the way." He replied.

"Just follow me Senpai we need to go up to the first floor of the conference room." And so Andrew followed his Kouhai and dragon girl to where Roman was holding the meeting. This time though they went the opposite way they went to the dining hall. Going up a single flight of stairs and soon after entering what Andrew would call the standard business conference room with the long table and chairs. Inside the room were all of Andrew's current Servants along with of course Dr. Roman and Da Vinci.

"Thank you for picking up Andrew, Mash, and Kiyohime. Please take a seat." Roman instructed.

Andrew did as instructed and took the nearest empty seat. "So, I'm guessing we're going to go over what happened in France?"

Kiyohime sat next to him with Mash on the other side. Though to his right was Mozart with Marie next to him. On the other side were Cu, Lily, Kojiro, and Gilles.

Roman coughed a bit before he began speaking. "A little bit, now as you all know France now dubbed The Wicked Dragon Hundred Years' War Singularity. Has had its Grail retrieved thanks to the efforts of all you. And due to that, the Counter Force has now begun it's restoration of History to what is acceptable, so the good news is that the damage by the Dragon Witch is being reversed to what it was before."

"So we saved that part of history, good," Andrew said. "Guess that means it was worth it then, huh."

"Yes, but we have still other six Great Singularities to correct, so they do not cause damage to human history. And to warn you all from the data Da Vinci has gathered only one need to succeed. Now we are getting SHEBA to locate the next Singularity as we speak and get the space-time coordinates for it. But that can take some time, this time about a month out time." Roman explained.

"Why is that Mr. Archiman?" Marie asked.

"This one of those non-linear things? Where it's more like a tapestry than a river?" Andrew asked.

"Kinda from out point of time, the Singularities have already happened. And the only reason we are safe is because of the energy generated by CHALDEA, which makes a special field around the facility that kept us from being destroyed along with the rest of modern civilization. We're Rayshifting to right before what caused the break to happen. Singularities are hard to explain, but they are pockets of space-time disconnected but still connected to the timeline and Human Order. Did I give an analogy to what they were before to you Andrew I can't quite remember if I did?" Dr. Roman asked.

"I think you kinda did before? From what you've said I've gathered that their like pieces of history torn out of the proper point and left empty, and we're going in and patching it back together, or something?" Andrew said, going for the best way he had of thinking about it.

"Yes quite right, now the Incineration is more like taking that piece of fabric setting it on fire and placing it back in the hole and burning the rest along with it. And now to answer your question your Majesty is going to take so long because each Singularity has something called a Human Foundation Value attached to them. The higher the value, the more important that era is to human history and the Human Order. But it is also that Value that clouds our ability to pinpoint them." Roman explained.

"I didn't understand it, but I appreciate it," Mare said.

"...Thank you, your Majesty."

"So, if you think it's going to take a month, what are we supposed to do in the meantime?" Andrew asked. "We only have so many Saint Quartz to summon more Servants with, and right now the only Caster who can do any sort of R&D is Da Vinci." He looked over to Mozart and Cu Chulainn. "No offense."

"None taken Master." The two Casters answered at the same time.

"Don't worry about that Andrew I'm working on a solution to that. And I'm going to need you down in my Workshop after you have breakfast." Da Vinci said.

"Right, now as for what you can do in the meantime is workout, practice, play games, interact with your Servants Andrew. We do have a fully functioning leisure room for you to use. Latest game systems and games." Dr. Roman offered up.

"...You know, I kinda thought we would just be thrown into Singularity after Singularity until they were all gone." Andrew said. "I'll have to check out that leisure room later."

"That sounds incredibly stressful Andrew, I think you would break under that. No, thankfully we don't have to suffer that. And your new armband does have a map of Chaldea on it so you can use to find it."

"Oh good, I don't need an escort anytime I want to go anywhere new. That's nice." Andrew said.

"Now do any of you have questions to ask? Yes, Cu?"

"Do have enough booze and food to last for how long fixing all of these singularities is going to take?" The Irishman asked.

"Yes, thankfully Chaldea has three years worth of food in magical storage. In case of if there ever was a time Chaldea was cut of from human contact. Rather handy right now if I do say so myself. Now any other questions?" the doctor asked. "No okay, then I will call you all if there is any development with getting the location of the next Singularity."

Xxx

"So, Da Vinci what did you want me for?" Andrew asked the inventor as he was back down in the woman's Workshop alongside Mash. As Andrew did need her shield to summon more Servants.

"Quite simple to fix a little problem that I discovered while you were in France." Da Vinci explained.

"...Which one?" Andrew asked. There were quite a few issues in the Singularity.

"The language one for starters." She said. "So, I'm going to have you put this helmet on your head that is going to upload all languages into your head so that you can understand them." She said holding up something that looked like a motorcycle helmet with gizmos tapped to it. Like it was something she had thrown together in less than a minute.

"I know you're a Servant-boosted genius, and all, but have you...at least tested this?" Andrew said nervously, not liking how cobbled together it looked.

"Nope, but don't worry your brain won't melt… at least I hope it won't." She said as she came closer to Andrew with the helmet.

"H-hey, you can't just say something like that and expect me to do it anyway!" Andrew said frantically as he backed away from the Caster. "Remember, if I die my Command Seals go with me, which mean Servants go bye-bye!"

"You're fun to mess with Andrew." Da Vinci said as she threw the helmet away. "That was just a joke. You need to wear this necklace around your neck, and it will translate any auditory language for you. Though sometimes the mouth movements aren't going to match." She held out a plain bronze necklace.

Andrew gave her his most deadpan expression as he took the necklace. "Right. Troll. Forgot about that." He put the necklace on easily, being a different size to his cross. "Thank you though."

"You're welcome now that thing was rather easy to make as it contains a piece of the Tower of Babel, giving you the ability to speak and hear any language except the Universal One and High-Speed Divine Words." Da Vinci explained.

Andrew's mind ground to a stop. "You...just happened to have...a piece of the Tower of Babel? _The_ Tower of Babel?"

"Yes, it's amazing what kind of legitimate magical artifacts one can buy on the internet beneath the Association's noses. But that piece was still hard to track down so don't lose it." Da Vinci warned Andrew poking a finger on his chest.

"Yeah, I'll take good care of it," Andrew said. "What you said earlier, you implied there was something else?"

"Not sure what you mean, Andrew please be clear."

"Well, you said 'for starters' earlier about the issues that you had something to fix with? Which to me implied there was something else."

"Right, yes your combat abilities and maneuverability in Singularities. As that Mystic Code, you wore I'm was a piece of mass-produced crap. So I'm working on a new one for you that is much better with many more spells for you to use. For to be honest Andrew teaching you proper Magecraft would be a waste of time."

"I feel like I should be insulted, but I understand what you mean." He replied. "But if you're working on something like that, I do have a few suggestions…"

"I'm glad you do Andrew for simply Magecraft is complicated and takes years of study to go beyond the absolute basics, and there is a fact that you're too old to learn most things, as to use Magecraft is to believe absolutely that the Unicorn is very real, to borrow some modern literature terms. And doing so from a young age is simply better, as for when you get older you have certain ways to think the world works. That you won't be able to discard no matter what. Now enough about that, you said you had suggestions?" She asked.

Andrew nodded and took a napkin covered in pen notes out of his pocket. "Yeah, I kind of wrote down some stuff during breakfast that I thought would be pretty useful. Like some way to launch runestones better than I can throw them-I have a few ideas for the how- or maybe some kind of freezing spell in general to give my Servants an opening, maybe some kind of wyvern-scale scale mail if that would be useful against non-servants -cause I don't want to be in the thick of any Servant combat, but I might need to fight off non-servants- and maybe some kind of knife or other easily hideable weapon that, and maybe we can use Mozart's music through speakers or something, and maybe something that I can use to store mana in between singularities so I have more while we're in there especially now that I know it could be like a month till the next one, and-"

"Andrew please stop you're rambling now." Da Vinci said as she held up a hand.

"Oh. Sorry." Andrew said sheepishly. "That kinda...happens sometimes when I get excited."

"That's fine, but don't worry most of what you suggest I've already decided to integrate into the Mystic Code. Though on a much grander scale. Do you want to see how it's currently going or wait until it's finished?" She asked.

"...That depends on when you think it'll be finished. If its 'soon' then yeah, but if it's not for a while yet I'll just wait for the final product." Andrew responded after a moment.

"Well, I will have it finished before Sheba decodes the next Singularity's location so in about three weeks. I want it to be perfect."

"Ah. In that case, I guess I'll wait to see the finished product then." He said. "Is there anything else Da Vinci? I kind of wanted to go try and Summon some Servants after we were done here."

"No there isn't, but regarding summoning, I will have the first way to summon a Servant besides using Saint Quartz in five days. It takes about a week to make a single one capable of one summoning. I call it a Summoning Ticket. I came up with it after analyzing the composition of Saint Quartz to try and make my own, using leftover Mana and I calculated after a week enough would have been gathered to make one."

Andrew's eyes practically sparkled. "So you're saying we'll be able to get another 6 Servants before the next singularity on top of the ones from Quartz?"

"Yes, how many did you get from France?" Da Vinci asked.

"8, so I've got 10 right now. It's three per summon right?" Andrew responded.

"Congratulation Andrew you can do basic math." Da Vinci had a smirk on her lips.

"Who knew the famed Renaissance Man was so vicious," Andrew said melodramatically.

"I could be if a client annoyed me. I wonder if that started that stupid rumor." She grumbled that last part.

"Which rumor?" Andrew asked, able to think of only _certain_ rumors which didn't seem related.

"That I put secret messages into my paintings, it's just stupid why would I ever do that. A waste of time and it could ruin a good painting."

"Ah, yeah that's a pretty common movie plot nowadays."

Da Vinci's face turned sour. "Oh don't remind me of those, if I ever meet that Dan Brown guy I would slap him silly for writing that stupid book. And worse they turned it into a shitty movie. If could make a wish on the Grail it would be to erase those from existence."

"That seems rather extreme Leonardo." Came Mash making her way into the conversation.

"Right, sorry about the rant, they just make my blood boil. Now didn't you two need to go summon a Servant or two?" Da Vinci asked.

"Right, right we'll be doing that now. Thank you for the translator, Da Vinci." Andrew said.

"Talk to you both later." Da Vinci said turning around and headed to the other side of her Workshop.

"Seeya," Andrew said as he made his way over to the Summoning Room.

Mash followed behind, and the two of them entered the blue room next to Da Vinci's Workshop.

"So, Senpai are you going to summon them all now or spread them out over the month of waiting?" Mash asked as she placed the shield down and got the ritual ready.

"Well, Kouhai I kind of figured I'd summon all three today, so I have the whole month to strategize about their abilities and work on their synergy with everyone else," Andrew responded. "Everything ready?"

"Yes, Senpai everything is ready to go now the fuel is just needed."

"Right." Andrew approached the circle and channeled his prana through the three Quartz in his hand.

The summoning circle lit up, and the first of three Servants were summoned, the cloud of smoke disappeared as the Servant revealed itself. "Servant Assassin Charles-Henri Sanson at your service Master, who do you need to be executed. Ohh- it's you. Are Marie and Mozart here?" Sanson asked.


	18. Kings and Truth

Andrew ignored the Assassins question. "You know, I really should have seen this coming what with how Cu Chulainn got summoned." He said mostly to Mash.

"But he doesn't seem very antagonistic like he did yesterday, Senpai." She responded.

"Are you ignoring me?"

"Ah, right, sorry, where are my manners? Charles, you are now my Servant, which means you'll be fighting to prevent the exact kinds of things the Witch had you fighting _for_." Andrew said to the Assassin. "I do hope you'll cooperate in our endeavors to save human history. And if you act against us again, well…" Andrew deliberately paused off for dramatic effect. "Kiyohime _is_ here."

Andrew saw Sanson's face turn briefly to one of fear. "Please keep that woman away from me thank you very much, Master. But you don't have to worry, the Witch's Madness Enhancement is gone and no longer affecting my thoughts. So, I'm apologizing for my behavior." The executioner apologized.

"Ah, apology accepted. I'm not going to hold you to your actions under _her_ influence." Andrew said before sending out a telepathic 'Come hither' to Marie and Mozart. "On the other hand, I think they're the ones you need to really apologize to."

" _What is it, Master?"_ Came the response from Marie and Mozart.

"I will apologize to Marie, and she will forgive me like she always does. But I will put myself under the Guillotine if I'm ever going to do so to Amadeus." Sanson said.

Andrew sighed. "At the very least, don't be antagonistic to the other Servants," he said aloud. 'I was trying to Summon d'Eon and Jeanne, and instead, I summoned Sanson.' He said telepathically to Marie and Mozart.

" _Great send him up to us. I'm in the middle of baking some of these new modern sweets. And I need a taste tester Mozart won't do it."_ Marie said through the link.

'Alright, if you say so.' Andrew responded; she really was that forgiving apparently. "Charles, Marie wants you to join her in the kitchen. She wants you to taste test some of her sweets." Andrew said aloud.

"Thank you for telling me Master, now where is the kitchen located?" He asked.

"I can help with that," Mash said as she reached into her pocket and pulled out a piece of folded up paper. "This is a physical map of Chaldea I picked up to give to the Servant Senpai summoned. It's a temporary solution until more Communication Armbands can be created by Da Vinci at a later date."

"Thank you Miss," Sanson said as he took the map from Mash's hands. "I will talk to you later Master if I survive this culinary experience," Sanson said.

Andrew winced sympathetically. "She's that bad a cook?"

"No, she is rather good, when she gets going that is, but new stuff gets rather bad sometimes." The Frenchman answered.

"Oh, okay, gotcha," Andrew said before smiling. "Enjoy~."

"I hope so too, now I guess you're going to try and summon more Servants Master?" Sanson asked before he left the room.

Andrew turned back towards the circle. "Right. Gonna try again."

"Then I wish you good luck Master." The executioner left the Summoning Room.

"Ready to try again, Senpai?" Mash asked.

"Yeah, let's give this another whirl," Andrew said, taking out the next three Saint Quartz. As he channeled his prana through them into the circle, his other hand adjusted the necklace Da Vinci had given him; it was still a bit odd wearing two things around his neck at a time.

The circle lit up once again this the light seemed to more intense, Andrew closed his eyes due to the light.

His opened as he heard the voice of the summoned Servant.

"Huhahaha congratulation Master you have wasted all your luck to summon I Gilgamesh King of Heroes." A high and mighty voice spoke. "Summoned in the Class of Archer. Now who are you, my Master?"

Andrew stared dumbfounded at the gold-clad king. "...!" He tried to say something, anything, but what came out could not in any way be referred to as words, or even an attempt at them.

"Oh does my appearance astound you so much that you can not form words? An appropriate response. Now I ask again what your name is Master."

Andrew floundered for a moment before finally pulling himself back together. "I, am Andrew Murphy, Master of Chaldea." He said, surprised at how he managed not to stutter, though he spoke rather meekly despite his words. It was just… difficult not to in the presence of Gilgamesh, especially with everything that meant for Chaldea's operations.

"If that is what you wish to be called I shall let it be so. Now Chaldea how interesting… To fight for mankind's survival and prevent its Incineration and destruction. Yes, this shall entertain me enough for now. I do so hate those that try to mess with my Garden. Now then Demi-Servant do you know which Hero resides within you?" Gilgamesh's attention was turned to Mash.

"No, sir I do not." Andrew could hear the nervosity in his Kouhai's voice.

"I see then, that is a thing you shall discover on your own. I shall not spoil a hero's journey now. Now then Andrew I shall go and taste this places alcohol. If you have something you wish to ask of me, the king shall lend an ear. But I warn you do not abuse my wisdom." Gilgamesh warned.

"Y-yes, King," Andrew said. "Kouhai, give him the map."

"Please, I have no need for such thing. I shall find my own way to the kitchen in which food and drinks lay. Now then Master, a final piece of advice do not use that necklace as a Catalyst again. You will be better off not using it." Gilgamesh said and left the Summoning Room.

A few moments after Gilgamesh had left, once Andrew had metaphorically picked his brain off the floor and put it back, he immediately dialed up Roman on his armband. As soon as it was answered, he spoke. "Roman I was summoning servants, and I just summoned GILGAMESH. Repeating, Gilgamesh, King of Heroes, star of the Epic of Gilgamesh, that Gilgamesh."

" _Yes, I heard what you said, and I know who it is. But what is the problem should you not be happy to have summoned such a powerful hero?"_ Dr. Roman asked.

"I would be if it weren't for the simple fact that Gilgamesh is the oldest Hero known to man, and he has an ego bigger than anything since! I don't think using all three Command Seals at once would even slightly convince him to do something he didn't want to do, so he can practically do whatever he wants; I'm pretty sure I just got downgraded to being a minion!" Andrew responded frantically.

" _Calm down Andrew breath. You're right old kings like him who were regarded as pretty much gods can be troublesome but I think as long as we don't offend him. He will not deliberately be against us. I think he just won't fight against small fries."_ Dr. Roman tried to reassure Andrew.

Andrew shook his head. "No, you don't understand! In the Holy Grail War, he tried to use the Grail to 'cleanse' humanity, and the only thing the Grail itself could to do him was slow him down! The only reason he was stopped was because of-." Andrew had a very, very worrisome revelation. "Oh my god, Lily. He can never know she's here. I don't even want to think about what'll happen if he does…"

" _Wait, Andrew, what are you talking about, and why should we be concerned for Lily?"_

"The Grail War, the 5th Holy Grail War! He was summoned in the previous one, and then somehow stuck around until the 5th one, and the whole time he was super obsessed with Lily's fully grown form which is the same as she looks right now because of Caliburn, and he tried to use the Grail and the mud to cleanse the earth or return it to his day or whatever, and Saber at her full strength could only fend him off for a while Lily's way weaker than that if they fight she'll lose no contest!" Andrew 'explained'.

" _Andrew answer me truthfully have you ever had interactions with Lord Zelretch?"_

Andrew shook his head. "As far as I know, no. The only reason I know who that is is because some people mentioned him online." Andrew realized why he was being asked that. "Oh. Lemme guess. There was no 5th Holy Grail War here."

" _Yes, Andrew I checked the records, and I found out there has only happened one Holy Grail War in Fuyuki City which First Director Aminushphere took part in and won the War. And the FATE system was derived from that Ritual. I don't know who the Servant he used to summon was, as that was a secret he took to his grave. So Andrew how do you know about the events of other Holy Grail Wars?"_ Came the ultimate question from Romani.

Andrew stalled for a moment before deciding to just say fuck it; they had a world to save, and now was the best time, to tell the truth. "Remember how I was confused about that blood donation thing?" He asked, starting out with a question to ease into the truth.

" _Yes, and so far I can find no origin for the information in our Servers it was just like it appeared on it."_

"Yeah, well, there was something else that didn't make sense. When the people from Chaldea came to take me away, I had been home for break." He paused. " _Winter_ break. It was almost New Years 2017 the last time I had checked."

" _How is that possible it's still July… Unless… Your from another Universe is that what you're getting at Andrew?"_

"Yeah. And in that universe, there was a show called Fate/Stay Night about a high schooler who accidentally gets caught up in the Fifth Holy Grail War…"

Xxx

"...and that's everything I know. It's why I wasn't really all that shocked about everything at first; I just kinda thought it was some weird dream." Andrew said, finishing his explanation with a shrug.

" _...Holy Crap. Thank you for telling it to us Andrew and for being so forthcoming. I would probably react the same way you did if that happened to me. For now, we should just keep that information between Da Vinci and us."_ Dr. Roman said.

"Yeah, that's probably for the best," Andrew said, before realizing his Kouhai had been in the room the entire time, almost completely silent. He turned towards her. "And Mash."

"Thank you for telling me Senpai, you look so much more relieved now. And it's really cool that Senpai is from another Universe. But I'm sorry you have to be separated from your family like that. It must have been hurting you a lot."

"Yeah, but really it's no different than the rest of the staff, there's just an extra layer of separation is all," Andrew said, mostly trying to reassure himself.

"Yes, I've seen their faces they all look so worried, while still working so hard. Like you do Senpai." Mash said with a smile, trying to lighten the mood in the room that had turned a bit sour.

Andrew smiled back. "I hope you're, including yourself there, Kouhai. You've been kinda literally carrying this whole operation since Fuyuki. None of our success this far would have been possible without you, but any one of the master Candidates could have been in my place and still make it to this point because _you_ would have been protecting them."

At that Mash's face turned a light shade of red. "To have Senpai praise me like that. Now, don't you want to summon another Servant."

"Ah, but its the truth dear Kouhai," Andrew said. "And I guess I should just summon the third one awhile, and then I can worry about running damage control with the King." He paused. "Actually…" 'Lily, please stay away from the kitchens. I'll explain why in a bit, just stay away from the kitchens for right now,' He said telepathically to said, Saber.

" _Why Master, does it have something to do with those two new Servants you summoned?"_ She responded.

'Yeah, I'll get into more detail a bit later as to why, but stay away from the gold one. He's headed straight for the booze, and I have no idea how he acts when drunk.'

" _Why Master? He is a bit weird patting my head and grinning when he entered the kitchen. Right now he is trying to drink Cu under the table it's rather entertaining to watch."_

"Oh. Oh! Oh, he's not the same incarnation, oh thank god." Andrew said out loud in relief. "Okay, part of the crisis averted. We still have to worry about the ego big enough to block out the sun, but that seems like that'll be all, hopefully." He relayed to Mash and Roman. 'Not what I was expecting, but...just be careful around him.' Andrew said telepathically.

" _I will Master, he looks like the troublesome sort of King that does whatever he wants."_

'Yeah, that about sums him up. I'll let you go now, just be careful.' He said.

" _Again I will Master, talk to you later."_

'Talk to you then.' Aloud he said, "Alright, now that that's sorta dealt with, let's do the last summoning for today." He said, cracking his fingers before remembering what Gilgamesh had said and removed the necklace Da Vinci had given him and gently laying it down as far away from the circle as he could. As he did, he had a thought. "Wait, if that worked, what if…" He approached the Circle, Saint Quartz in one hand, and his other on the necklace which had been his own for years, the silver cross he'd worn near-constantly. "Let's hope this works…" He said as he channeled his prana through the Quartz and into the Circle.

The circle lit up for a third time this day, bringing forth a new Servant. The standard smoke appeared and quickly dissipated to reveal the summoned Servant.

"Servant Lancer Vlad Tepes the Third at your service Master. And I'm thankful for you Summoning me in this form I did not think it was possible to be summoned like this outside of Wallachia." The King of Wallachia spoke.

"Ah, thank you for answering my call," Andrew said a bit disappointed he hadn't summoned Jeanne, but nonetheless, he smiled at his new Servant and held out his hand. "It is an honor to have one such as yourself assist in saving Human History." He said, thinking about how he had acted despite the Witch's influence and his actions as the Lancer of Black.

"Ah, nice to have proper respect rather than the fake exhibited by my former Master. Now then might I ask for your name my Master." Vlad asked.

"Right, my apologies, I am Andrew Murphy, Master of Chaldea," Andrew responded, and then remembered he had Stat-o-Vision and used it on his newly summoned Lancer.

 **True Name:** Vlad Tepes III

 **Class:** Lancer

 **Master:** Andrew Murphy

 **Parameters:**

Strength: B

Endurance: B

Agility: A

Mana: A

Luck: D

Noble Phantasm: A+

 **Class Skills:**

Magic Resistance: B

 **Personal Skills:**

Demonic Defender of the State: EX

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Kazikli Bey: Lord of Execution(Anti-Army): B

Legend of Dracula: The Succession of Blood(Anti-Unit(Self)): A+ [Sealed]

"Ah, pardon me for asking, but what does your personal skill do?" Andrew asked of the Count.

"It allows me to create an area that enhances my strength like that of Mad Enhancement and use of my Noble Phantasm. Now, Master, might I ask who my fellow Servant on your right is?" The King asked.

"I'm Mash Kyrielight. I'm Senpai's Demi-Servant of the Shielder Class." Mash answered.

"How appropriate a Servant of the shield to protect our Master. Now is there someplace where I can use as my personal room in this facility?"

"Right, Mash do the maps you have show which rooms are available?" Andrew asked of his Kouhai, as he didn't actually know.

"Yes, the maps are self-updating, so it will show which rooms belong to who, the map on your Armband will show it to Senpai. Here is a map for you your majesty." Mash said as she handed the impaler the magic map.

"Thank you, young Mash. Now I'm going to find a room for myself. I shall join you for lunch later Master after I have conversed with my fellow Servants here. Perhaps some will be interesting conversation partners." The Servant clad in black pondered out loud.

"I have no doubt that the will, but if you head to the kitchen be careful, two of my Servants were having a drinking contest, and I don't know how either of them are as drunks," Andrew warned Vlad.

"Ah, a classic showdown between warriors, might I ask who they are so that I can show them how a true king drinks." Vlad boasted.

"...Ireland's Child of Light, Cu Chulainn, and Babylonia's King of Heroes, Gilgamesh." Andrew said, slightly disappointed that apparently most of his Servants seemed to be heavy drinkers.

His answer made the Romanian king's eyes go wide. "The king of heroes? Truly a worthy opponent. Still, such a disappointment that both are pagans."

"Yeah," Andrew said absentmindedly. "You know what, let's head to the kitchens right now. Everyone else seems to already be there, and I'm still feeling the effects of yesterday."

"That seems like a good idea Senpai. I kinda want to taste what Marie is cooking." Mash said.

"Careful, from what Sanson said the first few batches are pretty bad," Andrew said.

"Then I will help, I think I'm good at cooking," Mash said.

"Oh, I didn't know you could cook Kouhai. I fancy myself to be pretty good at making food, too." Andrew said faux-haughtily.

"Then I hope to have a taste at a later date Master," Vlad said.

"...Actually, that gives me an idea."

Xxx

The sound of yelling could be heard as Andrew, and his two Servants entered the dining hall.

The three of them were met with the sight of most of Chaldea's male staff yelling. "Drink, drink drink."

As in the middle of the hall, a table had been set up where Cu and Gilgamesh now clad in that outfit he had from UBW, along with Lily drank large kegs of what Andrew presumed to be alcohol.

The emptied their current kegs. But after a second they did Cu, and Gilgamesh collapsed with Lily standing on the table victorious over the two male Servants.

"And the winner is Arturia Pendragon." Announced Gilles who had taken up the role of the judge.

"Ha, you're both idiots for trying to drink a dragon under the table. Hey, Master you going to join." Lily spoke her speech a little slurred.

"Hell no," Andrew said, arms crossed in front of him in an X. "I don't want my liver to explode the first day I drink."

"Yeah, you probably die from drinking single drop of this. Gilly here brought it out his hole, 100% pure Asgardian Mead. Strong stuff."

"Phrasing!" Andrew said, Lily, blushing somewhat. "And with the way you're talking about it, that stuff could probably kill an elephant."

"It probably could, but hey I'm a dragon, and we are cheaters. But anyway, you summoned another Servant?" Drunk Lily asked.

"Right, this is our first Lancer, Vlad Tepes, ruler of Wallachia," Andrew said with a grandiose gesture towards said Lancer.

"Right I recognize him now, the one Jeanne Alter summoned as a Berserker. Happy to see you all non-vampire." Lily greeted her fellow royal from her table.

"And I'm happy to not be that. So, Master, you encountered a version of me under the influence of _that._ " He spoke that last part with extreme hatred.

"Yes," Andrew said. "And I won't hold you to your actions while under the Witch's influence in forcing that upon you. I can see how much you despise it." He smiled at the Lancer. "Yet, despite the influence of both that and the Witch, this you still managed to shine through."

"Of course, that was probably because that me had been summoned with it active. Now let's not speak more about that. I want to taste some good food and wine." Vlade spoke, as he made his way over to where food was being served. The place did serve almost twenty-four-seven. So that ones working at different hours could always get appropriate food. Mash had explained that Chaldea had managed upon some Brownies that made food for the staff. They were those things House Elf's had been based off when she went into further explanation of them.

"Hello Andrew, Mash." Came the voice of Mozart from the other end of the room where he was sitting with a grumpy looking Sanson.

"Bonjour," Andrew said with no attempt at an accent. "I hope it hasn't been as rowdy back here as it was out there."

"No worry a little bit of magic, and they are quite as a mouse. As you might have noticed." And he was right Andrew did notice the noise from the others went way down as he and Mash approached the French table.

"That seems rather useful," Andrew said. "Actually, that reminds me, Mozart you should talk to Da Vinci at some point about your music, she can probably whip up something to amp it up."

"Please Master if you suggest I go to that hag, I know a tune that can make you have instant diarrhea."

"Whoa whoa whoa take it easy there Wolfgang I was just making a suggestion! She's the main (only) R&D we got right now, so I'm trying everything I can think of you know?" Andrew said rapidly.

"Oh don't take him seriously Master, Mozy knows he gets in trouble with me if did such a thing. He just doesn't like others telling him how he needs to do his music." Marie said as she came through the kitchen door holding a large plate in her hand. "Now, I did something simple this time and looked at some easy to do recipes. So how would you all like some muffins?"

"Ooh, what type?" Andrew said.

"I made them out of something called Oreo. The Brownies had these fun little cooking books that said how you could make things out of various candies." Marie explained.

"Oreo...muffin?" Andrew said, eyes widening. "Yes, please!"

"Glad to see that someone's excited to taste. I got a little help from the little guys so there should be no mistake with these." She put the plate on the table. Andrew could smell that they came fresh from the oven.

Practically instantly Andrew had taken one and carefully bit into the hot muffin. And then froze. A single tear rolled down his face. "This...this is the best muffin I've ever had."

"Glad you liked it, Andrew, now the rest of you dig in," Marie said, and soon the three other Servants at the table took and ate one of the muffins too.

The vote of quality was one of delicious yesness.

xxx

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	19. Breakdown, Breakdown

"So, Sanson. We didn't really get to see you in action back in France; what can you actually do?" Andrew asked, trying to learn more about one of his new Servants.

The addressed Servant spoke after finishing eating the bite he had taken out of his muffin. "My Skills are geared towards dealing as much damage against Servant and enemies that have an Evil Alignment." He answered.

"Oh, so your an Anti-Evil Servant then. What about your Noble Phantasm? I'm assuming it has something to do with decapitation?"

"You would be correct about that my Noble Phantasm summons a Guillotine that is able to instant kill those that don't possess a strong heart. So it is rather useless against those that can be considered true heroes. Though if they had been executed in life their chances of escaping will be greatly lowered."

"So, morbid Sanson."

"Be quiet Amadeus." Sanson took another bite out of his muffin.

"...So, against non Servants, your Noble Phantasm can work pretty well right?" Andrew asked.

"Yes, most will die a second after it has been deployed."

"Considering all the wyverns that were in France, that seems like it could be pretty useful if it becomes a recurring thing Grail Holders just do," Andrew said.

"I can agree with you on that Master. I'm more useful in a fight than the idiot sitting beside me."

"Oy!"

"Now, now you two I want no fighting here."

"Yes, Marie." Mozart and Sanson answered simultaneously.

Andrew chuckled. "With how you two act you'd think Marie was the Master of you two and not me."

"Sorry, Andrew it's just that those two have always acted like that when we were children, and into our older years. It just seems natural to continue like we did before." Marie answered as she took a bite out of her own goods.

"I never expected you three to have such a relationship to each other. Such a thing was never mentioned in history books." Mash said.

"There are a lot of things such books don't speak of Lady Mash. It is not public knowledge that I had any relationship what the modern would call the supernatural or occult." Mozart said.

"Yes, you practice music based Magecraft."

"Yes, though not a the level of those stuck ups in the Clock Tower always raining on my parade. Now speaking of Magecraft. What do you practice Master and Mash? I'm a little curious." Mozart asked.

"Oh, I'm not a magus. I didn't even know magic and stuff was real until a few days ago." Andrew said.

"Yes, Senpai was a part of the civilian group that Chaldea called upon that had high Master and Rayshift compatibility with Senpai having the highest in both, surpassing even the Magi we contracted such as the A-Team," Mash spoke.

"Oh, that reminds me, are the other Master candidates doing any better?" Andrew asked.

"They are still all in suspended animation Senpai. So they all won't succumb to their injuries. Some have been healed a bit, but are unfortunately in a coma due to the trauma sustained physically and spiritually." The Shielder answered.

"Oh. That's unfortunate." Andrew said. He hadn't really been expecting any of their conditions to have changed for the better, but some part of him didn't want to be the keystone of the entire operation to save human history.

"Yes, what a tragedy you all experienced, but do not fall into despair we have a mission to accomplish do we not?" Asked a voice from behind, Andrew turned around to see Vlad standing close to their table, he was holding a glass of wine in his hand.

"Ah, Vlad, I hadn't realized you were there," Andrew said. "We do have our mission, but we also have about a month until we can actually do anything about it, so I'm trying to figure out anything and everything I can to increase our chances of success." He motioned in the general direction of Gilgamesh and Cu's unconscious forms. "And now that guy's thrown all of my previous ideas out the window just by existing; anything we can come up with he's already got, and I'm pretty sure he's not willing to share." He shuddered. "And he really doesn't like 'fakers.'"

"Yes, the King of Heroes is truly a powerful piece to have on the table. You do speak like a true Master, seeing all possible moves that can take. But if there is truly a month until we go to the next of these Singularities, I can actually indulge in my hobbies." The Wallachian King spoke.

"Hobbies?" Andrew asked.

"Yes, it comes as a surprise, but I had a hobby before my life turned into never ending bloodbath. I like to sew and do embroideries." Vlad answered.

"Oh no I meant that as in I wanted to hear about them," Andrew said. "But you sew too?"

"Yes, I find it rather relaxing as you can see I'm quite good at it made these clothes myself." He said pulling at his collar.

"Ooh, we need to talk shop sometime then! It'd be really interesting to see the techniques from your time and compare them to the ones I've learned." Andrew said enthusiastically.

"Oh, my you know how to sew and cook Senpai." Came the surprised voice of Mash.

"I would ask if you were a man Master, those sound like something a woman would do." Said, Mozart.

"Shush," Andrew said, making a shushing motion towards Mozart. "Before coming to Chaldea, I figured myself a bit of a renaissance man. Of course, now that I've met _the_ renaissance man I'm just a Jack-of-all-trades in training."

"Oh is The Leonardo Da Vinci here? And you should be proud of those Master, women enjoy a man with many talents." Vlad laughed as he said the last part.

"Yeah, Da Vinci is the only Servant in Chaldea who isn't mine. If you talk to her, be careful she's a bit of a troll." Andrew said.

"She?" Vlad asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Ah, right, forgot you're brand-new new, sorry. When Da Vinci was summoned, despite being a man in life, took on the form of the Mona Lisa." Andrew explained.

"Ah, I see geniuses have their quirks. Perhaps I shall strike up a conversation with her later." Vlad said. "Now I bid you farewell, for now, I want to get a good room before Gilgamesh wakes up and decided to take the best one." The Count left their space in the dining hall.

Andrew glanced back over to Gilgamesh. When he had been summoned he forgot to check, so he used his Stat-o-Vision on the King of Heroes.

[spoiler=Gilgamesh]

 **True Name:** Gilgamesh

 **Class:** Archer

 **Master:** Andrew Murphy

 **Parameters:**

Strength: B

Endurance: C

Agility: C

Mana: B

Luck: A

Noble Phantasm: EX

 **Class Skills:**

Independent Action: A+

Magic Resistance: E

 **Personal Skills:**

Divinity: B(A+)

Charisma: A+

Golden Rule: A

Collector: EX

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Gate of Babylon: The King's Treasure(Anti-Unit): E-A++

Enuma Elish: The Star of Creation that Split Heaven and Earth(Anti-World): EX

[/spoiler]

Anti-World sounded like it would kind of go against literally everything they were working towards, so Andrew quietly decided (or rather, hoped) that Gilgamesh wouldn't use it. If he remembered correctly, it was only versus a 'worthy opponent' that the sword/drill/club/whatever-it-was was used, so he hoped that part was true for this Gilgamesh as well. But those skills…

"Hey, apropos of nothing, does anyone know what the Golden Rule skill does? I think I have the gist of it but I'm not sure, and I feel like waking up the King to ask him would be a bad idea." Andrew said to the Servants currently at the table.

"I think if I remember correctly the Skill concerns how much wealth a Heroic Spirit has collected during their life," Marie answered.

"Mmm. So as a Servant, would that mean they have access to that wealth?"

"Yes, if you had summoned Siegfried, he would be able to access that treasure of gold he stole from Fafnir when he slew the dragon." This time it was Sanson answering the question.

"Hmm. So then, the King over there probably has access to his own wealth…" Andrew said, an idea beginning to form.

"He is Gilgamesh he would probably have all the treasure in the world," Sanson said.

"Well yeah, he has the prototype for like every Noble Phantasm ever," Andrew said. "I mean actual resources; not gold, but materials for building or blueprints or something. And we already know he has at least alcohol, so he might even have some infinite food generator or something. Basically, what I'm saying is that Gilgamesh could prove to become our most valuable source of resources." Andrew said enthusiastically.

"I wouldn't know about that Master, you have to ask the King of Heroes himself." Sanson pointed to the knocked out king.

Andrew practically deflated. "Yeah, that's the problem. He's got an ego big enough to have its own gravity, and he doesn't like imitations. Convincing him to help like that is going to be next to impossible." Andrew said with a sigh. "But it would be so damn worth it."

"Maybe you should try Senpai. We are dealing with the incineration human history, he might be more lenient than you make him out to be." Mash suggested.

"...I really hope you're right Kouhai." Andrew said, some hope returning. "But I'm going to need you and maybe a few other Servants with me when I talk to him about it just in case."

"I'll be their Senpai."

"And I won't," Mozart said. "I like living."

"...Could you at least provide some soothing background music?" Andrew asked half-jokingly.

"Yes, I have a nice selection for your funeral."

"Mozart."

"Yes, Marie."

Andrew sighed. "Hopefully one cute Kouhai will be enough then."

"Senpai!" Mash said, her face flushed.

Andrew realized what he had said and quickly tried to cover his tracks. "W-well, I mean, it's true, and you're pretty convincing, so m-maybe you can win him over with cuteness?"

And with that Mash had turned into a tomato in Andrew's eyes. Her hands over her face in embarrassment.

"I really should feel jealous here Master you have such a way with women then are you going to bed young Mash?" Mozart asked his eyebrows wiggling. "Or does that honor go to Kiyohime first?"

Andrew, with no hesitation, threw what was left of his muffin directly at Mozart's face with full force.

All he got was in response was a deep hearty laugh from the musician.

"I'm going to my room now Senpai, I have reports to fill out talk to you later," Mash said and quickly left the table in a hurry.

Andrew couldn't even get out a habitual 'seeya' before she was out of the dining hall. He turned towards Mozart, glaring. "Really?" He said. " _Really?_ She probably thinks I'm some horndog now!"

"Don't be mad Master, It was all in good jest, I didn't believe she would react that way. But anyway I believe we had a good talk. And don't you have things to do Master?"

"...Sanson, you have my full permission to tell Mozart your opinions on him." Andrew said.

"With full pleasure Master," Sanson answered.

Xxx

"So, Master you want to speak to me?" Sasaki Kojiro asked.

A few hours had passed since the events in the dining hall happened, so Andrew had decided to go to talk some of his Servants to get to know them better. He had decided to start with the Assassin he summoned in France as Andrew barely could say having had a conversation that lasted more than five minutes with him.

He had gone and tried to talk to Mash about what Mozart had said, but she hadn't answered his call or him knocking on her door. She probably needed some more time for herself at the moment.

And so he was here now, inside of the samurai's room.

Which was almost identical to his own, but the bed was a futon instead of a regular western bed.

"Yeah, I figured it would be best to get to know everyone since we'll be saving the world together," Andrew said. "Like, do you have any hobbies?"

"And that seems like a good use of your time Master as we have a long time until the next Singularity. As for hobbies I never really had one, what I did besides farming for a living, was practicing my sword skills to cut down that swallow." He answered.

"Oh, okay," Andrew said. "...Actually, can you use Tsubame Gaeshi for me? When you fought d'Eon I only kind of got to see it, and from what I can tell you're breaking space, and that's awesome."

Kojiro smiled. "Glad that you think so Master. And you would be quite right, then I do it I'm able to have my sword exist in three places at the same time. It would be no laughing matter to call it the ultimate sword technique. Wish I was able to use it against Musashi."

"Musashi?" Andrew inquired.

"He is the man who was supposed to be my rival, or rather I his rival in his legend. But what you might not know Master is that I'm not actually Sasaki Kojiro." Kojiro said.

"Eh?" Came the noise of surprise from Andrew. He kind of remembered this from the anime, but he wasn't 100% previously. "What do you mean?"

"Sasaki Kojiro was a fictional character created by others to match Musashi that person did truly not exist. I took up the name and role as Sasaki Kojiro, then I was summoned by a Witch in another world another Holy Grail, the memories aren't quite clear I remember being attacked by bugs and something consuming my heart, nothing more. I'm just a Wraith whose technique matches those performed by Sasaki Kojiro." He explained. "But the Throne of Heroes seemingly didn't care for that, and it recorded that instance of me, and so I can now always be summoned. But for some reason, I have a hidden anti-dragon trait now."

"Huh," Andrew said, taking that all in. "...Wait, when you say swallows, you do mean the small birds right? Not something else that it's the closest word for?"

"No, I do mean a swallow. Slippery little things able to detect slight movements in the air." Kojiro answered.

"Oh, okay. I just thought maybe they were tiny dragons and that's why you have that trait or something like that." Andrew said.

"No, if they were they would have been spitting fire at me."

"That may not be the best litmus, considering the Wyverns didn't seem to either."

"You're right Master, now that I think back they did just try to bite and scratch us."

"Yeah, exactly, so maybe what you called 'swallows' might have been some weird Phantasmal Species or something that were little bird dragons."

"Perhaps or some sort of crossbreed Japan at that time of me being alive was still ripe with mysticism, with Youkai and Kamis wandering the Land of the Sunrise."

"That would make sense to, I hadn't really thought about how stuff like Youkai are a real historical thing," Andrew said. "That means Momotaro probably happened too…" He said more to himself.

"The peach boy? Yes, he could have existed, but it was after my lifetime so I can't answer that question." Kojiro said.

"Ah, right, sorry. I only really know two Japanese myths, and it's a bit weird thinking they probably happened." Andrew said. "Actually, now that I think about, it's not as weird as Jeanne d'Arc having an evil twin made by the holy grail, or that Gilgamesh owns everything humanity can ever make."

"Yes, I believe the saying goes that truth is stranger than fiction. Though if you wish to discuss Japanese Legend Kiyohime would be a better source, or perhaps you manage to summon another Japanese hero. The Throne and the knowledge granted to me by the FATE System can only go so far."

"Ah, yeah, you're probably right," Andrew said. "...Actually, I think I might go do the former later. But first, you gotta show me Tsubame Gaeshi." Andrew said, almost pleadingly.

"If you so wish Master." Kojiro stood up and unsheathed his blade. The impossible long katana its length being one-fifth of that of the length of the room. "Hiken: Tsubame Gaeshi." The swordsman announced his attack and Andrew watched as seemingly from nowhere three swords existed at once. "So, does it impress you, Master?"

"Ho _ly_ shit that was incredible," Andrew said breathlessly. It was one thing seeing something like that animated; it was another thing entirely to watch it up close with one's own eyes as it actually happens.

"It is isn't it. It's one of the few things I have actual pride in. Now I will say this was a delightful conversation Master. I hope we can talk together at some other time, you have no need to rush. I understand that some Servants crave more attention than others. But we all know that the mission we have answered to is the most important thing." Kojiro said as he sheathed his sword and sat back down on the futon.

"Yeah, you're right. I'll leave you be then." Andrew said.

"But do tell if you manage to summon Musashi at some point."

Andrew smiled at the Assassin. "Of course. You'll be the first to know." He said aloud. 'Kiyohime, I think I'm going to take you up on that offer about your legend.' He said telepathically to said, Berserker.

" _Oh, yes Anchin I will be waiting for you."_

Xxx

"Come inside Anchin," Kiyohime said dressed in her kimono as she stood in the door to her room.

"Oh, thank you Kiyohime," Andrew said as he followed her into the room; he didn't think she would have been waiting like that.

"It was in the same style as the others, but it was bigger than Kojiro's but a little less than Andrew's. And just like with Sasaki's room the bed had been replaced by a futon, one that was twice as large as Sasaki's in width.

She also had a table with two chairs and on the table stood a canteen along with two cups. "I managed to get us some tea before you arrived Anchin." She said as the both of them sat down.

"Thank you, Kiyohime," Andrew said almost automatically. "I've never really been big on tea, but I'll try some since you went through the trouble of getting it."

"Oh, then I get something you like next time Anchin. It's improper for a wife to not satisfy her husband." Kiyohime said.

"Well, we aren't even boyfriend-girlfriend yet, so don't jump that far ahead," Andrew said gently.

"Sorry Anchin, I just want to be the best for you. So, you wanted to know about me?"

"Yeah, I don't know anything about your legend. Like why you've decided to call me 'Anchin' instead of Andrew." He said.

"It's because you are, you have the same presence as the one I loved, so you much be one of his reincarnations." She answered.

"I don't...really...believe in reincarnation…" Andrew said with trepidation. Every time he spoke around Kiyohime it felt like walking through a field of landmines as he tried not to accidentally lie and to carefully avoid the truth of his origin; the truth of why he was pretty damn sure he couldn't be the reincarnation of anyone from this world.

"Oh, I thought you were a Magus Anchin and knew that ordinary Souls go through reincarnation after they die. At least that's what all the modern magus stuff I got from the summoning inside my head says."

"Oh, so is it a direct one-for-one deal or is it more like recycling where its broken down and the raw material gets used for the next one?" Andrew said, curious how things worked here.

"It's saying it the second one that all Souls go to that Root thing that is the source of everything, their Souls get scrubbed of everything down to the Origin and then released back into the World. Wow, that's a lot of big words. Heh, I'm so smart now."

"Congratulations," Andrew said semi-sincerely. "But, if only the Origin gets reused, doesn't that mean that two people with two different Origins from two different time periods couldn't possibly be the same person?" He asked, trying to imply he wasn't 'Anchin.'

"Ugh, now my head is hurting, can't you ask Da Vinci about magic stuff. Now then Anchin you wanted to hear about me?" Kiyohime asked utterly deflecting what Andrew had just said.

"Right, yeah, I wanted to know more about you and your past. Please don't take this the wrong way, but of the Servants, we've encountered so far you're the only one whose legend I've never heard of."

"Well I was just an ordinary girl when I first saw Anchin, and I fell in love with him at first sight, but he rejected me when I confessed to him. But he promised he would meet with me after he did his business at the Kumano Temple. But he broke his promise and ran away from me. I got so angry that I was suddenly a dragon. I chased him down by I accidentally burned alive while he was trapped inside a bell. You won't run from me again will you Anchin, my Master?" Kiyohime asked.

Andrew looked her dead in the eyes as he spoke. " _I_ have never run away from you, ever." He said, trying very, very, very hard to ignore the threat.

"Of course you haven't you're a brand new Anchin. Hug time." She said. And suddenly Andrew found himself hugged by the dragon girl.

He froze completely still. "Kiyohime, if you want a hug you ask for it you don't just do it." He said slowly.

"Oh, sorry Anchin I will remember next time, but drink your tea before it gets cold." She said as she took her place in her seat again and drank some of her own.

Andrew only picked up the cup. "This is _just_ tea, right? Nothing extra added in?"

"Why, would ruin good tea? If I wanted to seduce you Anchin, I wouldn't be wearing clothes."

Andrew hastily drank the tea, mostly to hide his face at that image. "K-Kiyohime, for no real reason, I h-hope you don't mind me asking, but how old are you?" He said, looking down at the cup and the table.

"I'm 12 years old and perfectly fertile for you." She answered.

Andrew immediately shot out of the chair and went to the door. "Nope, nope, nope, nope, nope, nope, nope, _nope._ "

"Anchin, Anchin where are you going?" Yelled Kiyohime as Andrew ran down the hallway.

Andrew, operating on autopilot, bolted towards the nearest place he knew.

And burst straight into Mash's room.

Said, girl was currently on her computer typing stuff.

"Senpai!" She yelled in surprise as she now looked at Andrew.

"Kouhai I need you to keep her away!" Andrew half-whispered, pointing at the door. He could _feel_ Kiyohime rapidly approaching.

"Keep who away Senpai?" She asked.

"Its Kiyohime and she was telling me her legend, and she's _12,_ so I bolted, and now she's probably going to kill me or something!" Andrew said frantically.

"... Wait that can't be right." Mash responded.

"What? Why?"

"I was checking on the legends on the Servants you summoned Senpai and Kiyohime can't be twelve as years went by between her meeting Anchin and her killing him inside the bell." She answered.

"Yeah, well, when I asked her that's what she said, and most legends don't say King Arthur was a girl, so, please! Help me!"

"Anchin, where are you I'm sorry what did I do wrong, I'm sorry. What did I do wrong?" Came the crying voice of Kiyohime.

"Senpai."

"Oh no that's even worse," Andrew said. "It would have been one thing if she was angry, but… shit."

"You're terrible." Came Mash cold voice. "Go apologize to her and we then get this mess sorted out."

"...Yeah, yeah I should do that…" Andrew said. "But could you at least be nearby just in case? She has Madness Enhancement EX. There's no telling how she'll act."

"I go with you Senpai," Mash said as she left her chair. And walked over to Andrew who was standing in the door still.

Andrew sighed before stepping out of the room. "Kiyohime, I'm over here." He said a bit louder than his normal speaking voice.

But it was enough as within a second Kiyohime was in front of Andrew tears ran down her face. "I'm sorry Anchin, I'm not going to make you run again. I'm sorry…" Her words turned into sobs.

Andrew brought Kiyohime into a hug and tried to soothe her. "It's okay Kiyo, you did nothing wrong. That was all my fault. I'm the one who's sorry. I'm sorry for hurting you like that Kiyohime instead of explaining. I'm sorry." He said softly.

Andrew continued to hug the girl until he heard her stop crying.

"Kiyohime why did you tell Senpai that you were twelve years old?" Mash asked as the two broke apart.

"That's when I met Anchin for the first time, twelve winters had passed since I had been born that's what dad and mother said," Kiyohime answered.

"And how old were you when you met Anchin again?" Mash asked.

"...Twelve?" This time her answer that reeked of uncertainty.

"...I think she meant when you saw him the second time." Andrew said softly.

"... I was still twelve."

"Kiyohime how long did it take to walk to Kumano and back from where you lived?" Mash asked another question.

"A winter." She answered with certainty this time.

"Senpai I think that Kiyohime is actually not twelve, but her memories of those years of her life are bit jumbled up due to her Mad Enhancement. I'm guessing closer to 14 than 13 still."

"I guess that makes sense. EX anything has to have some side effects…" Andrew said. "But either way she's still in the 'nope' range." He said firmly.

"Why Anchin? I'm a mature woman, I bleed from where before I did that. So aren't I old enough for me to be your wife?"

Andrew shook his head. "I'm sorry Kiyohime, but times have changed, and I, personally as I am, absolutely refuse to even consider a romantic relationship with anyone younger than me by more than 2 years."

"Oh," She sounded so disappointed. "Then I just wait until get older, or Anchin can no longer contain his beastly desires for me."

"No," Andrew said firmly.

"And we are back to square one." Mash bemoaned.

"Well, the tea got spilled when you ran Anchin, so I need to go clean it up. Talk you later Anchin." Kiyohime spoke as she turned around and headed back to her room.

"No, no, we're aren't going to let this go on," Andrew said. "Kiyohime, I want you to look me directly in the eyes when I say this. I am not, never have been, and never will be, _Anchin_ , in any way, shape, or form. And I want you to tell me if I'm lying."

"I'm not lying, I'm not a liar. I don't lie. Not lying, not a liar." The confrontation of seemed to be too much and Kiyohime collapsed down to the floor, where she kept muttering that she wasn't lying.

"Shit!" Andrew said as he moved to her side. "Mash, call Dr. Roman." He said as he gently picked up the Berserker.

"Right, Senpai. Dr. Roman, we've got an emergency regarding Kiyohime." Mash spoke into her armband.

And Andrew heard Kiyohime continue to mutter that she wasn't a liar as he held her.

Xxx

 **Passive's reaction:**

Well, didn't expect this to happen.


	20. Dive to the Heart

Andrew sat in the chair beside Kiyohime's bed, as he watched the Berserker's sleeping form. The dragon girl had stopped muttering and was now just quietly sleeping on the bed in the Med Bay.

Both Dr. Roman and Da Vinci had checked on the Servant and had arrived at the conclusion that Andrew's confrontation about her Madness had caused a Mental Breakdown and for her mind to preserve itself she had forcefully gone into a coma.

They had said they couldn't do anything to wake her, and that it would just be best to wait out and let Kiyohime deal with her internal turmoil.

Andrew was internally berating himself over for what had happened. His outburst was nothing new; he had a tendency to speak without thought when upset. But he'd always been able to make up for it afterward. This… Andrew didn't know how to deal with this. He'd never put someone into a _coma_. He made a _child_ have a mental breakdown.

Andrew wished it had been someone else who saved Mash and become Chaldea's Master.

"Senpai it's getting late now, you should go to bed, there isn't anything that you can do about this," Mash said sorrowfully from behind Andrew. He felt her hand touch his shoulder.

Andrew shook his head. "I can't. She's...she's just a kid, Mash. And I did this to her. I need to stay here in case she wakes up." Andrew said, 'so I can beg for forgiveness' going unsaid.

"If that's what you wish to do Senpai, but have you gotten anything to eat yet? Do you want me to bring some soup to you?" She asked.

"...Sure, Kouhai. That would be nice, thank you." Andrew said.

"Okay, do you want anything specific?"

"Cream of potato, maybe?" Andrew said, unsure.

"Sure thing Senpai I'll bring it up for you." At that Mash left the med bay; half an hour later she came back with a large bowl cream of potato soup for him.

"Here Senpai," Mash said as she put the tray and bowl on the table next to him.

Andrew did his best to smile at her. "Thank you, Kouhai. You should probably follow your own advice and get to bed; it's getting pretty late." He said after seeing the time.

"Yes, that would be a good idea. Talk to you tomorrow Senpai." Mash said heading for the exit to the area.

"Talk to you then." He said as she left.

He watched Kiyohime throughout the night.

Eventually, he ate his dinner and try as he might, sitting in his chair Andrew felt his eyelids close. But they immediately shot open as Andrew felt his ass hit hard ground.

He quickly got his bearings and saw that he was no longer in the med bay, but instead sitting down in the middle of a forest.

Winter trees covered in snow surrounded him.

"What the fuck?" Andrew said. "Wait, actually what the fuck?" He said, looking around to see if there was anything to help him figure why he was suddenly in a wintry forest.

"Senpai where are we?" Andrew heard Mash's voice and turned around to where it had come from, and he saw his Kouhai dressed in her Servant outfit, her massive shield in hand.

"I have no idea Kouhai," Andrew said as he got up and cleared some snow off of himself. "But the last time we were suddenly in a new location without warning, it was the emergency Rayshift. Do you think something like that happened while we were sleeping?"

"I have no idea Senpai, I just woke up here after I went to sleep. I tried to contact the doctor, but all I got was static." She answered.

"Shit. So we have no idea where we are, why or how we're here, and can't contact Chaldea. Shiiit." Andrew groaned before realizing something. "And I can't feel any of the other Servants."

"That's bad Senpai. Should we try and find out where we are?" Mash suggested.

"Yeah, yeah we should...how do we do that?" Andrew asked.

"I think just by walking Senpai, and thanks to my Servant status all my senses are enhanced I can smell food in the wind." informed the Shielder.

"Oh, then we should probably head towards that then," Andrew said. "Lead the way, Kouhai."

"Sure Senpai, this way," Mash said, and the Servant and Master pair walked towards the right of their current position.

Mash followed the scent of food like a bloodhound.

But as they walked Mash spoke up. "Senpai, I forgot to apologize about running from the table this morning."

"There's no need to apologize," Andrew said practically instantly. "In fact, if anything, I'm the one who should be apologizing. In fact, I am, so I'm sorry." Andrew said, leaving out that Mozart should _definitely_ also apologize for the comment later.

"I should have been more mature and not reacted like that, I realize it now that Mozart didn't mean it. And you should definitely not apologize for him Senpai."

Andrew shook his head. "I'm still sorry for putting you on the spot like that. I don't really think about what I say around people I trust." He let out a short, angry chuckle at his own incompetence in handling Kiyohime. "Or when I'm upset."

"You trust me Senpai?"

"Of course," Andrew said with no hesitation. "You've been nothing but kind to me since I met you, and you've been keeping me alive since this mess all started. I trust you with my life because you've more than proven you're able to protect it."

"That's nice to hear Senpai… Hey, seeing a light ahead of us." Mash said and pointed forwards.

Andrew could see it too, light shining through the trees and the smell of cooked meat reaching his nose.

"I see it. We need to be careful; we can't be sure if there's a friend or foe on the other side." Andrew said. "Actually, speaking of, is Fou in your shield?" He asked. The critter seemed to come with them both times they'd Rayshifted so far, so it was probably a good idea to check.

"Right he does like to hide in there. Hello, Fou are you in there." Mash spoke into her shield but pulled her face back. "No, Senpai he isn't this is just the two of us it seems."

"Hmm. With Fou, I guess that's a good thing. Don't want him getting hurt." Andrew said before shaking his head as if to physically clear his thoughts. "Sorry, got off track there. We should check this out."

"Right Senpai. Mash Kyrielight ready for action." She said, and the two moved with what Andrew called quick steps and soon came across what was generating the light.

And it was not something Andrew had expected to see out in the middle of a forest.

"Is that an Inn?" Mash asked before answering her own question. "Yes, it is it says on the sign that is the Hoshi Ryokan Inn. I've read about it, it's Japan's oldest still functioning Inn/hotel, historical documents says it was built in 718 AD." Mash exposited.

"Thank you for the info, Kouhai," Andrew said. He was a tad miffed he was functionally illiterate with all non-English languages, but he was more than fine with being able to understand the verbal parts thanks to Da Vinci's necklace.

"Your welcome Senpai. So should we knock?"

"Yeah, that's probably a good idea. It's an inn, so it's not like they'll turn us away right?" Andrew asked rhetorically.

"I don't think so Senpai, do you want to knock?" She asked.

"Alright, alright, I'll knock." He said as he went up to the door and did just that.

The door opened up, and now Andrew really didn't know what was going on here.

"Ah we got wary travelers, come inside you two." Spoke a much younger looking Kiyohime.

Andrew decided the best thing to do at that moment would probably just roll with it. She didn't seem to recognize him, and with how much younger she looked this had to be her past. Somehow. "T-thank you for your hospitality." He said as he followed her in.

Mash following behind him.

"That has to be my father you have to talk to. He is the one running the Inn for weary travelers like you. I go get him." Kiyohime said as she ran from them and into a side room.

"Senpai was that really Kiyohime?" Mash asked.

"I...think so?" Andrew said. "I kinda thought this might be one of the Servant Dreams at first, but then you're here, and she's directly acknowledging us, so I have no idea what's going on."

"You're right Senpai, this can't be a part of the dream cycle, they just supposed to be able for Master and Servant to share their memories while dreaming. So I have no idea what this is." As Mash finished speaking Kiyohime returned.

"Father is in the middle of finishing doing some accounting, so I'm going to be taking you to your room or do you want dinner first?" She asked.

Andrew glanced over at Mash to see what she wanted to do.

She put her hand her chin and made moved her head down to the side. She closed her eyes and breathed quickly.

At that Andrew got what she meant. "We'll just be going to bed immediately." He answered.

"Okay, one or two bedrooms." The tiny girl asked.

"Two," Andrew responded.

"Okay, just follow me the bedrooms," Kiyohime said.

Andrew nodded, and so he and Mash followed Kiyohime upstairs, where they came to a long hallway.

"Luckily for you, we got two available right next to each other," Kiyohime told them, pointing at two doors that were on their right side.

"Thank you, miss…" Andrew said, cutting himself off at almost referring to her by name.

"My name is Kiyohime, father says I'm the Inn's adorable Mascot." She answered.

"Ah, then thank you, Princess," Andrew said with a bit of a bow. "It is an honor to meet you."

"Your funny, now father says that sleep is important and the moon is rising, so I need to go to bed. There is food in the morning for you, if you pay extra." Kiyohime said.

"Thank you, Princess," Andrew said before having an idea. "Pardon my question, but are we the only guests here tonight?"

"Yes, not a lot come here during the winter." She answered. "So, we get only a few guests."

"Ah, I see," Andrew said. "I assume we will discuss payment with your father in the morning?"

"Yep, so good night to the both of you," Kiyohime said as she went downstairs again.

"Good night, Princess," Andrew said as she left, before turning to Mash. "Kouhai I think I might have an idea about what's going on."

"You do Senpai?" Mash asked.

"Yeah, let's go to one of these rooms, so they're less likely to hear us," Andrew said, before having a realization. "Or we could each go to the rooms we're using and talk with Telepathy."

"That sounds like a good plan Senpai." Mash approved and quickly went into her assigned room.

Andrew followed suit and entered the other room. It was rather plain, with a bedroll, lamp, and a small table.

'Kouhai, can you hear me alright?'

" _I can Senpai!"_

'Alright, good. So, when I said I had an idea I meant I have a very rough guess as to what's going on.' He paused to find the best way to put it into words. 'I think we might be in Kiyohime's past, or a version of it, around the time Anchin shows up. I don't know _how_ , but it's my best guess.'

" _That does sound plausible but, still how did we end up here?"_ Mash asked.

But before Andrew could say anything more, he heard the sound of wood sliding against wood.

Andrew turned around as it didn't come from the door he had walked through that he had been watching but the wall behind him.

And in the secret door stood Kiyohime looking like when Andrew had met her in France. "Master you need to come quickly before she acts." She spoke quietly.

Andrew sputtered in surprise. "K-Kiyohime? You're okay? And before who acts?" He asked, managing to keep his voice relatively low.

"Not now we need to get Mash before-." Kiyohime's speech was stopped as the sound of wood breaking could be heard as something flew right through the space between him and Kiyohime. A blue polearm stuck on the wall to the right.

"I was so close, so close to having Anchin all for myself finally. The two of us together, us being happy. Me getting to _feel him!_ But then you had to go and interfere." Spoke the voice of Kiyohime not coming from the one in front of him but the one who stood in the broken wall.

Andrew watched as the kid Kiyohime quickly changed form to a more adult look.

The sound of more wood breaking could be heard as Mash crashed through the wall behind Andrew. "Senpai you stopped speaking, and I heard things breaking… Why are there two Kiyohimes?"

"Thief!" The apparently Evil Kiyohime spoke, and her naginata disappeared before it quickly reappeared in her hands.

"Enemy detected Senpai."

Andrew quickly tried using his Stat-o-Vision on the other Kiyohime.

It however only yielded one piece of information.

 **Noble Phantasm:** Dojoji Bell(Anti-Unit): A

That was an Anti-Anchin Noble Phantasm for sure.

"Two Kiyos, the spear one's obsessed and the one behind me is on our side, probably going to have to fight the spear one." Andrew rapidly explained to Mash.

"I hear you Senpai. What is the plan of attack?" Mash asked.

"I kill the both of you Anchin is going to be Mine, MINE! MINE!" The spear-wielding Kiyohime madly shouted.

"No, you won't, your poisonous ideas of love will kill Andrew, he is not Anchin." Said, the saner Kiyohime. Her voice was ice cold.

Andrew almost had a heart attack at that but managed to steel himself. "S-she's right, you know. I'm not Anchin."

"No, you are Anchin, and you're going to be mine!" The Mad Kiyo yelled, and Andrew saw blue fire ignite around her weapon.

"Enemy about to attack, orders Senpai?"

"Do your thing and go on the defensive, Kouhai," Andrew said, motioning at her shield. "Kiyohime, I'm hoping you'll help against your doppelganger?"

"Yes, of course, Master, this sickness has been festering in my heart for too long." She stated and brandished her fan red fire blooming around it.

"Right, then let's deliver the cure!" He said, pointing at the other Kiyohime.

"Argh!" The Mad Kiyo shouted and swiped with her pole sending three blue fireballs lose, but it was quickly countered by Sane Kiyo's own balls of fire as they extinguished each other in the air.

It was there Mash attacked parrying another attack from the spear-wielding KIyohime giving her an opening to slam the side of her shield into Mad Kiyo's head sending the girl flying through the hole, through the wall and into the room in front of them.

It was followed up with Sane Kiyohime launching several fireballs at the temporarily dazed Mad Kiyohime. Yielding screams of pain from her.

Andrew winced at the noise -it was still Kiyohime's voice- but did his best to ignore it. "Kiyohime, keep shooting as many of those as you can while its down."

"Yes, Master." She responded and quickly began flipping her fan around, and Andrew saw a much larger ball of fire appear in front of her that continued to grow.

"I won't lose! I will never disappear for I am the Shadow the True Self!" At that Andrew could feel the integrity of the Inn begin to shake violently like an earthquake was happening. Unfortunately due to that Sane Kiyohime lost her concentration and the attack she had been preparing dissipated.

"If I can't have you no one shall now we all die together! **Dojoji Bell**!" Mad Kiyohime shouted and as she did Andrew saw her stand back up, her entire body severely scarred with burns. Though due to that she had lost her clothes.

Andrew heard the sound of a bell ringing.

"Mash Noble Phantasm _now!_ " Andrew said hurriedly.

"That won't work I've summoned the Bell around the entire Inn, you won't be able to escape we shall burn together Anchin." Mad Kiyohime shouted.

"Not if you die first." Sane Kiyohime said. " **Samadhi!** " She said, unleashing her Noble Phantasm. "I am Andrew's guardian dragon I will always protect him, even from myself." Her body changed into that of a snake-like dragon covered in red fire.

And within a second the transformed Kiyohime launched herself at the insanely laughing Kiyohime.

And the both of them went through the floor as they collided.

"Kiyohime!" Andrew said as he ran over to the hole, avoiding the fire, and looking down through to see what was happening.

A sigh of relief went through him as he saw it was the Sane Kiyohime still standing, smiling up at him. Though the image was a bit disturbing with the fire that surrounded her.

"Oh thank god. Kiyohime are you okay?" Andrew said down to her through the hole. "You beat it right?"

"I'm fine Andrew, and yes I burned her to a crisp." She answered. "Now you two meet me outside the Inn I have something to give you Master."

"Right, we'll meet you outside," Andrew said before turning around to Mash. "I think we're going to have to take the Emergency Exit," Andrew said, motioning at the growing fire now behind him.

"Ah, I get it Senpai," Mash said as she was still standing in the room he had entered. With a quick movement, she hit the wall breaking it into pieces revealing the darkness of the outside, and the snow-covered trees.

Andrew ran over to Mash, and she took him in the now standard bridal carry she used to cart him around.

She jumped out of her created hole and landed in the snow.

Andrew left her arms, and the two came face to face with Kiyohime.

"I am so, so sorry Kiyohime. I have no excuse for what I said." Andrew said to Kiyohime, his head bowed.

"Please don't Master, I needed to hear those words, and I needed this to happen. I have never felt as good as I do now. But there is still one more thing that needs to be done." She said.

"Which is…?" Andrew said worriedly.

"Is for you to take this." She held out her hands which Andrew saw held an orange bell. "This is the twisted desires of my heart take it, Master. For when you wake it shall be gone." She spoke.

Andrew took the bell very carefully. The symbolism wasn't lost on him. "...I don't know what to say, Kiyohime."

But before she answered, Andrew's eyes opened, and he found himself sitting straight up in his bed. But before he could think of anything he noticed he was holding something in his hand. As he took it out from beneath the cover, he saw that it was an orange bell.

The thing lit up, and suddenly he was holding a Saint Quartz in its place.

His heart dropped. He burst from his bed, ignoring how he had been there in the first place, and made to run to the med bay, but as he was about to leave his room the door opened, and he collided head first with Kiyohime.

The sound of metal could be heard hitting the ground. Along with glass shattering.

"Kiyohime!" Andrew said once he his brain caught up with the rest of him. "Are you okay?"

"Ahh, good morning Master, I'm okay, but I can't say the same about your breakfast." She complained, and Andrew took notice of the tray laying on the floor along with broken glass and spilled juice, with what looked to be the stereotypical American Breakfast.

"O-oh, sorry about that," Andrew said before holding up the Quartz in his hand. "When I woke up, the Bell turned into a Quartz and I kind of panicked."

"Bell? What are you talking about Master?" Kiyohime asked.

"The bell that you handed me after you beat the other you?" Andrew asked, confused. Did she not remember?

"You must have had one crazy dream Andrew, now I need to clean this up. I wanted to surprise you with breakfast on the bed, that Mash had suggested to me." Kiyohime said. "Actually Mash asked the same thing did you two have a shared dream or something. I heard that Master and Servants with a close bond can have those. But one thing is for certain I feel better than I did yesterday when I collapsed. Thanks for telling me truth Master, it's like all my Madness is gone." She said happily.

At that, Andrew used his Stat-o-Vision on Kiyohime to see if that was true.

[spoiler=Kiyohime's Stat Sheet]

 **True Name:** Kiyohime

 **Class:** Lancer

 **Master:** Andrew Murphy

 **Parameters:**

Strength: D

Endurance: D

Agility: B

Mana: B

Luck: A+

Noble Phantasm: EX

 **Class Skills:**

Magic Resistance: C

 **Personal Skills:**

Shapeshifting: C

Guardian Bell: A

Dragon Breath(Flames): A

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Samadhi Naginata: Polearm Transformed Through Flames(Anti-Army): EX

[/spoiler]

"What," Andrew said flatly. "You're a Lancer now?"

"Ehh?" Kiyohime made the surprise noise. "Really?... Oh, wow I am, how did that happen?" She asked.

"I'm pretty sure it has to do with this-." He held up the bell-turned-quartz again "-and the 'dream' Mash and I had that it came from. I think we need to see the Doc about this."

"That seems like a good idea, Andrew."

"...Wow, that is a lot weirder than I thought it would be."

"What is?" She asked.

"My name. You're actually using my name." Andrew said. "Part of why I was so upset at being called 'Anchin' before was because people have this weird tendency to call me anything _but_ my name." He shook his head. "But it's almost weirder to hear you using my name proper."

"I am?" At that, Andrew saw the metaphorical light bulb appear over Kiyohime's head. "I said, your name Master. By Amaterasu's flaming tits I can say your name now. Andrew, Andrew, Andrew. It sounds sweet to say. Much better to say that Anchin is. Now should we go speak to the doctor?"

"Y-yeah let's go do that," Andrew said, caught off guard by the 'profanity,' "But you should watch your tongue. That's no way for a Princess to be speaking."

"Pffth." She blew a raspberry at him. "As if I care about that, I can speak however like to, you aren't my dad. I'm not a princess, I'm a badass bonafide dragon. I can do whatever I want."

Oh, god. She had turned into a teenager.

"I may not be your father, but I am your Master." He said half-jokingly. "And who said that the dragon can't be a princess?"

"Princesses are useless damsels that get kidnapped all the time and have to be saved. Dragon's don't need any hero to save them, but they would like a friend to help them." She said.

"You just need to look at Lily to know that's not true about Princesses," Andrew said as finally got up, offering a hand to Kiyohime.

Kiyohime took it, and Andrew pulled her up from the ground. "Nah, she's more badass warrior queen, in training at least. And besides, I wouldn't talk bad about a fellow dragon. Except for Liz cause she's a fake."

Andrew shook his head. "You just said yourself that Lily, who calls herself a Princess, is also a dragon, but whatever." He then realized something. "Wait, why was I in my room? I fell asleep in the Med Bay."

"Oh I carried you, Andrew, I saw you sitting in the chair sleeping like a baby when I woke up. So, I decided to tuck you in. Though I didn't take your clothes off so they might be a bit smelly of sweat now."

"That was nice of you for doing that, thank you," Andrew said, ignoring the comment. "I'll deal with that once we talk to the Doc. Let's go."

"Right, but first could you help me clean this up." Kiyohime pointed at the ruined breakfast.

"Sure."

Xxx

"So, Andrew, Kiyohime what can I help you to with this fine morning?" Dr. Roman asked from where he was leaning against one of Da Vinci's workbenches.

As the map had said, he was currently down there with the Caster.

"Well, Kiyohime is awake, and a Lancer, and I have a Saint Quartz made from her old Mad Enhancement, which was given to me by her in a dream as a bell after she killed the personification of said Madness alongside Mash." Andrew summarized, holding up the Quartz as proof.

"..." Roman reached behind him took a sip of his coffee, placed the cup back down on the table. "Excuse me what? I think my hearing might be failing but you just sad that Kiyohime is a Lancer now and you somehow traveled into her dreams with Mash."

"No, you got it exactly right."

"Okay, first of to change the Saint Graph of an already summoned Servant to another Class, is technically possible. But what you said about the dream should be impossible. Sure there is the dream cycle, but that is a sharing of memories. I have no clue about how you did something that quite literally should not be possible for a person of your skill level. And I'm just talking about the Class change, not the second part."

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure I know less about what the 'how' of what happened than you do, but I'm pretty sure Kiyohime has a Naginata that she didn't have before as proof," Andrew said, motioning to the Lancer in question.

Kiyohime nodded and held out her hand a second later the polearm the Mad Kiyohime had used appeared in her hand just a red color instead.

"Right, just a moment." Roman held up his armband and pressed brought the hologram display, and seconds later a blue beam went up and down Kiyohime. It looked that scanner light one saw in sci-fi movies. "Right, there is nothing wrong with Kiyohime, her spiritual existence is completely stable. So, it is okay for her to partake in the next Order. Now excuse, I'm way too sober for this." Roman said as he walked straight past the pair and out of the Workshop.

"Well, that happened," Kiyohime stated.

xxx

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	21. Golden Ticket

So, after Roman had left Da Vinci had quickly popped her head out and said, she was happy to see that Kiyohime was awake.

After that, the two headed up to the dining hall to eat, to get Mash, for he needed her to able to summon and to get some food.

There they had met some the other Servants with Andrew giving them all a quick good morning and saying that Kiyohime was okay now.

Now after eating they were down in the Summoning Room, with Kiyohime accompanying Andrew and Mash, as she wanted to see a summoning happen.

"Kouhai, do the thing," Andrew said dramatically, putting on a bit of a spectacle for Kiyohime.

"Yes, Senpai," Mash said as she prepared the shield and circle for Andrew to use.

"Alright, let's hope we get someone good," Andrew said to himself as he channeled his Prana through the Saint Quartz into the circle.

And what has now become a usual thing to witness the circle lit up and created the usual smoke to conceal the Servant from being immediately seen.

"Servant Saber Arturia Pendragon, the Tyrant of Knight's, have answered your call Master, but you can just call me Alter it seems fitting." Announced Saber Alter.

"...You know, I really should have seen this coming." Andrew said, upon reflecting how he'd already summoned two enemy Servants from France; it made sense he'd be able to summon ones from Fuyuki. He hadn't really held any ill will towards Alter in Fuyuki beyond wanting her to die, so it was easy to put aside the remaining embers of anger. "Welcome to Chaldea, Alter, where we will be working to prevent the exact thing you had been trying to do back in Fuyuki." He said to gauge her reaction.

"Sorry Master, but I Have no clue of what you speak of the name of the city sounds familiar, must have been unrelated to this version of myself, perhaps you met the King after being doused in the mud of that damned Grail." She spoke the last bit with bitter hatred. "Yes, Fuyuki I remember now, took part of Grail war there in another world another time. But that has nothing to do with the current situation. And I see you have summoned other Servants. It is nice to meet a fellow dragon, and… I must apologize girl to carry the power of that idiot." Alter spoke.

"Nice to meet you Alter, as a fellow dragon I greet you as Kiyohime." Kiyohime greeted Alter.

"And I'm Mash Kyrielight, but are you talking about the Servant that gave me his powers? Do you know who that is?" Mash asked.

"Oh? You don't know? Sorry for speaking out of turn a Hero's Journey should not be derailed by one such as I. Now Master what is your name?" Alter asked.

"Ah, yes, right, I am Andrew Murphy, Master of Chaldea." He said almost absentmindedly. The fact that Alter _recognized_ the Heroic Spirit giving Mash her power made him rethink interactions Lily had had with Mash. They _knew_ , but that adherence to the damn 'hero's journey' bullshit was keeping them from spilling the beans. Chaldea needed all the power boosts it could get in this struggle. He considered using a Command Seal for just a moment before realizing he would probably have to use another afterward to prevent himself from dying and thought best to continue to sleuth out the details. But the biggest hint was that the spirit was most like from Arthurian legend, and that did actually narrow it down immensely. There were only so many famously shield wielding heroes after all.

"Greetings to you Andrew Murphy, I shall help you in your mission to save humanity. Now one more thing I have to ask if I'm sensing Caliburn right now?" Alter asked.

"...Yes. You're younger incarnation has also been summoned here." Andrew said after a moment, deciding there was no way to beat around the bush with this one.

"Ah yes, her younger form not my own, our paths diverged greatly now, where is she located I wish to speak to her?"

"I'll only tell you such a thing if you swear not to fight her," Andrew said.

"Why should, she might know the legend but her mentality should still of a much more innocent time. Besides if I wished to fight her, I would challenge her to a duel to see what the difference between then and now is."

Andrew let out a short sigh. "Sorry, it's just that when we fought the other you, she was _really_ insistent on trying to break Lily."

"Really? Then you just confirmed it for me that had been the King of Knights drowned in that mud, and not a version of me summoned."

At that, Andrew decided to use his Stat-o-Vision on her to see how different this incarnation was from the one in Fuyuki.

 **True Name:** Arturia Pendragon

 **Class:** Saber

 **Master:** Andrew Murphy

 **Parameters:**

Strength: A

Endurance: A

Agility: D

Mana: A++

Luck: C

Noble Phantasm: A++

 **Class Skills:**

Magic Resistance: B

 **Personal Skills:**

Charisma: E

Instinct: B

Mana Burst: A

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Excalibur Morgan: The Sword of Promised Victory(Anti-Fortress): A++

"Pardon me asking, but what does your Charisma skill do?" Andrew asked Alter. It was the only thing he didn't know the usage of, and the low rank was odd.

"It serves as to show one's leadership skills. I wasn't one for speeches to rally the people I let my action and sword do the talking. Though it's also useful for intimidation." She answered smiling showing off her teeth, and they looked like they would fit on sharks. No, more like they belonged in a dragon's maw.

"A-ah. Hopefully, your skills will prove useful in our endeavors to save human history." Andrew said a tad nervously. He'd never seen a real person with teeth like that; it was a bit unnerving, but at the same time pretty cool. If it were anyone but Alter he would have said as much, but he felt saying such a thing might not be the best idea.

"And as I can see it still works, now when where is that version of me located?"

"Here Miss Alter I've got a self-updating map of Chaldea for you to use. It shows which rooms are occupied and by whom if you wish to know." Mash said, taking out the map for the Saber.

"Thank you, young lady. Now I will be off. Unless you wish to join Master, I saw your face before, and I guess you wish to know?" She didn't have to say what Andrew wanted to know.

"Yeah, there needs to be a talk about that," Andrew said aloud. Telepathically, he sent out a message to Lily. 'Lily, we just summoned an alternate version of the Altered 'you' we fought in Fuyuki, and she wants to talk. Is that okay?'

" _Of course Master, so it was Excalibur that I sensed. Great bring her up would you, and do you wish to sit in Master?"_

'Yeah. There was something the four of us need to discuss.' He replied.

" _Wait? Four?"_

'Yes, me, you, and the two other Servants from your legend.' He said.

" _Oh, okay but only if Mash wants to know!"_ There was a stern tone in her mental voice.

'Alright, alright.' He responded telepathically before 'switching channels,' as it were. 'Mash, do you want to know about the Heroic Spirit you've got? Lily and Alter know, and it seems like they're willing to talk, but only if you want to.'

" _If-if it helps you Senpai then I will."_

He looked her in the eyes. 'But do _you_ want to? Be selfish for a moment, think about it as if I didn't exist. Do it if you want to know for yourself, not for me.' He replied. Andrew very much so wanted to power boost, but what he didn't want was Mash making her decisions based on him. This was about _Mash,_ not him.

Mash returned her look, and Andrew saw her biting the bottom of her lips. "I-." She began to speak out loud. "I want to discover who it is by myself, Senpai. Sorry."

"That's quite alright, Kouhai. There's no need to apologize; there is nothing wrong with wanting to explore an unknown part of yourself, for yourself." He chuckled. "I'd be pretty hypocritical to say otherwise."

"Thank you, Senpai, hearing those words already makes me feel better. But Alter, you can still tell Senpai if he wants to hear. I can wait." Mash said directly to the newly summoned Saber.

"If my Master wishes to?" She responded and asked.

Andrew shook his head. "Nah, that wouldn't be right, knowing something about you that you don't. I won't ask, but I will try and help you with figuring it out on your own, if you'll let me. I know a bit about the weapons-turned-Noble Phantasms of yore, so I can probably help figure out who uses a shield at the very least."

"If that is what you choose Master. Very well I shall inform the younger version of her, that you won't joining our conversation when if what I'm hearing is correct." Alter said.

"Alright then," Andrew said.

"Then I shall speak to you all later." Said, Alter, as she left the summoning room.

"Well, glad that is over certainly felt awkward for standing here, being ignored," Kiyohime commented.

"Oh, right, Kiyohime, sorry about that." Andrew apologized to the Berserker-turned-Lancer.

"It's fine Master, anyway you two probably going to talk now," Kiyohime said pointing fingers at Andrew and Mash. "So, I'm just going to go bug Uncle Vlad. See Yeah." She said running out of the room.

"She certainly has changed Senpai, hard to believe she is still Kiyohime," Mash said as she looked at the door.

"Yeah, but I think in the long term having a superpowered dragon teenager is probably better than having a superpowered dragon yandere. The former is likely to burn down Chaldea by accident, but the latter was likely to burn down Chaldea _on purpose_." Andrew said.

"I see the comparison Senpai, and it does not comfort me. I rather not have my home being on fire at all." Mash answered.

"I mean, this Kiyo won't _want_ to do that and will actively avoid it, you know? A yandere would do anything if they thought it would help them get their 'beloved.' Really it's no worse than having a wild card like Gilgamesh, except Command Seals will actually work if they need to be used."

"When hopefully you won't summon anymore Senpai," Mash said. "Kiyohime seemed bad enough, but she seemed rather tame to what you're describing."

"I think that's why we were able to 'fix' it in that dream thing; it was a part of her, but not _her,_ her you know?"

"Yes, like something that was added to her, but didn't come from her?"

"Sort of? It may have actually helped that she died soon afterward- its part of her legend, but not part of her real personality, I'd say. If there was someone like that who was like that for years and years, I doubt it would be that easy to fix it."

"Ah, I see what you're talking about Senpai, but perhaps you could use Command Seals to make Berserkers like her sane within the walls of Chaldea." She suggested.

"...I have no idea if that would work, and no way to test it until Da Vinci finishes that summoning thing she was working on, but that does sound like a good suggestion." Andrew said after a moment. "Since Mad Enhancement directly increases a Servant's parameters, I might be able to get away with at least lessening it out of combat? ...Regardless, that's a great suggestion Kouhai, thank you."

"You welcome Senpai. Now we should get going it's time for me to go to the Gym." Mash said.

"Right, sorry, don't let me hold you up."

"Do, you want to join Senpai?"

"I mean I obviously won't be able to do anything like what you can, but sure. It would probably be worth it to at least work on my speed and stamina a bit so I can get the heck out of dodge and to one of my Servants."

"That's sound like great places to improve Senpai, let's get going."

Xxx

When Mash had said Gym, he had expected something more for Servants not an actual gym with weights, thread mills and still standing bikes.

Andrew was now in more appropriate workout clothes along with Mash. In the gym itself three Chaldea Workers were training, and to his surprise was in what was probably a boxing ring was Cu and Gilgamesh wrestling with each other.

"Did, not expect those two to be here Senpai. Thought they would be down in the Training Room duking out against the Shadow Servants." Mash said in surprise.

"It's probably because they know the difference in sheer damage potential, so they went for a skill based fight instead," Andrew concluded after mentally comparing the firepower the two possessed.

"I agree with you on that Sir they have going on for the last hour, and they haven't even scratched the ringing." Said one of the workers a British man that looked to be in his thirties.

"I see," Andrew said before registering the full of what was said. "Please, call me Andrew, Mr…"

"Sure thing Andrew, the name is Peter, Third Generation Magus." He greeted.

"It's nice to meet you, Peter. So you're part of the magic-based staff?" Andrew asked, curious about the other humans in Chaldea.

"Yeah, I'm a part of the night shift working on keeping the systems running, along with Frederick and Mariah over there." He pointed at the two other workers. The male was running and female kicking against a post.

"Hey, Andrew." They greeted though he wasn't quite sure on their accents, so he could only really guess where they were from.

Andrew waved at them with a short "Hello" before he had a thought. "Thank you, all three of you, for keeping everything running." He said sincerely. "It's the people like you three that make sure there was a Chaldea to come back to after the singularities, so thank you."

"Don't praise us like that boy, we were just doing our jobs. You just do yours, and we all be back home at some point." Peter said.

"You're right, but regardless, thank you for your hard work," Andrew said.

"Now Andrew, Mash you came here to work out didn't you. Now boy how about I show you the ropes, we got some great machines, to keep yourself in shape, especially a tall Yankee like yourself, what do they feed you over in the states?"

"Oh, this is mostly genetic. My family's been getting taller over the years sure, but my grandad is only a few inches shorter than me. Heck, my great-great grandad on the other side was taller than I am now." Andrew said.

"Bloody hell mate, did your family breed with giants or something in the past?" Peter asked in a way that it sounded like a legitimate question.

Andrew was about to rebut the idea before realizing that him being here meant _something_ magic was involved with his world. "I... don't think so? How would you check that kind of thing?" He asked. If he was here, that meant something could have gone the other way to his world, if they _were_ separate worlds in the first place.

"You really can't unless it's recent and the blood is still thick, like with those Demon hunting families of Japan. So, it's just probably a remnant of some old dealings with the best of old that persists." Peter said. "I should know the flow of blood is my families specialty due to our Sorcery Trait," Peter explained

"Sorcery Trait?" Andrew asked.

"Right first generation aren't you. It's like a genetic cheat code towards certain Magecraft or abilities. The Einzbern have their Wishcraft, and the Vice-Director's family have their Blue Blood."

"Vice-Director? I didn't even know we had one of those."

"Oh, noo Chaldea doesn't I'm talking about the Clock Tower's down in London the Barthomeloi Family, the current head has always been the Vice-Director since the founding almost two thousand years ago," Peter answered.

"Oh." Andrew paused a moment as the sentence fully processed. "Wait, _2000 years ago?_ "

"Give or take a few hundred years. Nobody really knows how old it really is, but we do know the Director is 2000 himself."

"...I thought only vampires lived that long?"

"That is true, but nobody knows who he is only that he exists. He is a complete mystery. For he isn't human a Magus can live for three hundred and a little more, but that is when the Soul Rot sets in."

"I'm guessing that term is rather literal?"

"Yes, everything has an expiration date son, even the Soul, it's not meant to stay in the world for so long. That's why Magi seek the Third Magic as that eliminates it or so they say."

"Oh yeah, didn't the founder guy build Chaldea and stuff with that?"

"Nah, if the Old Man had gotten The Third he wouldn't have created this place. Just a lot of money went into this." Peter said. "And he wouldn't be dead if he had, it kinda makes you immortal."

Andrew frowned. "Isn't the Third Magic Heaven's Feel, the wish-granting thing? Maybe he just wished for something different than immortality or the Root?"

"Nah, the wish-granting part if correct is just the Grail's doing, wish-granting has little to do with The Third. It's more like ultimate soul power more than anything."

"Oh okay," Andrew said, before realizing he had just been chatting with Peter instead of working out like he had intended. "Hey, uhm, sorry but I should probably start actually doing some exercising. Thanks for the chat though it was nice to meet you."

"Ah, yes we got a little sidetracked there, didn't we. Now I think Mash is getting impatient waiting for you."

Andrew saw her tapping her foot.

"A-ah, yeah right. Thanks for the chat, Peter." Andrew said before turning to Mash. "Sorry about keeping you waiting for Kouhai."

"It's fine Senpai, it sounded like you were enjoying yourself talking to others. Now we can start by doing some warm-ups, and get our muscles lose." Mash said.

Xxx

Finally!

That was the word that rang in Andrew's mind after days of waiting he had gotten the summoning ticket from Da Vinci.

He held the golden ticket in his hand, standing over the prepared Summoning Circle which Mash had made in the Summoning Room for him to use like usual, while she stood diligently in the corner of the room.

The corner is the wall as the room was circular, and so had no actual corners.

"Alright, I've got the winning lottery ticket tonight!" Andrew said as he pushed his Prana through the ticket into the circle. He may have used a bit more than needed, but he had been getting a bit stir crazy, and it wasn't like there was much else he had been using his Prana for this week.

As it lit up and created the smoke, Andrew was starting to think that the ritual had been designed to be as dramatic as possible.

"Servant Lancer Cu Chulainn at your service Master, is there battles to be had?" Cu Chulainn announced.

"...Two dogs are better than one?" Andrew said, saying the first thing that came to mind, which he most definitely did not mean to say aloud.

"So am I dog Master?" And Andrew found a red spear at his throat. And Cu found a shield at his.

The air was tense as the stand of between Mash and Cu happened.

"You're chosen name is literally dog, Setanta," Andrew said, as calmly as he possibly could.

Cu's grimace turned into a grin as he pulled his spear away from Andrew's throat. "I like you, Master, got balls of steel. So, I guess I'm your Servant now, but what did you mean when you said two dogs?" Lancer Cu asked. "And little lady put the shield down I'm not going to hurt our Master." It took a few before Mash removed her shield from Cu's neck.

Andrew rubbed his throat where the Child of Light had almost impaled him. "You're actually the second Cu Chulainn we've summoned, the other being a Caster. That incarnation, plus what I know about your history, were how I knew you wouldn't kill me." Andrew explained.

"Still, excellent poker face. And I wouldn't have killed you, Master, even if you had broken down crying. I would have gotten the boot immediately if I did. And I really want to fight some strong people before I do." The Hound said confidently. "And me without a spear, what crap luck does he have."

Andrew used his Stat-o-Vision on the Lancer Cu to confirm it.

 **True Name:** Cu Chulainn

 **Class:** Lancer

 **Master:** Andrew Murphy

 **Parameters:**

Strength: B

Endurance: C

Agility: A

Mana: C

Luck: E

Noble Phantasm: B+

 **Class Skills:**

Magic Resistance: C

 **Personal Skills:**

Rune Magic: B

Disengage: C

Battle Continuation: A

Protection from Arrows: B

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Gae Bolg: Barbed Spear that Pierces with Death(Anti-Unit): B

Gae Bolg: Soaring Spear that Strikes with Death(Anti-Army): B+

"His luck is higher, actually. He was even the last Servant standing from a Grail War in the Singularity we found him in." Andrew said. "Oh, and you can do Runes too. Neat."

"Really? Damn, I feel ripped off by that priest even more now. And yes I can do runes, but only some of the more basic stuff and my more well-known technique with them." He explained.

"What a fucking minute! When you say the priest, do you mean Kirei Kotomine?" Andrew asked, nay, demanded. "In the Fifth Holy Grail War in Fuyuki?"

"Yep, died when I saved the idiot redhead from Gilgamesh." He explained. "But how do you know about that Master?"

"Hmm, Senpai was an apprentice to Lord Zelretch for a bit, and he told him about the various Holy Grail Wars that happened in different timelines." Mash came to Andrew's rescue with a quick explanation for Andrew's knowledge.

"Oh, the dude with the Second True Magic, that explains it. Damn kid your lucky to have been picked up by a Magician, if the knowledge from the FATE system here is true."

"Yeah, the FATE system's stuff is accurate. But more importantly." Andrew said as he put some pieces together. "I think I need to have a talk with a few of my Servants."

xxx

A/N:

Donate to my P A Treon. com (slash) TheBlacklightProjekt if you want to help me as a creator. And now take commissions, which is you paying for me to write any one-shot you want. Price depends on the length of One-Shot


	22. Test Gone Dragon

Andrew sat in the conference room he had sat in while Roman had given the Post-France report. This time he was back in it with Kojiro, both Cu Chulainn's, Vlad, and Gilgamesh. The five Servants sitting in their own chairs after he had called on them to the room. Andrew wanted to talk to them all regarding their previous memories of Holy Grail Wars they had participated in. And so had gathered all of them to talk to them at once, instead of going to their individual rooms.

"So, Master, what have you called specifically all of us here for?" The Wallachian king asked, his aristocratic voice as smooth as butter.

Andrew had been deliberating the best of saying it, so he decides to go with the cover story Mash had made. "Well, due to my time with Lord Zelretch, I observed the both the Great Holy Grail War started by the Yggdmillennia and the Fifth Fuyuki Holy Grail War. Those of you who participated in said wars also seem to remember them. Even in France, Jeanne seemed to remember as well. There's just one, tiny little issue." Andrew said, pausing for dramatic effect. "Those two events are mutually exclusive, and _neither_ occurred in this timeline. So what I want to know, is how you all could possibly remember these events? And how Caster Cu Chulainn remembers what happened in the Fuyuki Singularity."

A few seconds went by before one his Servants spoke up, it being Gilgamesh. "It is easy to see that your education into the Moonlit World is incomplete Master. And the nature of the Throne of Heroes. Then allow me to educate you, Master. The Throne of Heroes exist outside of time and space it is a piece of the Root where the Souls of us heroes are taken out of the Cycle of Reincarnation and fused with our very legend. We become an aspect of it, and it becomes an aspect of us, changed how it is viewed by the Human Order. Servant Bodies this Saint Graph contains only a fraction of our might we have as Heroic Spirits, we are comparable to the Divine Beings that fled to the Reverse Side of the World. As such than when the Saint Graph is destroyed the information learned and experienced is sent to the 'us' residing still in the Throne, where we learn about what happened to Servant version of that had been summoned. Some experiences sticking out more clearly than others."

"Yeah, like you killing me after we fought for twelve hours." Lancer Cu spit.

"That I did, now for me the experiences stand out more clearly due to my innate clairvoyance. The most recent Grail War I experienced was the one taking place in the Moon Cell." Gilgamesh continued speaking. "As for why we can remember previous Grail Wars and Summonings is because the FATE System that summoned us to here does not edit our memories like the Greater Grail or the Seraph of the Moon Cell." Gilgamesh finished.

"Yes, what the King of Heroes speaks is truth Master, it is a bit of knowledge granted to all Heroic Spirits upon ascension to the Throne," Vlad spoke.

"I guess that makes sense; instead of being copies of the original with no connection between summonings, it's more like 'avatars' that send back info which just isn't used in normal Grail Wars, or something?" Andrew said. "Also what the hell is a 'Moon Cell'? That sounds like some weird alien prison."

"If one chooses to look at it that way Master. As for what the Moon Cell is yes it is alien, a prison well that depends on who you ask. It tried to keep me imprisoned in the Far Side of that virtual realm. But as I am me, I escaped and took my when Master, on a cruise through space." Gilgamesh sounded a bit happy when he said that.

"Forgive me if I have absolutely no idea what that means, King of Heroes," Andrew said, a bit off put.

"The Moon Cell is not a thing that exists in all realities, it is an observational Supercomputer meant to observe the World that exists within the Moon itself. And so humans managed to discover it and access it and tried to gain the power of it through Holy Grail Wars created by the AI that ran it." Gilgamesh explained.

"Huh. And I'm guessing we won't know if it exists or not in this timeline until after we save said timeline then?" Andrew guessed.

"Perhaps we will." Said Gilgamesh, "now Master is there anything else you wish to discuss with us, if not I shall take my leave."

"Actually, yes, there is something I need to discuss with you specifically, King of Heroes," Andrew said, trying to use the momentum built from the conversation to his advantage.

"Oh? And what is it, my Master." Gilgamesh asked.

'God that feels amazing hearing that from him.' Andrew thought to himself before answering. "W-well, since you're... _you_ and you have everything that humans could ever make in the Gate of Babylon, I thought m-maybe you could work together with Da Vinci a bit? As in just let her examine some of the stuff in the Gate so she can...reverse engineer it, I think is the best way to put it?" Andrew said the nervousness he felt before creeping back as he continued talking.

"Muahahahahaha!" Gilgamesh laughed for a little bit. "Oh, Master what a great sense of humor that you have. Now I can dain you with a few trinkets to assist battle, but that woman shall not touch them. It is my treasure and your borrowing nothing else. No Master I think we have talked enough for, but if you suggest such a ludicrous idea again, you shall find yourself missing a limb." At that Gilgamesh stood up and was about to leave, but he stopped at the door speaking again. "And Vampire don't even think of attacking."

"And I shall not have you threaten our Master." Spoke Vlad angrily.

"And I shall not harm him unless words of idiocy leave his skull again. But if you wish to pay me back from the slight, I shall take two of your Command Seals." As he spoke, Andrew saw his hands lit up and saw two of his Command Seals disappear. "Now Master you can speak to me and look at me again." At that, he left the room.

"...I was going to say that turned out better than I expected, but _how the hell did he just take two of my command seals like that, holy shit._ " Andrew said after a few moments.

"Master are you alright?" Asked Kojiro coming up beside Andrew.

"I mean besides my heart practically palpitating?" Andrew said as he tried to calm down. "I'm not sure. He just... _took_ my Command Seals. How does that even work? He didn't even move! It just happened! It would have made sense if he used like proto-Rule Breaker or something but…" Andrew continued to take deep breaths. That was almost as stressful as all of France, but all the threats were pointed directly at his own head; really, he felt more like he was about to die just then than in either Singularity.

"I don't know how he did that either Master, but goddamn he is still an asshole deep down." Said Lancer Cu.

"Will I would not use such cuff language, I would have to say that it's best if you avoided the King of Heroes for the time being. At least until he calms down again Master." Vlad suggested.

"Yeah, that's probably a good idea...I _really_ don't want to be on his bad side but holy shit he's like a dodecahedron of them." Andrew said. "Or a tesseract. If there are any good sides, they're underneath a layer of all bad sides."

"Perhaps he was kinder upon a time, but it was crushed underneath his royal duty and untempered ego. Perhaps if you managed to summon the one that reigned him in, he would be more acceptable to your ideas Master. For that was a good one to bolster your combat potential. An army falls apart when the weakest link does, and right now you're it, Master." Vlad said.

"Gee, thanks," Andrew said sarcastically. "But yeah, I know. I'm not a demigod, or a soldier, or a warrior, or a king, or a swordsman, or even a mage. I'm not a Hero. I'm just some dumbass from the U.S. with some regrowing tattoos. I _know_ I'm the weakest link. And I'm also the Keystone of the entire operation. But you can bet I'm going to do my damnedest to save Human History."

"That's what I like to hear Master, showing off those guts of yours. But you're are right you are none of those, but most of us weren't either. But that doesn't mean you can't become one you just have to get stronger. Now, how about my Caster-self here and me show you some moves and how to fight against fodder." Lancer Cu said, with a grin on his face.

Andrew perked up at that. "Wait, teach?" He looked excitedly at the two. "Like Runes?" He already knew Lancer Cu had definitely meant the more physical part, but regardless the prospect was a very welcome one.

"More like how to throw a punch and use weapons, but we can teach you a few easy to use Runes if you want." Caster Cu continued off from the Lancer.

"I already know how to throw a punch, but sign me the hell up for the rest of that!" Andrew said, the near-panic attack from before practically forgotten. The idea of getting trained by not just Cu Chulainn, but _two_ Cu Chulainn's, was awesome enough, but they were also going to teach him how to use magic unassisted? The Mystic Code thing was cool and all, but being able to cast your own magic would be the coolest shit ever.

"More like throw a punch that will hit somebody across the room, and yes it is going to be hell. So get ready for the hurt Master." Lancer Cu said, and both of them grinned.

Andrew grinned with them. "No pain, no gain! I'd expect nothing less from you two!"

Xxx

Ahh!

Andrew moaned in silent pain as he limped back to his room having just finished his first day of training with the two Cu's and now he was blue and yellow all over. Well felt like it as Caster Cu had healed him up somewhat. They hadn't used their full strength of course, but it still hurt being punched even while wearing protective gear.

They had set up a plan with training two hours training every day alternating between physical and magical/mental training.

He was very much so looking forward to tomorrow's training, but he was still grinning like a madman. He'd been training with _two Cu Chulainn_ 's, and they were 'teaching' him in what he assumed was the same way they had been taught by Scathach. And the way he was feeling right now, and with what he knew about how 'Training from Hell' worked in stuff like this, he was going to be an absolute _monster_ by his old standards sooner rather than later.

Though part of his grin might have been because this was the closest, he'd come to the twin fantasy, but c'est la vie.

"Senpai are you okay?" Came the concerned voice of Mash, Andrew saw her come running towards him. And within a few seconds was by his side.

"Oh hi, Kouhai how are you I haven't seen you yet today." Andrew rambled. He was still running high on adrenaline, and whatever Caster Cu had done to counteract his asthma.

"I'm fine Senpai, I've been talking with Da Vinci, but you look like you've been run over by bulls." She touched his ribs, and Andrew hissed in pain as they were still sore having been slammed repeatedly down on a mat by Lancer Cu.

"More like _dogs_ , ya know?" Andrew said through the pain. He'd have to learn to be able to at least somewhat ignore pain with this line of work.

"What did those two dumbasses do?"

"No, no, no they weren't being dumbasses they're training me the Ulster way," Andrew said quickly. "They suggested it yesterday, and I practically jumped at the opportunity, cause how the hell am I supposed to reject _that_ kind of offer?" Then, under his breath, he said. "Also twiiinns."

"Eh? Is that a reference to something Senpai."

"I don't think so?" Andrew said. "I'm a little loopy right now though so maybe."

"Okay, you're close to your room so how about you go get some rest and I wake you for dinner in four hours," Mash said.

"O~kay, Kouhai," Andrew said. Even with his enthusiasm and the adrenaline he could tell he was about to collapse. "Best Kouhai."

"And you might have a concussion. I carry you Senpai." At that, Andrew felt himself being lifted by Mash onto her back and carried into his room. "Uh, why you gotta be so tall Senpai." She complained.

"It's the height," Andrew replied.

"Sure thing Senpai."

Xxx

Andrew sat in an empty room with Caster Cu only this time. The next day after the physical training his body a little bit sore still. But much better after having used First Aid on himself after having woken up for dinner the previous day once he remembered that was a thing he could do.

Now it was time for him to learn some Rune Magic.

"So, are you going to be teaching me how to do the runes like what you use or the kind that humans can still use?" Andrew asked of the Child of Light.

"The more modern version used by today's mages, you do not have the skill level needed to use the Primordial Versions of them. So, to start with how are you calligraphy skills?" Caster Cu asked.

"If I have a lot of time? I can make some pretty good words. Normally though my handwriting has been compared to chicken scratch…" Andrew said bashfully.

"Okay, that is what we're going to focus on first, cause if you don't draw Runes perfectly well boom. Now I've got a sheet of all the Modern Runes, so I just need you to copy them onto another with a normal pen. For the first time you have as long as possible to do it, but then we're going to put a timer on it. Until you can write all of them perfectly in less than thirty seconds." Caster Cu placed the sheet down on the table along with a blank one and a pen. "Now questions before we begin."

"Yeah, I'm not trying to tell you how to teach or anything, but while you were explaining I kinda had an idea?" Andrew said. "'Cause part of why my handwriting is just chicken scratch is because I'm a really good typer, and I'm not sure about the mechanics of Runes so I don't know if it will work, but I do kind of have something that can perfectly replicate and display images-." He held up the wrist with the armband. "-and if we can use this and the holograms, I could 'make' runes at high speed and then I could just use them like written runes. It wouldn't be so different from how you do runes, right?" Andrew said, proposing his idea.

"No. That won't work for Runes to work it requires a mental part of the writing it that yes, this letter can make fire or light. And I think it's a security measure in the Foundation of Runes themselves if anybody could write Runes and accidentally activate them. It requires a bit of desire, or else they would be inert basically." Caster Cu explained. "Now get to copying. And Runes requires being written with or on something that is capable of channeling Prana."

"Ah, okay," Andrew said as he got to work on copying the Runes before another thought came to mind. "If we made like a 'hologram pen' or something with Da Vinci could I use that to write stuff out in the air like you do though? Like I'd still be writing it out just with 'light' and Prana instead of ink and prana."

"That could work. But we will have to see about that, and it's a good idea for you as the air writing is an advanced technique." Caster Cu mulled the suggestion over.

Andrew smiled at that as he continued copying the runes, working currently on 'Anzus.' "Hehe. I do have some pretty good ideas sometimes."

Andrew copied all of the Runes and handed the sheet back to Cu. "Well, Master this good for a first time but still crap, retry." He said, putting a new piece of paper on the table.

This was going to be hell on his fingers.

Xxx

And so the week went on as he spent one-day physical training the other day working on his runes with the two Cu's and in his free time he spent it relaxing together with his Servants talking to them getting to know them better. And just hanging out he had gone to Vlad about the sewing and embroidery stuff. They talked about various techniques they used, and starting on making some clothes and things together but some simple stuff, the two had begun work on scarves he wanted to give to everybody in Chaldea. Team Scarves built morale, after all.

Talking with Marie about her cooking, and making stuff besides sweets with Mash, making various kinds of foods with his Kouhai. And he taken Vlad's advice and avoided Gilgamesh for the time being, and just let the golden king stew for a few days.

Now though it was Monday, the 24th of July and Da Vinci had made another Summoning Ticket for him to use. He'd mentioned to her the idea of a Holo-pen for use with Runes when he picked it up. And she had put it on her list of things to incorporate into the new Mystic Code she was making for Andrew.

And now he was in the Summoning Room with his Kouhai who had prepared the Ritual for him to use.

"Alright, these tickets seem to be pretty good luck. Maybe I'll get a third Cu?" Andrew speculated out loud as he prepared to activate the circle. "Or another Arturia." He hadn't really thought about that, he realized, that they were technically two of the same person, probably because their personalities and aesthetics were different enough. The Cu Chulainn's just straight-up felt like twins or like the same person in two different spots.

He shook his head as if to physically clear his thoughts. "Whatever, regardless of who it is, they'll be a welcome addition." He said as he poured his Prana through the ticket into the circle. He poured some extra Prana in like last time since that seemed to work pretty well, and since today was a physical training day anyway.

The ritual did its usual thing and from came his newest Servant. "Hello Andrew my Master, I Servant Rider, Georgios accepts the call and Contract, let us save the World shall we." Saint George the Dragon-Slayer announced himself.

Andrew greeted the Rider with a smile. "Georgios, it's good to have you with us. I take it Bayard is okay now?"

"Yes, I can feel his presence now. In this newest body." George answered.

"That's good to hear," Andrew said. "Oh, just as a forewarning, we've summoned both Charles-Henri Sanson and Vlad Tepes, but they are firmly on our side now, and Vlad vampire switch is staying firmly in the 'off' position."

"That is good to hear, now is there somewhere I can stay?"

"Right, here Saint George I've got a map of Chaldea for you to use that will show you where everyone is and the unoccupied rooms. I recommend the larger ones for you and your steed." Mash handed the Saint the map.

"Thank you lady Mash, I shall find a room and get acquainted with my fellow Servants," George said.

"Oh, right, before you go Georgios, there was something I wanted to ask you about," Andrew said.

"What is it, Andrew?"

"What's the extent of your Abyssus Draconis? I know when you used it on Siegfried to break the curse, he got the wings and tail and stuff. What happens when you use it on other things, like people or other Servants?"

"If they do not have a Dragon Trait already they will gain one for some time, which works in concert with my other Noble Phantasm to deal a devastating blow," George answered.

"Mhm. And can it prove beneficial to use on allies other than Siegfried? I have quite a few dragon-y Servants already; could you use it to strengthen that aspect of them for some time?" Andrew asked. This Noble Phantasm was one of the weirdest ones he'd seen yet, and he really had no reference point for it nor its extent, so he was asking the user directly to try and figure it out.

"It could, though only with their consent I would do such a thing," George answered.

"I'll have to see if there are any volunteers then later," Andrew said. "And what would happen if you used it on an inanimate object?"

"Nothing would really happen my Noble Phantasm requires the recipient to be alive," George answered.

"So the target has to _currently_ be alive, or at least as 'alive' as a Servant? Formerly alive things don't count?"

"I should be a bit more specific, to be more accurate it requires a Soul for the Dragon Trait to anchor itself to. Though going back to before, I can't turn objects into dragons if I use it on weapons they can become anti-dragon stuff, Andrew."

"Being able to bestow weapons with 'Anti-Dragon' sounds pretty useful," Andrew said. "So, sorry to hold you up, but would you like to start testing now? I'll see if I can get any volunteers."

"If you say, so Master. Though we should find a different room than here don't you think?" George asked.

"Right, let's head down to the Training Room. I ask for volunteers on the way down." Andrew said. "And call Kojirou, just in case. Better to have two Anti-Dragon Servants in case something goes wrong."

Xxx

And so about twenty minutes later Andrew had managed to gather the needed Servants for his little experiment. In the form Kiyohime, Lily, and Alter, who for doing it wanted Andrew to do a favor for her, to which Andrew added he would only do if it didn't go against his morals. And then there was Kojiro as muscle in case things went wrong.

And now they all stood in the empty Combat Training area for which to do their thing and with Mash as the audience.

Andrew clapped his hands together and rubbed them eagerly in an exaggerated fashion. "Alright, who wants to go first? I'm not sure how severe the effects will be, but this should be pretty interesting."

"I'll do it, might as well get this over with." Alter said as she stepped forward.

"Alright, Georgios! Do the thing!" Andrew said dramatically. He was enjoying all of the fun yet potentially useful things he had been doing since summoning Lancer Cu, and this was just another of those.

" **Abyssus Draconis!** " George activated his Noble Phantasm and the pauldron shaped like that of dragon's head lit up seemingly indicating the activation of the Noble Phantasm.

"So, was that all or was this a- auch." Alter began to stop with a yelp of pain. And she touched her head.

Andrew watched as thick scales began growing over her body, black in color destroying her dress but the new scales kept her modesty. "Great have to get a new one, well at least I'm badass looking." Alter said as Andrew observed a tail flick behind her. Scales also had grown from her skull looking like a crown.

"Okay, that's pretty sick," Andrew said. "Like, damn. Room, generate a few targets please?"

"Order acknowledged generating five targets." Responded the room with its automaton male voice.

A second later several Shadow Servants generated a few feet away from them.

"Alright Alter, rip and tear!" Andrew said with gusto. He wanted to know if this was actually beneficial or not, and testing her strength would be a good way to do that.

"I like what you're saying, Master." Alter smirked.

She did a few movements before she blasted of dark Prana surged around her limbs as she punched and tore her way through the five Shadows and in less that than ten seconds they were all down.

"Hmm, well Master I have to say that this is a plus to all my physical parameters." Alter said as she looked at her hands in fascination.

Andrew watched as she tore through them with impunity in awe. "That was awesome, Alter. And a plus to everything seems like a pretty tradeoff to being more dragony. You can continue feeling out the differences, I really want to see how these two are affected." Andrew said, before turning to the dragon teens. "Alright, who wants to go next?"

"Me, me, me, me!" Kiyohime said as she ran over in front of George. "It's time for Super Kiyohime!" She said energetically.

"Yeah! Georgios! Do it!" Andrew said, caught up in the excitement.

"Of course, Master this is actually kinda fun to do," George said, with a smile. He used his Noble Phantasm again, and what happened to Alter happened to Kiyohime, but she had blue scales instead of black. And her horns grew in size twisting backward, looking more like a ram's.

"Wow, this feels amazing!" Kiyohime shouted.

"Room! Generate more targets, please." Andrew said.

"Generating targets." Answered the VI.

More Shadow Servants appeared these for Kiyohime to tear into. "It feels like I'm about to explode. Haaaa." Kiyohime took in a deep breath and exhaled, and fire flew from her throat striking the generated enemies.

Andrew could feel the heat from his position, and after a few seconds, Kiyohime stopped letting loose as she turned back around to look at Andrew. "Kiyohime used Flamethrower; it was super effective." She commented.

"One. I didn't know the Grail gave Servants pop culture knowledge. Two. HOLY SHIT that was awesome!" Andrew said. "Actually, Kiyohime, how's is your shapeshifting affected by this?"

"Nah, I found a 3DS in the leisure room, been playing Pokemon Sun the entire week. And it's like it's been boosted. I can become a full dragon without doing it with my previous Noble Phantasm I had as Berserker." She answered.

"Oh yeah, I've been meaning to ask, what does your new Noble Phantasm do?" Andrew asked.

"Yeah, its fun place Gilgamesh spends most of the time there hogging the PS4 playing Gran Turismo. Anyway, it's like my old one, but instead, I transform my Naginata into a dragon instead of me. I throw it at armies, and it burns them to ashes, muwahahahaha." She faked evil laughed.

Andrew's eyes widened. "So with Georgios' Abyssus Draconis, you can basically be two dragons at once?"

"Oh, my Izanagi I can. I'm truly the superior dragon here in Chaldea." Her chin was in the air.

"Yes, in the aspect of being full of hot air." Came Alter's remark from her spot in the room where she was slinging around her dark prana.

"Bitch, you want to fight." Challenged Kiyohime.

"Denied!" Andrew said with as much authority as he could. "No fights like that between you two, _especially_ not right now. Try some other kind of competition, like…" Andrew thought for a moment before having an idea. "Who can beat the most Shadow Servants in a minute, or something like that if you still want to physically fight something."

"Alright then Master. Now, little girl, you shall know what feel like to be bested by the one who conquered a continent." Alter boasted.

"Bring it." Kiyohime accepted, and second, later the two Servant's began to mow down Shadow Servants as fast as they appeared.

"Are you sure that this won't escalate Senpai?" Mash asked from her sitting spot.

"I'm trying to get them to burn up as much of the 'dragon energy' as I can so they can calm down then," Andrew said, tapping his temple with his index finger. "It's all according to plan, Kouhai."

"Plan means Keikaku," Mash answered. "I watched it Senpai."

Andrew laughed at that. "I didn't even realize I was doing it, Kouhai. I was actually trying to reference something else." He said.

"Oh?" Mash said embarrassedly. "I thought you were referencing that."

"Only subconsciously, Kouhai," Andrew said. "Don't worry, I tend to do that a lot."

"Hey is it my turn now?" Lily asked.

"Ah, right, sorry Lily." Andrew apologized. "I kinda forget. Georgios, whenever you're ready."

"The last one for today, this has been a great exercise in the use of my power, Andrew I would never have thought to use it in this way," George said as he used Abyssus Draconis on Lily. She gained while scales as it fit her, though instead of tail like with Alter and Kiyohime she of the trio got a pair of wings.

"Oh, wow," Lily said, in astonishment as she caressed her newly grown leathery wings.

"Woah, sweet. You should see if those work!" Andrew said, excited at the idea of a flying Saber; she'd be able to counteract the main downside of being a Saber-range- by vastly increased mobility.

"I'll try Master," Lily said as she began to slowly began to flap her wings and after a few tries she gained lift off, but it was short-lived as she crashed a few seconds later face planting onto the floor, metaphorical tail-up.

Andrew laughed at Lily's misfortune internally, but before he went over to assist her, a voice rang throughout the room.

"What the hell is going on here?" Andrew turned around to see Roman standing in the entrance.

xxx

A/N:

Donate to my P A Treon. com (slash) TheBlacklightProjekt if you want to help me as a creator. And now take commissions, which is you paying for me to write any one-shot you want. Price depends on the length of One-Shot


	23. Loudmouthed

"Science!" Andrew exclaimed dramatically. "But more accurately, I summoned Saint Georgios, and we were testing the use of one of his Noble Phantasms on our already-dragony Servants."

Dr. Roman didn't seem amused by Andrew's first exclamation. "That is a good idea, but why wasn't I informed?" Roman's brows were raised.

"Ah, right, sorry Boss," Andrew said sheepishly. "I've kinda been riding this high from training with the Cu's and just did it without thinking of the consequences. I'll make sure to run any potentially dangerous experiments like this one by you in the future."

"You do that Andrew, now seeing as nothing went wrong this time, you're off the hook, but next there will be punishment. Andrew, you're Chaldea's most important asset, and if we lost you, we all lose. Now I hope you won't do anything so stupid again without my permission first."

"In that case, there is something I should probably ask you about then…" Andrew said.

"And that is?"

"Well, about a week ago, I had a chat with some of my Servants, and I asked Gilgamesh if he would let Da Vinci look at a few of the things in the Gate. He laughed me off of course and promised bodily harm if I asked again, to which Vlad took issue. The important thing though is that after that, he straight up _took_ two of my Command Seals. So, I was going to propose an idea to him- I'd give him 1 unused Command Seal whenever a day ends, and I still have all three so that he can stockpile them for whatever he deems 'worthy' to his intervention in the Singularities. And in return, I was going to ask for some of the better quality 'trinkets' from the Gate to assist in our efforts to save Human History." Andrew explained, laying out his plan. "And the chance of him doing anything over this is slim, but its _Gilgamesh_ so I figured it was worth asking permission for."

The reaction from Roman was an immediate facepalm. "Andrew, sometimes, you can sound really smart and clever and sometimes like this an utter idiot. And that's coming from me. Now I don't think he actually stole the Command Seals or else they wouldn't have returned but instead forced them to be used, like Kiyohime over could do before her change. Now there is no need to be offering things he doesn't obviously need, it would be a better idea to just ask nicely you know. Maybe get on your knees and beg perhaps, but if you catch him a good mood, he will give you stuff, like I got a wine bottle from him a few days ago, after I asked if I could have a taste." Roman said.

"Hey, in my defense, Kiyohime didn't say she would just use them up; to be honest, I thought I would have to use a Command Seal to not die, not that it would just get used up," Andrew said. "And I figured an exchange would probably work better than begging because of the whole 'collector' thing, you know?"

"Andrew, from the analysis of his Saint Graph he has everything, there is nothing in this world you can give him, he doesn't already have. You would need to give him literal Alien stuff, or things so far into the future it has to be called Post-Human stuff." Roman explained.

Andrew had a realization. "Wait, but _am_ _I_ considered human? I know I was before, but I'm pretty sure this world isn't mine; would the Gate even think of me as human, if it works retroactively like I think it does? Like, could I make something new and it would _actually_ be new, without a counterpart in the Gate?" Andrew speculated out loud, his mind racing with the possibilities.

"Andrew your one hundred percent human, at least by the World definition of it, if you were truly Alien everywhere you walked would be changed into what your homeworld looks like. At least that's what ORT down in South Africa does, and Imaginary Demons do."

"I mean, technically, my 'homeworld' is still Earth, just an 'Earth' that I don't think has the same 'Gaia,' so maybe I am, and we just aren't realizing it because it's already technically 'Earth'?"

"Gaia/Alaya, the wills of the planets and humanity's desire to Survive at any cost, are what people on the internet and in comic books would call multiversal entities, they have more in common with the Living Tribunal than Gaia of the Greek Titans. I love how fiction can make things like this explainable." Roman explained.

"Do they continue to exist regardless of the state of other versions of 'Earth'? Because if there is even one universe where something destroys it, like in the Singularities, wouldn't there be nothing to 'form' either of them in that world?"

"Yes, we have thanks to observations from Lord Zelretch that Alaya culls timelines that have become stagnate. Imagine it like a tree the main timeline is the trunk and parallel timelines are the branches. Then the branches start to go bad the gardener, the World/Counterforce, cuts them off and burns them. Actually, I'm surprised that we haven't been or perhaps what initiated the incineration is preventing Alaya from making us nonexistent."

"If I understand this right, in this instance the gardener, for whatever reason, can't get to the root of the problem. And so were the ones fixing the problem, but to fix it we first needed to use a 'bad branch' so to speak, which is being allowed for the sake of the whole tree?" Andrew said, trying to make sense of it all."

"Something along that line, the metaphysics of the World isn't my expertize Andrew but, we can discuss it a later date. For now, though I think your three female Servants are getting impatient with you." Dr. Roman said and pointed his finger to behind Andrew.

"Ah, right," Andrew said, turning around to face said Servants, who were standing there impatiently the three girls tapping their foot, George wasn't looking, he seemed to be in the middle of a conversation with Kojiro. And it was here Andrew took notice of quiet everything suddenly was, and the fact that the girls were making no sound at all, despite the fact them hitting the floor with their feet should produce some. "Por Que? Did you three get stealth bonuses too?"

"No, I just but a silencing Bounded Field when you started rambling, cause we were having a private conversation weren't we." Andrew turned around to look at Roman who looked so proud of himself for his little trick.

"Wait, what? I don't know much about Magecraft, but isn't that really impressive? Aren't Bounded Fields supposed to take time and at least a few words to set up? How did you do that basically instantly?" Andrew asked rapidly, awestruck. He thought Roman's specialty lied in Healing, but apparently, he was pretty strong as a whole.

"Bounded Field are my specialty and I learned to cast without saying stuff, as I tend to fumble words and bite my tongue when chanting. And besides Arias are just for self-hypnosis they aren't actually technically needed to cast Spells."

"Huh. That's, really, really cool Boss." Andrew said earnestly, amazed at the sheer level of skill such a thing must take compared to his beginner knowledge and skill. "Like, wow I didn't realize the sheer difference in the ability of a newbie-really the only other non-Servant Magecraft I've seen- and an actual Magus with a Lineage. That's awesome."

"Of course I am the awesome Doctor Roman, now talk to you later Andrew, I have to calibrate some systems." Roman turned and then smacked his face into the door that had closed behind him. "You didn't see that." He said as the door opened and he left.

Andrew turned back to his Servants, chuckling at Roman's clumsiness as he did so. "Sorry about that. When the Boss wants to talk about something you gotta talk to 'em." He said.

"Great we can finally hear, I didn't think that the idiot had skills like that, though compared to what Merlin and my sister could do that bubble of silence would be child's play to them." Alter commented.

"I've give you right in that Alter, those two were something else," Lily added.

"Oh yeah, that reminds me, Alter you're not the 'King Arthur' from this world's history. Did the FATE system inform you about the differences, or?" Andrew asked, curious.

"Yes, it has, and it seemed I was the one who got most things done before Camelot fell." She answered.

"As in 'how much you expanded your kingdom' or as in 'how many stories you have to tell'?" Andrew asked.

"Little of the second most of the first, I got to conquer most of Europe." She sounded so proud of saying that.

"Ah," Andrew said at that, as neutrally as possible. "So, did you still assemble the same members of the Knights of the Round or did you make an entirely different group of Knights?"

"No, they were all the same, the core members were at least. I think at the prime of my rule thousands of knights were part of the Round. Of course, some got replaced when they died or betrayed me, Lancelot you utter fool." She grumbled. "This isn't the place to discuss this, come to my room if you wish to know more about my particular history."

"Ah, right, sorry," Andrew said. "In that case, what do the three of you want to do now?"

"Ah, I think the three of us is going to let this power-up run its course, and get some food," Kiyohime said.

"Is that good with you two?" Andrew asked the Arturia(s).

"It is." They said answered in stereo it was so funny when that happened, as it created a kind of echo as their voices although had a slight tone shift was still the exact same.

"Alright then, that's fine then, but if any of you feel extra violent come back here and bust up some Shadow Servants. And given the stakes, that's an order." Andrew said as authoritatively as possible.

"Yes, Master." They answered.

"Alright then," Andrew said. "I'm going to go have a chat with The King."

Xxx

Andrew sighed and took in a breath of fresh air as he opened the door to the leisure/lounge room as that was where Gilgamesh currently was according to the map.

As he entered Andrew got a good look at the room for the first time, and he couldn't help but describe it as an extravagant man cave, with one corner being all entertainment with a door labeled 'Cinema.' And on the other end was a Bar.

At the moment inside the room were few people Gilgamesh in front of a tv playing a racing game and the two Cu's were seemingly doing Bar inventory.

Andrew waved to the Hounds and sent them a quick telepathic message that he was going to ask the King for something and he might need them in case this went south.

The two waved back after taking notice of him, and Andrew got a message back telling him to be careful, and they would assist if things went south. He sent back a quick thank you and then went over to Gilgamesh and the sofa where he was seated. "Pardon the intrusion, my King, may I have a word with you for a moment?"

Gilgamesh pressed the pause button and turned his attention towards. "Of course I shall lend an ear, now that you have seemed to have learned your manners."

"...Indeed. Now, you said before you would bequeath to me some of what, as you called them, 'trinkets' from your collection. I came to ask what those were... and if the Gate contains something which I am unsure as to the existence of." Andrew said, carefully managing his words.

"You shouldn't be concerned about that Master, I have already given them to the Caster, after making sure she won't make replicas. I'd rather not have fakes of my treasure flooding the place. As for what they are, it is tools and weapons that would be appropriate for the Mystic Code she is designing for you, I have seen the final design, and I must say the woman has taste. Now, what are you think I do not possess in my Treasury Master?" He asked the last part like it was a challenge.

"A-ah, forgive my insolence, my King, I didn't mean to imply you do not possess them, merely that I was unsure if they existed in the capacity in which I envision them." Andrew quickly tried to cover for his accidental slight. "And, since you possess the originals of everything whether certain things would even be recognizable as the metaphysical ancestor of those objects."

"Please stop that Master, I might demand politeness, but I disdain a bootlicker, words of sincerity are better than those do not hold merit at all," Gilgamesh said. "Now what is it you wish to see?"

"I am legitimately interested in the differences between the modern and 'original' versions of certain things, but what I wanted to ask was if you had a...for lack of a better term, magical sewing enhancer?" Andrew said, struggling for the correct way of saying it. "The ancient magical precursor to knitting needles? I'm not sure what form they would take if such a thing ever existed in the capacity I am imagining it in the first place."

"Do you wish for a sewing machine or thread and needle?" Gilgamesh seemingly asked for clarification.

"Ah, I've used both, but a sewing machine?" Andrew said, unsure. "They're much faster, though I don't know if when magic is involved if that matters."

"Hmm," Came the bemused tone from Gilgamesh and a second later a golden portal opened up and book made of stone fell into his hands. "The inventory of the Gate has long since surpassed even my knowledge, it is the culmination of human thought, ingenuity, and ideas. So long as it is possible to conceive within the human mind it shall exist within the Gate of Babylon it's just a matter of finding it. And thankfully for that, I have this book that is able to keep a record when I can't. Let's see find me a sewing machine." Gilgamesh said. The book seemingly came to life as it opened up and an infinite amount of pages seemed to flip before Andrew's eyes before coming to a stop. "Ah, here we go got various of them with different magical effects to them I think that this will be most useful for you." Gilgamesh tapped the book, and another golden portal opened up. Andrew saw a gold, block with a handle being ejected onto the floor at a non-lethal pace. "Now this one has an infinite thread and then what is sown can never be torn apart. So, don't sew wrong with this one."

"When you say 'tear,' is that specifically against all forms of breakage or could, for instance, a blade still cut the thread?" Andrew asked.

"Blades still works but the two dogs over there could pull on it with all their strength and the thread wouldn't snap."

"Thank you for your generosity, my King," Andrew said, grateful for the gift. "There was also something else I wanted to ask about, if I may keep your time for a bit yet?"

"Of course, I have nothing currently to do, that is too important."

"Thank you. There were actually two conceptual things I wanted to ask about the Gate; the one I most definitely _do not_ need you to demonstrate, and the other is more an issue of definitions." Andrew said. "So, firstly- the Gate contains everything humans can make; what's the prototype for giant robots?"

"That would be that automaton that the Greeks possessed, I think its name became Talos? Was it?"

"I believe so. And, smaller part of that question, do the prototypes for the Bronze Bulls of Colchis exist within the Gate or are they too 'divine' in nature?"

"They exist, the Gate contains Divine weaponry too," Gilgamesh answered.

"That makes sense. That leads into my next question, though- you possess the prototype of every _object_ made by mankind, including objects which could rightfully be called 'creatures' in their own right; so do you possess the prototype for the Artificial Humans, Homunculi?" Andrew asked.

"It contains the recipe for how to make modern Homunculi, like those utilized by Alchemists. As what could be considered the first Homunculus is… a name that doesn't deserve to pass my lips." For a moment Andrew heard genuine sadness.

Andrew's eyes widened a bit at that; Gilgamesh saying such a thing meant only one person could be being referred to. "My apologies for bringing up such memories; I didn't realize the connection of Artificial Humans."

"It is fine, Master. Now please leave, we're done here for the day, and remember to take your machine."

"Yes, of course. Thank you for your generosity, my King." Andrew said as he went over to said machine's box and lifted it by its handle. It was a bit heavy, but Andrew was able to carry it with one arm thanks in part to his training with the Cu's, who he made his way over to. "Hey, since when are you two bar _tenders_ and not bar _hoppers_ , ya know?" He asked the two (which they technically were due to the different memories).

"Well, we're, but we like to see what the bar currently has, since, the guy who did it, died when that Lev bastard did his thing." Caster Cu scowled.

That put a damper on Andrew's good mood. "Ah. Yeah." He sighed and put the super-sewing machine's box down and took a seat on the stool. "Hey, while I'm here, hows about I keep that promise I made in France, yeah?"

"Sure thing, Master do you have anything you would like to try I would recommend a Pina Colada for first timers." Caster Cu suggested.

"Sure, why not. Might as well ease my way into breaking the law."

"Eh, I don't think underage drinking is going to be a problem here Master." Caster Cu said as he brought forth the ingredients for the drink and started mixing.

"I was facetious, a magic dog," Andrew said.

"That's a new one, and here one Pina Colada, try it before I tell you what it contains, cause I know if you have a sudden idea about what it's going to taste like, it's going to taste like it."

Andrew looked at the alcoholic drink in front of him, the white-yellow colored liquid covered in white foam on the top.

"Yeah, you're a magic dog, and the other one is a stabby dog, and if we summon you as a Berserker, he can be an angry dog, Archer you would be a shooty dog, Assassin you would be a sneaky dog, etc.," Andrew said. "Also you have _got_ to tell me sometime what the Warp Spasm actually looked like." He said before he cautiously took a sip, gagging at the burning sensation. "I thought you said this was a lighter drink?"

"It is or your just that sensitive. It's Rum, mixed with coconut milk, and pineapple juice, plus the pina."

"What the heck's a 'pina'?" Andrew asked.

"Eh, just the fancy word for saying pineapple fruit meat."

"Ah," Andrew said as he eyed the drink before cautiously taking another sip, which he had only slightly less trouble with. "You know, I'm starting to think that maybe alcohol isn't for me."

"True, not for everyone." Lancer Cu commented from the others side of the Bar. "Though there are a few cases of Soda if you want something to drink."

"Any Dr. Pepper?" Andrew asked, sliding the pina colada away from him slightly.

"Nope, we got Pepsi, Cola, Carlsberg Sport, Fanta and a few others with flavors." Was the response from the Lancer.

"Mhm... Any birch beer?"

"There is Root Beer, but it's the Christmas stuff, by the gods, this is all over the place. It's like somebody decided to just buy the lucky package or something." Lancer Cu answered back.

"Ah. I'll take one of those." Andrew said.

Xxx

 _July 31_

"Cause I got a golden ticket~" Andrew sang to himself as he entered the Summoning Room, followed shortly by Mash.

"Why are you singing Senpai?" Mash asked, the door closing behind them as the room lit up.

"Oh, it's from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, golden tickets were a plot point. I'm pretty sure Da Vinci made the Summoning Tickets gold because of it." Andrew answered.

"Don't you mean Charlie and The Chocolate Factory Senpai? The one with Mr. Depp in it." Mash asked.

"Oh, you sweet summer child. We need to have a Movie Night sometime, watch some classics." Andrew said. "Not that there's anything wrong with the newer one-" there was, but he wasn't saying that out loud "-but to me, Gene Wilder is Willy Wonka."

"Oh? So there is an older version, I didn't know that." Mash said in surprise as she summoned forth her shield so that she could set up the Ritual.

"Yeah, a lot of movies are like that. Though by Servant rules they wouldn't hold a candle to the original, some do end up better than their predecessor." Andrew said.

"Ah, okay then we should watch it Senpai, maybe we could invite some of the others, and we could have a big movie night or just the two of us." Mash suggested. "And the circle is ready Senpai."

"Alright! Let's try our luck, third time's the charm!" Andrew said as he pumped his Prana through the ticket into the circle. Really, every summoning so far he had been hoping for Jeanne, but he was particularly hopeful with this one due to said saying the '3 is holy' thing.

The ritual did its show and dance and revealed who his newest Servant was. "Servant Rider Ushiwakamaru at your service my Lord and Master." Announced the newest Rider Andrew had summoned clad in what he would call, at best, bikini armor.

"Welcome, Servant Rider-" Andrew wasn't even going to try pronouncing her name at the moment "-to Chaldea. I am Andrew Murphy. Thank you for answering the call to save Human History. Though I must ask: where is the rest of your armor?" Andrew asked. Her armor did look like someone had removed the main portion (i.e., the breastplate) and anything else between the arms, and he hoped the rest just simply was not manifested currently.

"What do you mean my Lord, it is all the armor that I need, and what a Tengu should wear." She responded.

"Tengu?" Andrew asked. She did not fit his idea of a 'tengu' in the slightest, but he might have just been misinformed. "And how is _that_ all the armor you need?" He added, using his Stat-o-Vision quickly to see if her Agility was EX or something.

 **True Name:** Ushiwakamaru

 **Class:** Rider

 **Master:** Andrew Murphy

 **Parameters:**

Strength: D

Endurance: C

Agility: A+

Mana: B

Luck: A

Noble Phantasm: A+

 **Class Skills:**

Riding: A+

Magic Resistance: C

 **Personal Skills:**

Tengu's Art of War: A

Charisma: C+

Quick-Witted Swallow: B

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Shana-oh's Wandering Tales(Anti-Unit(Self)): A++

Seemed his guess had been close, she did have a very high Agility. And that A++ Noble Phantasm looked interesting, though what he found odd was that there was no mount; maybe it just wasn't her Noble Phantasm?

"Yes, the Tengu are the ones that taught me the ways of battle and of war, they gave me their techniques and this armor, I consider myself a part of them. For if I wore more, I would be unable to use my Noble Phantasm." She answered.

"Mhm. And when you say 'more,' do you mean more anything in general, or could normal clothing be worn with your armor if it was unrestrictive enough?" Andrew asked.

"Perhaps, but I see no need for that, my body is a tool for you to be used, and so my appearance should be no concern for my effectiveness, my Lord."  
"On the contrary, dear Rider," Andrew said. He was going to practice saying her name later, but he did not trust himself to say it correctly at the moment. "If a tool is left exposed to the elements, it will rust and begin to degrade, and such a thing could permanently damage that tool. And more importantly, _you_ are a real person in addition to a Servant, so don't think of yourself as _just_ a tool."

"I'm a Servant my Lord, so those things are no longer a concern, but if you wish I shall find alternative clothing to wear outside of battle." She responded.

"That is...acceptable," Andrew said.

Looked like Project: Team Scarves was going to be pushed back a bit.

Xxx

A/N:

Donate to my P A Treon. com (slash) TheBlacklightProjekt if you want to help me as a creator. And now take commissions, which is you paying for me to write any one-shot you want. Price depends on the length of One-Shot


	24. I am Dragon Man

After Andrew had summoned Ushi, Da Vinci had popped her head into the room and told the three currently in it that his new Mystic Code was ready to be put on and tested. And so Mash had suggested to show Ushi around while Andrew checked out the thing Da Vinci had made for him.

Now he was standing in the back of Da Vinci Workshop in front of a curtain with said Master of the shop standing right next to it smiling like her face was about to break in half.

Andrew's grin almost matched it. He was _very_ eager to see the results of her hard work, especially with the inputs from Gilgamesh's Arsenal. "Okay, the suspense is killing me, pull the curtain already!"

"Impatient aren't you Andrew well after almost being awake for three weeks straight, making this and getting Chaldea up to the best it can be, I'm proud to present your newest Mystic Code for you to use." Da Vinci said and pulled on the rope next to her making the curtain be pulled back.

Andrew's jaw was practically on the floor. " _I_ get to wear _that_?!" He asked, practically about to burst. It was like a dragon shaped like a human, not like the draconic servants but more like a full dragon compressed into the shape of a human, crimson red scales plating the whole thing, with wicked claws on the arms and legs, 6 backwards facing and seemingly just aesthetic horns from the helm which had glowing yellow eyes and a few extra similarly colored glowing spots on the helm, and a segmented tail with a wicked blade like a war-scythe on the end. Overall it looked like something more appropriate for some dragon-slaying hero of Myth than the young dumbass from the U.S. "Holy shit this is _incredible_ when I said 'scale mail' I was thinking like a breastplate or something, Da Vinci you took my expectations and _shot them into the sun, holy shit!_ " The mere _idea_ that he was going to wear that was almost enough for him to be over the moon, and he still didn't even know what it actually did.

"Yes, I am genius. But just a breastplate? Please, I'm capable of creating technology 500 years ahead of what can currently be made, this right here while impressive for you is a little above the basics. I wanted it to be more compact by making it out of nanites, but I didn't have time for that. Now, do you wish for me to go over what the suit is capable of?" Da Vinci asked.

" _Hell to the yes!"_ Andrew said ecstatically. If this was what she had been able to do in three weeks, it was no wonder Chaldea could do all the crazy techno-magic stuff he'd seen so far.

"Right take a chair for the list is a bit long." Andrew took the advice and sat on one of the stools inside the workshop dragging over beside his awesome new armor. "Now, the design is of course dragon based as the main material is the scales of those Wyverns you Rayshifted to me. Now they have been alchemically treated with different metals so now it's both physically and magically defensive, and I threw in a kinetic barrier for extra security. Now the armor itself is modular so the pieces of it can be replaced so if one part gets damaged the entire thing isn't ruined. So that tail can be taken off if you want to. Now to put it on you start with an undersuit so that your Magic Circuits can interface with it so you can utilize it, for its locked only to your circuits nobody else can use it. Combat wise the basic armor will enhance all of your physical attributes to E-Rank on the Servant scale of power. Which can be temporarily enhanced to above that with combat spells, such as the Instant Reinforcement that has been switched out with one that works like Mana Burst. And you're capable of AoE Healing now. Other combat spells include shields, Gandr and Finn Shot for less lethal attacks. Now as for armaments the right index finger has that hard light pen you requested for your Runes. In the left gauntlet is a launcher for Runestones to be shot, and under both palms is flamethrower for a more dragony experience. Now Gilgamesh has provided three things for you to the armor. The first is the prototype for the wings crafted by Dedalus for limited aerial flight, refitted to be more dragony. He also provided a more land-based vehicle so Mash doesn't have to carry you around, in the form of a hoverbike, the thing even has a gun on it. The third and final thing astounds even me." Da Vinci took a small breath as she had basically been talking nonstop, Andrew practically falling off of his seat as she did from the sheer amount of awesome. "It's an overpowered little piece of shit, and it frustrates me. It's basically The Weapon."

"'The' Weapon?" Andrew asked. "Like, the weapon of all weapons kind of 'The Weapon'? Or like a swiss army knife of weapons?'"

"The Swiss army kind. It's a little box that can become any kind of weapon you can think of that can fit in your hand. Believe me, I've tried, from swords, pistols, assault rifles, snipers, rocket launcher. Even more exotic weapons like a plasma cannon, Ether cannons. They can even fire various ammunition." Andrew was about to _explode_ from excitement-that was like the Holy Grail to him, more so than the actual Holy Grail. "Though it does require Prana to work, it is not a real concern anymore with you at least. For now, with the Grail, our energy storage has increased tremendously. And though you have a basically infinite source of magical energy, you still have a limited output via your Magic Circuits. So, the amount of Servants you can field hasn't increased we wouldn't want your Circuits to overheat trying to fuel too much Prana through them. Oh, right I almost forgot, the armor also includes probably the greatest spell I've come up with, the Grand Order Change. Which will allow you to summon your Servants from Chaldea to the Singularity and switch them out with others, without using Command Seals. So, what do you think?"

"What do I think?" Andrew asked. "What do I think? I think this is the best thing I've ever seen! I think I want to try this on _right now, please and thank you so very much! Da Vinci is the smartest ever!_ " He felt like a kid who had just been given a suit of power armor for Christmas.

"Ah, yes praise my genius now, you need to put on the undersuit I've got it over here." Da Vinci walked over to the side and took something out from beneath one of her benches. A second later she was holding out the undersuit for Andrew to see.

He had changed into it quicker than he had done practically anything else in his entire life. It was a bit tight but not as tight as he would have expected that kind of suit to be. Probably the early results of his training with the Cu Chulainn's. "How do I put on the main suit, piecemeal or does it like? open up or something?" He said, eager to take the dragon-suit for a spin. "Oh yeah, and what's its name?"

"It piecemeal, and this one stretches." She as she pulled on the undersuit's top and the thing stretched like rubber. "And I haven't named it, it's just Combat Armor Mark 1, for now."

Andrew's eyes lit up. "Then, can I have the honor of naming it?" He asked, giddy at the opportunity.

"Yeah, sure it's yours anyway." Da Vinci said.

"...Tenfold Shields." Andrew said after a moment. "So, which part do we start with?"

Xxx

" _So, Andrew are you ready for a test run!"_ Came the voice of Da Vinci from the inside of his helmet as the thing apparently had an onboard computer system, so he had a holographic interface for him to see. With Video Call, as Da Vinci's face was down in the corner along with Roman's.

After Andrew had put the armor on and off a few times to learn how to put it on himself, they had gone to Roman for the use of Rayshifting to transport him to one of the lesser Singularities which didn't pose any threat to the Human History, as they were maintained by the Phantasmal Species living inside of it. And to see how the Armor functioned after Rayshifting, so they didn't get a surprise malfunction, during the actual ones.

"Hell yeah!" Andrew replied as he began moving around a bit to get a feel for the armor, doing a few basic stretches. It wasn't even like it wasn't there, it was more like it was an extension of his body. Hell, he felt like he had _more_ flexibility with the Tenfold Shields than without. "What are we doing first? I know what I _want_ to test first of course, but you're in charge here."

" _All the systems are running optimally so, let's start with exercises running, jumping around things like that."_ Da Vinci suggested.

"Right!" Andrew said, taking his first real steps with the armor. It was like he'd become light as air compared to what he expected with the bulky armor. He started with just walking through the forest, accelerating until he was running and what he felt was probably a good jogging pace which already outdid his previous top speed by a long shot. Then he kept going, trying to see how fast he could go, and soon made it to 60 miles per hour according to the little speedometer in the HUD. And then he kept going. And going. And soon enough he hit what seemed to be his max speed, 150 miles per hour. He couldn't even form words at the sensation of moving that fast with his own body, letting out a whoop of joy at the whole thing as he, despite the speed, weaved around the trees with ease.

"Oh my _lord_ this feels amazing!" He said aloud as he kept running, deciding to take a chance and leaping over a large rock in his path instead of going around it.

Andrew realized he must just have broken several records with that jump in height and length as he flew through the air. And after a second he landed again, his clawed boots digging into the ground to slow him down, coming to a halt in a newly made furrow of earth.

" _Great jump, Andrew, now let's test out Mana Burst and see how it works. It should enhance your limbs temporarily for a few seconds to A-Rank. So, try to hit a tree and see the effects."_

"Right!" Andrew said as he went to the nearest tree, hitting it first without said boosts for comparison. He merely punched the tree, and the decently thick one he had chosen, his fist cracked it in half. "Holy shit that's awesome," Andrew said at the display of his own new strength, a tad jaded from much more intense displays by Servants, before heading back to the rock he had jumped. "Alright, how do I use the Mana Burst thing?"

" _Right with how many things I added I made it voice activated, so go be a Shonen Hero and scream your attack name like us Servants do… Crap I just realized how anime we are, and what you said it's so true."_

Andrew chuckled a bit. "Yeah, it's harder to tell those kinds of things when that's just your norm." He then telegraphed his punch far more than he normally would, just for this one strike. "Now then... _MANA BURST!"_ He shouted as he punched the rock with as much force as he could muster.

And the thing just shattered and _exploded,_ leaving Andrew with rocks shards flying around him, as they collided with the trees and ruined them. Andrew also took notice of little icon on the HUD, that disappeared after a few seconds as he observed the aftermath. He had apparently ten seconds to use the Burst before it ran out. But with how he could activate it right before a punch it would be all he really needed.

" _Good, Andrew now while the armor might be able to handle consecutive uses, doesn't mean your body can. While it's able to cancel most recoil, some will go through, and the damage will accumulate so take it easy. Now let's try out the other spells."_ Da Vinci said.

"Right, how does the 'shield' one work?" Andrew said, eager to learn everything he could do with the recently-dubbed Tenfold Shields.

" _There several shields that you can deploy, Barricade Shield for covering multiple allies, Bubble Shield for a 360 shield around yourself. Reflect Shield that is able to reflect magical attacks back at the user. How many depends on the magnitude of the attack."_

"Right," Andrew acknowledged and quickly went through each of the shields to see if they worked properly, testing the Reflect Shield (the only one he really could test on his own) by testing out Finn Shot and Gandr at. Which were the spells Rin had used in the show being shadowy balls of sickness. Which he could fire if he wanted like they were a machine gun. And now it was time for him to test his new wings, with the warning of not flying too high of course.

He jumped straight up into the air, as high as he could-which turned out to be about 30-ish feet- and said "Activate Wings!" It felt weird saying things like that and actually expecting real things to occur, but it was definitely happening, much to Andrew's joy as said wings unfurled from the back of the armor and spread wide, the wingspan only a bit larger than he was tall, but he was actually flying so he chalked it up to magic. In other news:

"Holy shit this even better! I'm actually flying!" He said as he hovered in the air, flipping the bird to every law of aerodynamics and flight.

Well, he wasn't flying more like levitating as the wings didn't move or flap like a bird's. He could still move in the air, by thinking of where he wanted to go. So it was more like the wings granted psychic based flight. He proceeded to use said flight to do as many aerial maneuvers as he could think of. This was something even better than the running; he'd never flown before at all, let alone done anything like _this_. It was like being on a rollercoaster but with no tracks.

Andrew also quickly found out the limits to his flight that he couldn't go higher than a hundred meters into the air, and he flew slower than he could run maxing his flight speed at 80mph.

" _Andrew I'm detecting several magical signatures down below you. Matching at the levels of Monstrous Beasts. It seems somebody decided to become test dummies. About a dozen of them."_

"Just to be clear, the Singularity itself isn't going to try and kill me if I do that?" Andrew said, eager to test out the limitations of The Weapon but also eager to not die to an angry pocket dimension.

" _Also I forgot to mention that The Weapon and Runestones for the launcher are stored inside a hammerspace attached to the armor, along with the Hoverbike, and it can be used as an inventory. Once again it's voice controlled."_

"So do I have to load in a Runestone before I fire? Actually, better question, do I have to deploy the launcher first or is it already activated, and I just don't know it?" Andrew asked.

" _The Runestones are stored in magazines with ten in each based on elemental damage. You load them into the launcher in the gauntlet by voice command, and they teleport automatically into it. Say, for instance, Fire Runes and that magazine will be loaded in, and you launch it by making a fist and tapping the first joint of your index finger three times rapidly."_ Da Vinci explained.

"Fire Runes." Andrew said, pointing his fist at where the HUD was telling him the targets were before 'firing.' The red runestone shot out of his left vambrace far faster than he could have ever thrown it, swiftly impacting the forest ground and exploding in a glorious blaze. "Okay that is _way_ better than I was expecting, I really just need to stop expecting anything with your work Da Vinci I just keep getting blown out of the water every time."

" _Why thank you, Andrew, now the enemy has been revealed, and it seems to be werewolves. Go off the beasts would you and to use the flamethrower function just do Spider-Man hand thing. Oh, the glory of being a nerd. Now go roast and punch some mutts."_

"Yes, ma'am!" Andrew said as he flew over the top of where the now-exposed werewolves were in the newly made and still burning clearing in the forest. "Let's turn up the heat!" He said, making the motion and watching as jets of flame blasted forth from the wrists of the armor, which he moved in wide sweeps to get as big an area as he could, laughing. "I think you just turned me into a pyromaniac! This is _amazing!_ "

Andrew continued to spew fire at the werewolves hunting them down they tried to escape, and soon enough they were all dead, and everything was on fire.

" _Andrew you might need to chill a little bit."_ Dr. Roman commented for the first time during the exercise.

"Good idea, boss. Ice Runes." Andrew said, before firing said runestones into the flames, canceling out a good deal of the blaze. "Da Vinci, how do I deploy the Bike? And do you know if it already has a name?" He asked.

" _I don't think that was what Romani meant Andrew, but good job. And like everything else Voice Commanded, and Gilgamesh never told me what it was called."_

"Yeah, yeah, I know. I'll try not to burn everything to ash." Andrew said half-sarcastically. "But if it isn't named then, can I change the Voice Command to deploy it?"

" _Just, say what you want it as, and I'll change the program when you come back."_ Da Vinci answered.

"Hurricane Ride," Andrew said. "Might as well stick with the theme y'know?"

" _Alright writing that down and It be a good time to use it, as I'm detecting the boss a few miles from here."_

"Alright. Deploy Hoverbike!" Andrew said, and instantly there was what looked like a mostly gray-with-some-red-portions wheeless motorcycle floating in front of him. "...aand I just remembered I don't know how to ride a regular motorcycle, let alone a magic flying one."

" _Well, as good as time to learn as any Andrew, though I think it's going to be same as a bicycle if you've had one of those. Though to make it speed up and slow down, turn both handles forwards and backward, the breaks are like with a bike's and the right button is for the booster the left to fire the laser cannon."_

Andrew shrugged and mounted the hoverbike, keeping the wings deployed just in case anything went wrong. "Alright, let's ride." He said before nose-diving said bike directly into the forest like an idiot before just barely correcting his course. "Okay, this is nothing like a bicycle."

Andrew spent the next few minutes learning how to balance his weight as that is what it turns left and right. It had a bit of self-adjustment so him accidentally doing a complete front flip was impossible. And thanks to it being a hover one it was pretty much an all-terrain vehicle.

Now that Andrew had learned to balance himself he turned the handles forward one tick, and Andrew sped off towards the 'boss' monster, it was slow at first, but as he continued to handle more speed, Andrew was cruising through the forest on Hurricane Ride.

It had been a little easier than he had first thought but he guessed it had something to with his armor, allowing him to react quicker and not crash into a tree, as he entered the portion of the large forest he hadn't set on fire.

Now Andrew could see on the HUD that the 'boss' monster was coming up close. "Hey, so is The Weapon voice controlled too?" He asked. He _really_ wanted to test it out, more so than the gun on the newly dubbed Hurricane Ride.

" _It is, but it also works on thoughts by holding it when I tested it out."_ Da Vinci said. _"Though do you have a name for it, as calling it The Weapon is a bit tiresome to say?"_

"Well, I was kinda thinking of sticking with the theme and calling it 'my Claws,' but I'm not sure if that's a good 'official' name," Andrew said. "Speaking of, Deploy The Weapon." He said, bringing Hurricane Ride to a halt and holding out his right hand to receive said weapon. Upon looking at it, he saw it was a metal box with a silvery sheen to it and integrate lines running over it. It fit neatly in Andrew's hand.

"Alright, let's see how this works…" He said to himself. "Pistol." He said, holding out the box at arm's length to watch it transform. And a little bit after he was holding a bog standard looking 1911 handgun. "Smith and Wesson Model 500." He said, getting a bit more specific and picturing said firearm in his mind, and soon after the formerly normal looking handgun turned into the monster of a revolver he had said. "Sword." It transformed into a basic looking arming sword, a much more dramatic change from revolver to a sword than from gun-to-gun had been. "Lightsaber."

And in his hand, Andrew held a familiar silver cylinder. With trepidation, he pressed the button on its side, and a blue beam of hot plasma was soon extended from the hilt. "Okay, wasn't actually expecting that to work." He said, in awe as he stared at every Star Wars fan's dream come true, swinging it around with the distinctive noise.

"Alright, let's see just how esoteric this gets," Andrew said.

He then realized he was very close to where the boss was so Andrew got off of Hurricane Ride so that he could fully test The Weapon.

He really needed to think of a proper name for it.

He was directly outside of a cave opening, and it seemed the beast was inside.

Andrew decided that fighting a monster on its own turf wouldn't be the best idea. "Lightning Runes." He said, before firing two of said Runestones into the cave in an effort to draw the monster out. If it was as landbound as the werewolves, he wanted to maintain his aerial superiority.

And it seemed to work as he heard the beast inside roar and soon Andrew found himself face to face with it.

" _Get ready for a fight Andrew that's a Chimera, call on your Servants if you think you can't beat it."_ Da Vinci advised.

Andrew quickly flew backward and upwards away from the angered chimera, swiping at it with the still-lightsaber shaped Weapon as he did. "As long as it can't reach me it can't hurt me. I'll be fine." He said.

And as soon as he said that the beast looked at him with its snake tail that opened its mouth and began firing balls of Prana directly at Andrew. He panicked and quickly dodged out of the way by dropping down a few meters, thankfully the balls were rather slow.

"Alright, you wanna play that way? RPG-7!" He said, the iconic rocket launcher quickly forming and being fired at the Chimera.

The rocket-propelled grenade was fired and struck the Greek Monster where it exploded. The dust quickly settled, and Andrew saw that while it was still alive, it was missing a good chunk of its body, and was now laying dying on the forest floor.

" _How American of you Andrew, still we learned that if it forms a mundane weapon it has mystery attached to it and can hurt beings like the Chimera, and if didn't that would have done squat."_

"Understood," Andrew said, drifting down towards the Chimera. "Smith and Wesson Model 500." The Weapon once more took the shape of the oversized revolver, which he aimed at the closest head-the goat head- and fired, putting it out of its misery. He then repeated this with the other two heads. He was very happy he'd gone hunting before, or he might have had more trouble actually killing it, psychologically. "Da Vinci, do you think you can use this things corpse for anything useful?" Andrew asked.

" _Just, its claws can you cut them off for me?"_

"Right," Andrew said, landing on the ground in front of the Chimera's corpse. "Lightsaber." The Weapon transformed once more. The scene was already bloody enough, he really didn't want to add to it. He proceeded to remove the Chimera's front paws to ensure the entirety of its claws were collected. "How do I send this back? Do I just carry them or are we shifting them on their own?"

" _Put them into the inventory I'll remove them later when going over the Mystic Code to see if everything is working perfectly. Though pack them in and your bike, cause we'll be Rayshifting you out in half a minute as the Space is starting to get unstable."_

"How do I do that?" Andrew said a tad disappointed he didn't experiment a bit more with The Weapon while he wasn't risking anything important.

" _Like everything else Andrew, just say Armor store this and then object your hand is holding."_

"Understood." He said, before doing just that as he flew back up to where he had left Hurricane Ride, the Chimera claws disappearing instantly. "Armor, Store Hoverbike." He said upon reaching it, and it too disappeared instantly. "Alright, I've got everything, and I'm clear for Rayshift," Andrew said.

" _Rayshifting you back now."_

Andrew saw the blue swirl stuff once more and after a few seconds exited his coffin and was standing on the platform that contained them.

"So, Andrew how was that for first-time use." Da Vinci asked as she approached Andrew.

"Da Vinci, you are the best Caster, genius, and artist _ever_ ," Andrew said. "I feel like I could take on the world! Is this how Servants always feel? Hell, I've only got some basic stuff compared to Servants, I'm starting to understand why Gilgamesh is so quick to say how much better things are from previous eras."

"Don't listen to that King's humbug, now get out the Mystic Code to see if you broke anything, don't worry you'll get it back tomorrow, and you can run around it as much as you like. And it would be better if you trained in it with the Cu's so you can get used to it." Da Vinci said.

"Right, right," Andrew said as he began the process of removing the armor piece by piece. "Hey, so I was wondering about that actually, you said Tenfold Shields brings me to an 'E' on the Servant scale physically. Is that a flat thing, like nothing I do, will change that, is it addictive as the 'E' is just added to my normal human parameters, or is it a multiplicative thing?" Andrew asked.

"It's a ten times multiplier boosting your current physical capabilities."

"So, to be clear, if I get better physically without the armor it'll make me better in the armor?" Andrew asked.

"Yes, it's not really the armor itself that makes you strong but the spells ingrained into it. But remember Andrew you're human so there is a limit to how strong you can get. So, you can't do gravity training if you're thinking about that."

Andrew snorted at that. "Nah, I meant more endurance and agility focused stuff, more on the defensive side. Tenfold Shields already lets me punch outside my weight class, so I need to be able to not die when using it y'know?"

"Yes, stamina and reaction training would be the best for you, too bad no one here knows Breathing and Walking, so you could be taught the basics of that."

"Actually, do you know if there's any way to directly enhance my body's resistance to damage? Cause really that is basically all I would really need if we can do it strong enough." Andrew said, spitballing ideas.

"Is somebody into transhumanism?" Da Vinci asked.

"You're the one that brought up nanomachines earlier, I can't help thinking of stuff like that," Andrew said. "But, if you have anything…?"

"I can make something, but that is a long time away if it's going to be anything useful, so do you want the Nanomachines, Son package?"

"If it's possible, _definitely_ ," Andrew said. "But if it's going to take you awhile to develop it anyway, don't prioritize it. I'll just learn to dodge like any puny human in over his head."

"It would take a half a year for that, while it was more joking while I said with the armor, for nanomachines are hard to make. And I don't want a grey goo scenario to happen."

Andrew flinched at the idea. "Yeah, if you do make anything like that please test it first."

"I will, but if you're looking for somebody enhancing stuff try to summon some Age of God Casters they could do some temporary stuff at least."

"I'll keep that in mind," Andrew said. "Oh yeah, something that's a bit more immediately relevant, is there any chance you could make some sort of, for lack of better term, glamor or something that makes Tenfold Shields look like I'm not wearing it? Cause it'd be a helluva surprise to any enemies, who go after the weak, defenseless looking Master only to find he's decked out in a Da Vinci-brand Mystic Code."

"I could. Now talk to you later Andrew." Da Vinci said as she picked up the armor pieces Andrew had given to her.

"Right, talk to you later."

Xxx

 _August 6_

 _The screaming wouldn't stop. "Please! Help us!" "Mama!" "Help!" The voices blended together as the bodies burst into the horrible abominations of teeth and tentacles. Andrew could do nothing but watch as the children die such gruesome deaths. All he could do was stand passively doing nothing but watch. All he could do was watch as Gilles laughed behind him._

 _He whirled around to face the madman, only to see the silver armored Gilles instead. Laughing._

Andrew shot awake in a cold sweat, breathing heavily, heart pounding. 'That was the worst one yet…' He took several deep breaths to try and calm himself. No matter how hard he tried, no matter what he did, the image of the children turning into those _things_ always came back to haunt him in his dreams. The only real exception was when he was so dead tired from his Physical Training with the Cu's that his brain stopped functioning, but the previous day had been a Magic day. That was the first time he'd seen his Gilles instead of Bluebeard, though.

It was then he realized that he hadn't really spoken to Gilles since returning to Chaldea. 'I… need to do something about this.' He thought to himself.

Andrew heard a knock on his door, and a male voice began to speak. 'Speak of the devil.' "Master are you alright, I heard screaming?" Asked Gilles from behind the door.

"Gilles. Please, come in." Andrew said keeping his voice neutral, reaching for his glasses and putting them on as he did.

The door opened, and Gilles stepped in not wearing his armor but a casual grey shirt and a pair of jeans. "What is it you wish to speak about Master?" he took a seat on the chair next to his desk.

Andrew sighed. "Gilles. You saw what your counterpart did in Orleans to those children. Did you know he was capable of doing such a thing to them?"

"Yes, I knew he was capable of using human sacrifices to summon those creatures." He answered.

"Was there anything we could have done to prevent it? Anything at all?" Andrew asked.

"Walked faster perhaps? The moment he said, those words it was over for them."

"How...how are you not disturbed by it? By what he did? By what you did? I can't...I can't stop thinking about it. How utterly _useless_ I was, I was just, just so _passive_ the whole time. And I can't unsee it all." Andrew said, looking into his hands as if they might hold some solace. But they held nothing. "How do you deal with that?"

"I don't I'm not dealing with it all, I suppress the memories of all of it even as they haunt the few moments of sleep that I have. So that I can continue to act as your Servant, for when you have need of my abilities and power." Gilles answered.

"...Thank you for your loyalty, Gilles, but…" Andrew paused. "I can't...I'm sorry Gilles, but in my nightmares, I don't see Bluebeard. I see you." He said quietly.

"I see… I apologize for causing you such pain my Master, is there anything I can do to alleviate it? I had figured that this mission could be my redemption to save humanity and make up for my sins, but perhaps that is not to be." Gilles spoke with a voice of melancholy.

"No, no, don't talk like that," Andrew said. "The problem lies more in me than you. This you, has done nothing wrong-" not yet "-and my mind is just twisting things around." He looked Gilles in the eyes and spoke with as much conviction as he could muster. "This is absolutely the path to redemption, the path of the righteous. Nothing can change what you will-have-done, nothing can save those children now, but we can make sure that 7 billion more people don't die. And then after that, after we've saved billions, and stop looking towards the past, we can look towards the future and work to make sure no child ever shares that kind of fate. Ever." Andrew said, trying to convince himself as much as the Saber.

"Those are kind words Master, and that we shall. And I've heard from the Director Romani's mouth the Singularity is slowly being restored to what it should be before the Witch was unleashed. So, perhaps those children will get to live once more. But know this Master even if a part of your soul despises my existence I shall assist you no matter what." Gilles said as he stood back up.

"I don't...I don't think I hate you, Gilles. Just what you _might_ become. But since you are as you are now, nothing is forcing you to become Bluebeard, you know? Sure, the memories are there, but for all intents and purposes you're practically free to choose your own path." Andrew said, thinking back to Kiyohime. "You don't have to let your legend define _you_. So...so please, be the man Jeanne would want you to be?"

"I hope so too Master, I hope so too," Gilles said. "Now hopefully you can sleep properly now Master, and I always have an ear for you." Gilles then left Andrew's room though right before the door closed a white creature of fluff ran in and onto his bed.

"Hey, Fou. How are ya, little guy?" Andrew said as he began to pet said fluffball of indeterminate species.

"Fouuu!" He squealed his name and began to knead in circles around on his legs still covered by his quilt.

Andrew smiled at Fou and continued to pet him a bit. "Thanks, little guy," Andrew said. Soon, the soothing presence of Fou and the earlier hour led to Andrew falling back asleep.

Xxx

 _August 7_

And once again the weekly time of summoning a Servant had come, and Andrew was in the Summoning Room with his Kouhai who had prepared the Summoning Circle for him. Andrew would say that this past week had been rather productive he had gotten his new badass Dragon Armor Mystic Code from Da Vinci-which he was wearing at the moment, as he had been practically 24/7 in order to get used to it- plus additional goods from Gilgamesh. Which he had thanked by baking him a cake with Marie and Mash. While he hadn't said it out loud, Andrew had easily seen the king enjoying it. He had also made the sewing machine he had gotten from the golden man, by making a kimono for Ushi with Vlad(mostly due to the help of Vlad), the Japanese Servant had been extremely glad for the gift. Andrew had also learned from Kojiro talking about Ushi, that in Japan in terms of historical significance to them, she was basically Washington. And also like with Arturia had been recorded to be a man. He really should have been used to that by now. His training with the two Cu's he could now use three basic elemental Runes by himself, in the form of Fire, Ice, and Water.

Andrew shook his head as if to physically clear his thoughts. "Alright. Come on, lottery's gonna get won tonight!" Andrew said as he pushed his Prana through the ticket into the circle. The typical light show with the smoke occurred, though he was more than used to it by now.

"Servant Archer, Arash answers your call Master, let's save the world Master." Arash smiled at Andrew.

"The Persian Hero?" Mash asked in surprise.

"Ah, so the miss knows my Legend, always good to hear people outside my country knowing about me."

"Welcome, Arash, to Chaldea. Thank you for answering the call to save Human History."

xxx

A/N:

Donate to my P A Treon. com (slash) TheBlacklightProjekt if you want to help me as a creator. And now take commissions, which is you paying for me to write any one-shot you want. Price depends on the length of One-Shot


	25. Singularity 2 Start

"Of course I would be a bad Hero if I didn't. Now, what is your name Master?" Arash asked.

"Ah, right, my apologies. I am Andrew Murphy, Master of Chaldea." Andrew replied. "It is an honor to have you join us."

"Thank you, Andrew, it's an honor to be here. I shall assist you with all of my power to help you save the World." Arash responded back.

Andrew smiled at the Persian Archer. "Thank you for your assistance," Andrew said as he used his Stat-o-Vision on the newly summoned Archer.

True Name: Arash

Class: Archer

Master: Andrew Murphy

 **Parameters:**

Strength: B

Endurance: A

Agility: B+

Mana: E

Luck: D

Noble Phantasm: A

 **Class Skills:**

Magic Resistance: C

Independent Action: C

 **Personal Skills:**

Robust Health: EX

Clairvoyance: A

Bow and Arrow Creation: A

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Stella: Lone Meteor(Anti-Army): A

"Ah, Arash, forgive my forwardness but what is the extent of your Bow and Arrow Creation skill? And what does your Noble Phantasm do?" Andrew asked.

"That's fine Master, I'm happy to answer, The Skill is one I had in life that allowed me to create Bows and Arrows out my mana, and as a Servant it allows me to fire volleys of Arrows- up to ten thousand of them. Well my Noble Phantasm is a classified a bit wrongly it might say Anti-Army, but it has the power of an Anti-Fortress one, but with how it's deployed, it's more of Anti-Country one. It is essentially a double Broken Phantasm when used results in my death." He answered like it was no big deal.

"E-excuse me? It does what?" Andrew asked, making sure he heard correctly.

"I die after is use it, it really sucks doesn't it, as my body despite being the best there is, can't handle using it. I turned to dust when I used it to create the border between Persia and Turan."

"... _Damn_." Andrew said, both at the scope of such an attack and the aftereffects. "If that is the case, please refrain from using your Noble Phantasm unless we run into whoever is behind all of the Singularities, and even then only if I give explicit orders. I don't want to be losing a Servant from our own attack."

"If you say, so Master, now is there a place for me to stay, while waiting until the next Singularity is discovered?" Arash asked.

"Ah, right. Mash, if you would?"

"Right Senpai. Here, Mr. Arash, this communication armband will assist you in your stay at Chaldea. Communicating with other Servants, along with other functions such as a map, that shows you Chaldea and available rooms to use." Mash said as she hands Arash the armband.

"Thanks miss, I'll put it to good use."

"Ah, Arash, before you go find a room I just wanted to ask, your Bow and Arrow Creation Skill, you said earlier that it allows you to fire off volleys of arrows, but what is the extent of the 'Bow Creation' part?" Andrew asked.

"I need a bit of material for that, to replace the one I got summoned with here until it inevitably breaks," Arash said, holding out the bow in his hand.

Andrew examined the crimson bow. Bows were the one weapon he should know well but didn't, but he could still see its expert craftsmanship. "Mhm. So, better quality materials can lead to even better bows? I should see if Da Vinci has anything left over from those wyverns..."

"A few dragon bones could help, I'll go talk to this Da Vinci woman later Master." Arash took up the suggestion.

"Please do. We need every advantage we can get in this fight." Andrew said.

Xxx

 _August 8_

It was early morning when Andrew had called down to the Observation Deck, after breakfast with Mash and his Servants.

He was now standing in front of Dr. Roman and Da Vinci with Mash having followed. Andrew was currently dressed in his armor with the glamor on without the helmet, as it didn't work with it on at the moment. A problem Da Vinci was trying to fix, or a way for him to instantly equip it. A process that was taking longer than expected as Andrew had seen what happened to the dummies it had been teleported on. He didn't want to to be telefragged. So it was a work in progress.

But he could easily store the helmet in the hammerspace and pull out fast to put it on. Though when he had shown it off to his Servants, the response had been unanimous.

Good idea, but it was so tacky.

"Boss. I take it we've found the Singularity?" Andrew asked, getting into serious mode. The last month or so had been mostly fun and games, but now came the Mission.

"Correct guess Andrew, and you're going to be Rayshifting in a few minutes. So Mash gets ready and suit up." Dr. Roman said, with his serious tone of voice.

"Acknowledged Doctor," Mash said, and within a single second, she was standing in her armor, with shield at the side.

"So, Boss, do we know where, and I suppose _when_ , we're headed?" Andrew asked, trying to figure out in advance which Servants to bring with initially and to potentially start on a plan.

"Where you're going is Italy, or to be more precise, 60 A.D Rome." Da Vinci answered.

"... _Ah,_ " Andrew said, making sure his cross was not part of the Glamor. "On the one hand, Romans. On the other hand, _Romans_." He said as if that explained anything.

"Yes, and this is during the reign of its fifth Emperor, Nero Claudius, we have no idea how he will act during the Singularity. So best be careful."

"Oh _joy_. Looks like Georgios and Vlad would be best left here, Nero Claudius was one of the worst emperors before they all started killing each other for the title." Andrew said. "Especially with the 'killing Christians' thing…" He thought a bit more. "So the best Servants to bring with would probably be...Arash, both Cu Chulainns, Kojiro, and...Alter? That seems like a good starting team."

"Right, call them when you arrive in Rome. Also Andrew try to find out information about Lev from any Servants as we know, he was the one who gave Caster Gilles de Rais a Holy Grail to use. So, we might be facing a similar situation in Rome, by him summoning a Servant that hates it and have them destroy it." Dr. Roman answered. "So, you might need to protect Nero and Rome. As despite it history integral to the overall Human History and Order."

Andrew grimaced. "If that's right, I have a feeling I can already guess at least one of the enemy Servants already. Boudica, likely to be a Berserker due to her outrage against Rome after the death of her husband...and oh fuck I just realized Spartacus is probably going to be there too, and if the Cultural Sphere of Rome even slightly restores his mind…" Andrew trailed off at the possibilities of the enemy.

"Those are good guesses and probably true, now get in the Coffins the others are ready to commence Rayshift."

"Right."

"Yes, Doctor," Mash said.

Xxx

"Doctor weren't we supposed to have directly Rayshifted into Rome?" Mash asked the holographic form of Dr. Roman after they had successfully Rayshifted, but instead of being in the city, they were out in the countryside, with grassy hills close to them and Andrew could see the mountains in the distance.

" _Sorry the coordinates were a bit off, but you arrived in the correct era, your a few dozen miles away from Rome's capital, so not too far. And it seems that just like in France that Band of Light is here too."_ Dr. Roman said.

Andrew looked up and saw that yes, the Circle was there. "Ya know, I kinda forgot about that after we got back. I wonder if its a side effect of the Grail…" Andrew said before remembering it was just him and Mash actually there. "Ah, Da Vinci, it's just 'Grand Order Change,' and then the name of the Servant right?"

" _Nope, I made this one bit different and it into an App for the communication band built into the armor. It will allow you to select the Servants you wish to call and switch out via a menu."_

"Ah, thank you, Da Vinci," Andrew said, as he quickly brought up the holographic display and the App. It consisted out of six columns with five empty onesand one which the picture of Mash occupied. He pressed an empty one and was when brought to another which showed all the Servants he had.

Andrew quickly brought in the Servants he had decided on before, and after clicking the 'ok' button. They all appeared right next to him.

Announcing in tandem that they were ready.

Andrew smiled at them. "Alright, good to know that works. If all of you are in Astral form, you can keep up with Hurricane Ride right?" He asked. They all gave him a clear yes. "Alright then, in that case, I want Caster Cu to stay close to Mash and me on Hurricane Ride in case of a sudden attack, and I want everyone to be ready for a potential enemy encounter. We don't know what to expect, so I'm counting on all of you to keep me safe until we can figure out a plan of action. Understood?"

"We understand Master," They answered in tandem again.

"Alright. Then, Deploy Helmet." Andrew said, the helm to the armor appearing in his hands. He put it on, and the Glamor deactivated. "Ride, On." And soon after the Hurricane Ride was floating in front of him. "Mash, do you know how to ride as a passenger on one of these?" He asked as he got on the hoverbike.

"Yes, Senpai my Riding Skill gives me the knowledge on how to."

"Oh, right I forgot about that," Andrew said, before realizing something. "Oh, wait, I almost forgot, Deploy Scarf #1." He was soon holding a lavender scarf with Chaldea's symbol on the ends. "I don't have a jacket or anything, but we'll be moving pretty fast, and this will be a good test run for the Team Scarves." He said as he held out the scarf to Mash.

"God, you two are going to give me a heart attack with how sweet you two are." Alter commented.

"Oh, that's good to hear, you _do_ have a heart!" Andrew said jokingly, deflecting her comment.

Which got a laugh from the men of the group.

"Fuck, all of you." Alter said. "Let's get going, I want to carve an idiot's skull in."

"Please refrain from attacking until we've confirmed the enemy, Alter. We can't risk hurting a potential ally." Andrew said, completely seriously. "If its Servants or Monstrous Beasts and they attack us, then you're free to retaliate with gusto, but if we run into any humans, we should try and talk them down. We aren't exactly a friendly looking bunch, you know." He said, motioning towards the very obvious, menacing weapons they were all wielding, and his own armor.

"Right, on that Senpai," Mash said as she joined him on the hoverbike dismissing her shield, though as she did Fou joined him up front.

"Fou, you _really_ need to stop doing that. We're going to be going really fast, so I hope you're ready to hold on tight." Andrew said to the little white creature.

"Fou!" He said and looked forward, seemingly ready for the ride of his life.

"Alright, don't say I didn't warn ya," Andrew said. "We're moving out!" He then accelerates Hurricane Ride towards Rome, swiftly hitting 250 miles per hour, the fastest Andrew felt safe going at with his current experience with it.

They arrived in a bit over 10 minutes. Or at least, close enough to see the city. Andrew slowed down immensely at what he saw there.

A war was happening.

Soldiers were fighting against each other dressed in ancient (or more accurately, current) Roman armor, one side had gold and red.

The other had colors of blue and silver.

"Senpai, this shouldn't be happening. Rome should be at peace right now with no major wars going on. It seems Lev has already set in motion his plans here. We need to help the ones in the red and gold… And who is that girl?" At Mash's words, Andrew saw her too, using the helmet's zoom function.

"What the hell? Is that _another_ version of Arturia?" Andrew asked incredulously upon processing the blonde's appearance. She looked similar to the 'classic' Arturia but as if the armor had been removed and nothing was in its place. And the sword she was wielding, if Andrew hadn't already accepted that weapons didn't have to make sense to his sensibilities when Magic was involved he would think it was some edgy teen's first attempt at cosplaying their original character.

"You're, right she does look like me, but with boobs." Alter commented as all of the Servants materialized. As they watched her fight, with actual skill against the enemy soldiers.

"I well, she already has better outward personality than you hopefully her inner one matches." Lancer Cu commented and was immediately high fived by his Caster counterpart.

"Dogs, stop yapping," Andrew said. "I can't tell from this distance, but she's a Servant right? I don't think anyone else could use a sword like _that_ without breaking it otherwise."

" _No she isn't Andrew, she is a living human, though the two forces seem to be in a stalemate right now, go turn the tide,"_ Romani said.

"Got it," Andrew said, holding out his right hand. "Extend Claws." The Weapon, now dubbed the Claws for lack of a better name, appeared in his hand. "Alright everyone, do your best to _subdue_ the enemy here alright? And keep collateral to a minimum." He ordered his Servants.

"Yes, Master." They acknowledged the order and rushed in along with Mash who removed herself from the back of Hurricane.

Andrew followed his Servants dismissing the hoverbike and deploying the wings, as a safety measure as he ran on foot.

The wings were folded currently as he had The Claws transformed into a stun baton that would work in close range while he used Gandr for mid- to long range combat. A good setup to take humans down non-lethally.

Andrew and his Servants attacked the army in blue and silver, making it clear to the Romans in gold and red that they were on their side.

Which, seemed to come through as the girl that looked like Saber commanded that Andrew and his group were friendly.

"Reinforcement has arrived to help us, now victory is ours!" And Andrew took notice, that while she looked similar to Saber, her voice was completely different it was boisterous and full of confidence.

And she was short, like really short when he looked closer even below the two Arturia's he had by like an inch or two, now that he looked her closer. Andrew could have mistaken her for a child, but her proportions and body shape said otherwise. But with Kiyohime being a thing he wouldn't be as sure as he usually would.

Though after enough internal thoughts. Andrew participated in the battle to take down the 200 hundred or so manned company.

Andrew thrust the baton at an enemy soldier, thanks to the training with the Cu's Andrew knew how much force he needed to take down opponents without killing them. And with the stun baton, he could let the electricity do most of the work as the shock coursed through their bodies and armor.

Andrew couldn't help but feel a bit of pride as his tenth soldier went down twitching, he was actually contributing to the fight now, and no longer had to just sit on the sidelines taking potshots at least when it concerned mooks. He still had to leave enemy Servants to his own. Though he did kinda feel bad about taking them down in the first place. He'd never been in anything more than a fistfight with humans before.

Thanks to the assistance of Andrew and his Servants decimating the enemy forces the battle was short-lived, with hopefully as few deaths as possible.

"Senpai, the enemy, is no longer able to fight," Mash said as she came up beside Andrew after he had knocked another one down.

He took quick notice that all the ones in blue were laying on the ground many of them moaning.

"Men, find all of the ones still alive and arrest them. And you thank you for the assistance, oh brave warriors. Tell me where are you from? You look foreign, are you from the Isles the twins over there look like Boudica's men." The as-of-yet-unnamed girl said as she walked over to where Andrew and Mash were standing, his other Servants joining the two of them.

"We are from...a place whose name you would not know," Andrew answered her. "Ah, but allow me to introduce myself. I am Andrew Murphy, and these are my squadmates. We were traveling to this great city from our lands, and when we saw the conflict, we decided to intervene."

"Ah, you're a band of traveling warriors, and you must be their leader based on that armor you're wearing. What beautiful craftsmanship, formed to the shape of a dragon, truly a symbol of power. Almost as beautiful as my sword here of course."

She was about to continue talking when Dr. Roman's voice was broadcasted to all of them. _"Guys a Servant just showed up on the radar, and heading right towards you, wait shit he's already here."_ Andrew had just enough time to think to himself 'We need an alert system instead of this…'

At that, another voice spoke up and figure walked into view treading over the bodies of the downed soldiers.

Andrew looked at the newly arrived Servant. The gold-and-black armored man had blue hair and wore a ragged red cape. He looked much more Roman than even the Roman soldiers.

"Oh, beautiful child of my sister." The Servant spoke with a calm voice, but Andrew could hear madness in it, just like when he heard it when Caster Gilles, and Phantom spoke.

"I cannot believe my eyes it is truly you uncle, yes, of course, it is you, these soldiers used your favorite technique. I would never think that you would side with the treacherous United Empire Caligula!" The girl roared the name of the Servant.

"Wait, uncle? Caligula? That means that she is?" Came Mash's voice as she looked at the woman in red.

Andrew groaned internally. He had been suspecting it with the circumstances lining up too well, but this was the final nail in the coffin. "I'm pretty sure that _she_ is Nero Claudius." On the one hand, he really shouldn't have to be surprised anymore, but on the other hand, _why did she look like Arturia?_ The rest kind of made sense, living human person with a special looking sword, likely having to side with the current emperor, all that made sense. _But why did she look almost identical to Arturia?_

"Oh shit, that's _Caligula_." He said upon realizing that the gold-clad Servant was the Servant form of a famously mad, very kill-happy king who may or may not have been the worst Roman Emperor ever. He quickly used his Stat-o-Vision on said Servant.

True Name: Caligula

Class: Berserker

Master: ?

 **Parameters:**

Strength: A+

Endurance: B+

Agility: B+

Mana: D+

Luck: D+

Noble Phantasm: C

 **Class Skills:**

Mad Enhancement: A+

 **Personal Skills:**

Imperial Privilege: A

Sadistic Constitution: A

Glory of the Past: B

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Flucticulus Diana: Moonlight, Devour my Soul(Anti-Army): C

'Well that doesn't seem worrying at all.' Andrew thought to himself, sarcastically. He'd of said it out loud, but he didn't want the enemy to notice him, at all. Caligula could probably rip him to shreds in an instant even with Tenfold Shields.

"Yes, my beautiful niece it is, now for the United Empire, you need to die. UAAAARRRRGHHHH!" Caligula roared and charged.

"DEFEND THE EMPEROR!" Andrew commanded his Servants. He had a feeling Nero would be the keystone for this Singularity, and that if she died, they'd probably fail.

His Servants responded immediately with Alter taking charge.

Black Prana surged around her limbs and blade as she blasted of clashed with the Berserker Caligula.

But to Andrew's surprise and probably Alter's too, his fist did not lose to the Saber's blade, but did not win either.

Alter quickly moved backward. "He copied my Mana Burst just now, so be careful, this Berserker will not go down easily."

"You don't have to tell us twice!" Lancer Cu responded as he brandished Gae Bolg. He thrusted the spear at Caligula, but with seemingly impeccable grace the Berserker grabbed hold of the spear and threw Lancer Cu upwards, making the Celtic airborne.

But that had left an opening open as several fireballs courtesy of Caster Cu hit the former Roman Emperor.

"This is over." Alter stated as Black Prana surged around her Excalibur Morgan. She swung it and created a crescent moon shaped attack that struck the burning Berserker creating a bigger explosion that sent some of the bodies still lying on the ground flying.

Lancer Cu landed on the ground, and the smoke cleared, the flames went due to Alter's attack, but the madman was nowhere to be seen.

" _Andrew it seemed he turned into Spirit Form and ran away,"_ Roman informed him.

"Damn. Arash! Stay on high alert. We don't want to get attacked out of nowhere like that again." Andrew said. "Retract Claws." The Weapon was once more stored in his armor. It's not like he'd be able to react in time to another attack like that anyway.

"Sure thing Master and," Andrew heard the sound of an arrow being fired. "I just managed to hit him in the knee before he went out of my range," Arash said.

"Good job. If you can cripple him, it'll be easier to kill him next time." Andrew said.

"Sure, thing Master, but according to what my Clairvoyance told me, that was the only shot I had when he rematerialized."

"Well, good job either way and if you see any hostiles incoming take them out," Andrew said before turning to the still-living Emperor. "So, I take it that you're having some troubles with dead emperors?"

"Umu, indeed I have Lord Andrew, now come with me to my palace, and I shall reward all seven of you for your assistance. Rome appreciates you, and hopes you will further assist her with taking down these fake Emperors." Nero spoke.

"Lead the way," Andrew said, before processing her statement fully. "Wait, emperor _s,_ plural?"

"I shall explain when we arrive," Nero said. "Men apprehend these traitors and interrogate them for all information concerning the United Empire." Nero pointed at the still downed enemy soldiers.

"Yes, our Emperor." The men in gold and red answered.

Xxx

Andrew was marveled as the entered the feasting hall of Nero's Palace. It wasn't her theater as that would be built after the fire that happened in four years.

But still, it was amazing to see all the Roman architecture in its prime, the city of Rome was truly a miracle of a city for its time, with an actual working sewer system.

Another surprise had been when they had walked through the city of Rome, it had been the people. Rather their response to seeing Nero walking beside them.

It had been with love, the people of Rome adored Nero. They continuously praised her name as they walked to the palace. But then a bit of true history had seemingly inserted itself, as when they had passed a group of men wearing what looked to be togas of some sort.

They had looked at Nero with scorn and hate in their eyes as Nero walked past them.

'Ah. So it's the Aristocrats who are unaffected by the anime. I see.' Andrew thought to himself as he took in the completely-opposite-to-real-life response of the people. "Emperor, your city is quite lovely." He said, trying to get in her good graces. It'd be best to make her fully think of him as an ally and a friend with this situation.

"Why thank you, Lord Andrew, of course, it is. I shower it and the citizens with my love, and as you can see they love me in return. And as long as I have that, those old men can't do anything about my laws to make their lives as perfect as my own." Nero said as she took a seat at the end of the table, a lavish throne fit for royalty. "Now, please take a seat the servants shall come with food soon, and we shall have a feast while discussion plans and your rewards."

"Well, count me in." The Cu's spoke as soon as they took a seat.

Andrew and the others quickly followed suit and Andrew took off his helmet and stored it in the hammerspace before he sat down himself.

The chairs weren't as extravagant as Nero's but high quality nonetheless.

"So, you said that multiple emperors have risen from the dead to harass your Empire?" He asked, getting straight to the point. It'd be best to have as much information as soon as possible.

"Yes, it started about a month ago when these so-called Emperors appeared, it all happened so fast by the time I managed to set up proper defenses they had conquered half of Rome. My army is spread across the land with few to defend Rome itself now. One of them even managed to kill my Court Mage with his sword, a man who said he had defied death itself, but that sword struck him down. These false Emperors wield immense power. That is why Lord Andrew I hope you and your warriors will go to the frontlines and defeat one of these Emperors we currently know the location of thanks to two of my new generals. If you do, you shall be handsomely rewarded. Umu that you shall." Nero explained to all of them.

"We will embark on the battlefield as soon as you allow, Emperor," Andrew said with confidence. "My squadron consists of some of the greatest warriors to have ever lived. One emperor will be nothing before our might." He boasted, trying to paint the Chaldean crew in a good light.

"That is good to hear, Lord Andrew we shall all embark in the morning but, now lets feast." Nero declared at that the doors opened and several Roman servants came in food, that was fit for a King- or Emperor in this case.

"Ah, before I forget, there wouldn't happen to be any strong ley lines nearby would there?" Andrew asked the Emperor.

"Ah, yes at Mt. Etna, there is a powerful one my Court Mage made good use, you can use it after the feast if you want," Nero answered.

"Thank you, Emperor."

"Hmm, Emperor Nero?" Mash spoke up nervously.

"Yes, what is it…?"

"My name is Mash, I would like to know if you've heard of a man named Lev Lainur? He is a traitor where we come from, and that is why we're in Rome, we heard Rumors of him being in the Empire."

"This man, Lev, is he a Mage?"

"Yes, he is."

"I have not heard of that name before, but I have heard reports of a powerful mage working for the United Empire providing them with Golems, wearing a distasteful color of green," Nero answered.

"Yeah, that sounds like its Lev," Andrew said. "We'll have to keep an eye out for him, if he's intervening directly it's likely he has the Grail on his person." He said, more directed towards his Servants. "He might even have more than one if this is following the pattern we've seen so far."

"Yes, that is probably correct Master," Alter commented. "But, there might be a problem on his end as from the information I received about the happenings of the last Singularity, he left immediately after giving Gilles de Rais the Grail after summoning him. So either something is preventing him from leaving, or he is staying to see the destruction through."

"Mhm. Yeah, that is weird that he would stay. Maybe something is different about this Singularity?"

"Perhaps Senpai, but we won't know until we confront him," Mash said as she fed Fou a piece of meat from the table.

"Yeah, I guess you're right. Best not be stressing on that type of 'what-ifs' right now anyway." Andrew said as he began to take food from the feast before them. "We can save that for later."

Xxx

"Senpai, I've set up the circle, and the room is ready to be activated," Mash said.

After the feast, Andrew and his group had left for Mt. Etna an inactive volcano on an island a few miles of the shore of Rome. They had been given a boat from the harbor by Nero to use, which Mash had sailed using her Riding Skill. The leylines access point itself was located in what looked to be a temple dedicated to Vulcan though no one was currently inside.

" _Andrew which Servant are you going to send back to Chaldea remember your max party is six, and Mash can't. Unless we Rayshift her out."_ Da Vinci said, to him privately through his helmet's internal speakers. _"And you won't be able to switch the summoned Servant out as, we need to connect them to a room which they can be summoned from and send back to. Which we need to in Chaldea."_

"Right, then...Kojiro, I'm sending you back to Chaldea for now." He said, speaking up so said Assassin could hear him.

"That's fine Master, you've got enough slashing via the others, and I can't perform the role my class indicates very well, I was kinda the obvious choice," Kojiro said in a tone, that meant he wasn't angry with Andrew's decision at all or even surprised.

"Sorry, Kojiro. I might call you back in if Caesar turns out to be one of the Emperors-which is pretty likely now that I'm saying it out loud- we'll need someone to stab him in the back a bit." Andrew said apologetically.

Assassin just smiled as Andrew brought up the menu and deselected him. The Servant disappeared, and Andrew gave Mash the go-ahead to commence the summoning.

Andrew poured his Prana into the Circle, pumping it with as much as he could spare. He still wasn't sure if the Prana amount related to Servant Quality or not, but he was going to keep doing until proven wrong.

It did its thing, and Andrew saw his new Servant announce himself. "Servant Assassin, Hassan-I-Sabbah of the Cursed Arm, answers your call Contractor." The masked Servant said. Standing way taller than him wearing a black cloak along with his bone mask that covered his face. But the way the cloak surrounded him, it made it look like that was the only thing inside.

Andrew was a tad taken aback by the much larger and very intimidating Servant he had summoned. He seemed amicable enough, and someone with knives of any kind would be extra useful if/when Caesar showed up. "Thank you for answering the call to Save Human History, Hassan. Though you're probably going to be assassinating an emperor very, very soon."

"That is my job, now who is the target going to be Contractor?" Hassan asked.

xxx

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	26. Hidden Tyrant

"...You know, I really should have asked Nero that earlier." Andrew said, realizing he didn't know which Emperor was at the location they were headed. "But most likely, you will have to kill Julius Caesar at some point."

"I have never killed a Roman before, now Contractor I shall be your shadow. Call upon me when you have need of me." Hassan said.

"Actually…" Andrew quickly used his Stat-o-Vision on his newest Servant.

[spoiler=Cursed Arm Hassan's Stat Sheet]

True Name: Hassan-I-Sabbah

Class: Assassin

Master: Andrew Murphy

 **Parameters:**

Strength: B

Endurance: C

Agility: A

Mana: C

Luck: E

Noble Phantasm: C

 **Class Skills:**

Presence Concealment: A+

 **Personal Skills:**

Projectile(Daggers): B

Self-Modification: C

Protection from Wind: A

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Zabaniya: Delusional Heartbeat(Anti-Unit): C

[/spoiler]

"What is the extent of your Self-Modification skill?" Andrew asked, more-or-less able to figure out the rest with his vague knowledge of Hassan's appearance in Fate.

"Ah, it allows me to fuse foreign bodies to my own, it was how I obtained my personal Zabaniya, and with it, I can consume the hearts of others gaining some of their knowledge and skills." He answered.

"Mhm. That sounds incredibly useful; we'll have to test the limits of your skill once we return to Chaldea." Andrew then pointed over his shoulder with his thumb back towards the entry to the temple. "For now though, we gotta kill an emperor."

"Understood, Contractor." Andrew watched as Hassan went into spirit form.

Xxx

"Umu, good to have you back Lord Andrew, I hope your trip was useful... And where is the one with the long and thin sword, did he not go with you?" Nero asked Andrew as the emperor greeted them at the harbor of Rome.

"Ah, well, you see," Andrew started, trying to bullshit something on the spot.

"You see your Majesty, we have Magecraft capable of switching out our members here with the ones we have back home at Chaldea. That was why we needed to access the leyline to power the Magecraft so that we now can switch out members as the situation calls upon. We, now have an Assassin to help take down the false emperors." Mash explained to the Arturia look alike.

"Ah, I understand, your truly a powerful man Lord Andrew, to be capable of such magical feats. It was truly the right decision to ask for assistance, Umu Indeed."

"Please, do not misunderstand. I am not a Mage. I just happen to have the smartest one to ever exist on my side, and she is able to make such wonders as this armor or creating the spell we used. I am merely a conduit, a Commander at best." Andrew said, making sure she didn't think him able of performing miracles while he could barely make fire.

"Ah, I apologize. But, still it is impressive to have such a powerful mage working for you, my own was a very fickle man, prone to leaving for weeks on end finding new ways to improve his magic." Nero said. "Now, let us return to the Palace and plan for the fight at the frontline."

"Your Majesty!" Shouted a voice and all turned to look at a soldier come running towards them.

"What is it, commander?"

"Your, Majesty more united soldiers are on the way to the capital, at least ten thousand men. And, and they are all the former troops we thought missing now wearing the enemies color." The soldier informed.

"What?" Nero said in shock, and Andrew saw actual anger on her face. "Lord Andrew might I call upon your assistance once again. Eliminate the enemy but leave a few to be captured so they can be interrogated, then executed for treachery." And that was when Andrew got his look at the 'Tyrant' hidden beneath the facade of an artist.

Andrew sighed at how with those kinds of numbers it would be much more difficult to reduce casualties. "You heard the Emperor." He said to his Servants. "We're going to defend Rome."

"Ah, Master?" Arash spoke sounding like he wanted to say something.

"Please, speak your mind Arash."

"You and the others just go back to the palace, I'll handle it myself. I kinda want to get a proper warm up before we fight for real." He asked Andrew for him to just handle the situation.

"If you think you can handle it, leave as many of them alive but incapacitated as you can," Andrew said. "And the _millisecond_ an unfamiliar Servant shows up within your sights I want you to inform me."

"Sure thing Master, don't worry I should be done in less than half-an-hour," Arash stated with confidence.

"Alright. Then, make it rain." Andrew said.

Arash smiled.

Xxx

It was indeed a half hour later that Arash had returned to Andrew, with most time having been spent taking some of the still alive enemies back to Rome to be interrogated.

One of them, bound and restrained, tied up in front of Andrew and Nero, plus a few of her soldiers with Dr. Roman and Da Vinci on call to hear the soon to be questioned, traitor.

And Nero took the lead as she ungagged the soldier. "Julius of the third legion, I will ask only once, and if you don't answer immediately, I will turn to harsher methods to have my answer. Why did you and your men betray Rome, betray me?" Nero's voice was stone cold as the question passed her lips.

And seemingly the soldier responded back immediately. "Our Goddess told us to!" The man Julius answered, his voice singing with praise and admiration.

"Goddess, what Goddess. Which god would side with the enemies of Rome?"

"I don't know, but the moment she looked upon us we all knew true LOVE, our true calling, she asked us to attack you Whore, and so we did. We have never betrayed Rome, we have seen the truth!" Julius spoke like a deranged cultist.

"What madness have you been put under?" Nero asked, but it was more directed towards herself.

"Madness, we are not mad you're the one who is mad Beast." The soldier spoke with a deranged grin.

"You follow a so-called 'goddess' who you know nothing about, based solely on one look? How sad a life you must have led, devoid of the touch of a lover, to throw yourself at her feet when she so much as looks your way." Andrew said, trying to incite a reaction out of Julius that could give them more information. "How pitiful."

"Such filthy words coming out your mouth foreigner, to dismiss the goddess. Have you know this all paths shall lead to Rome, Sic Septum Tyrannis!" That was when Andrew noticed blue lines going across Julius skin.

" _Andrew get out!"_ Roared Roman at him.

Andrew ran as fast as he could, picking up/barreling into Nero as he did to get as far away as possible from the soldier.

"Lord, Andrew what are-?" Nero tried to say as they left the holding cell, but it was cut by the sound of an explosion. Andrew turned around and saw blue fire explode from out of the interrogation room.

"Shit. So all of the enemy soldiers are suicide bombers?" Andrew said to himself before remembering he was still awkwardly holding Nero. "Ah, sorry about the rough handling Emperor," He said as he put her down.

"No, it should be me thanking you Lord Andrew you saved my life." The short-stacked woman said as she dusted herself off.

As she did they both heard, more booms go off in various places.

"What did they do to them? You said something about bombs, what is that?" Nero asked.

"From the way he lit up before the explosion, I'd wager the enemy has turned their own soldiers into explosives, probably cannibalizing their Od and any Magic Circuits they might have to then explode and take out as much of our resources as possible." Andrew shook his head. "Such a waste of human life. And for what? Some 'goddess' who told them to…Pathetic, using people like that."

"So, they used magic to turn my people into weapons, does the United Empire have no idea about troop management, to waste such good soldiers to do minimal damage. Now, Andrew you can return to your group, I need to survey any damage these Suicide Bombers have done." Nero said, her smile utterly gone now.

"Ah, forgive me, but before I do that, could you perhaps tell me the location and presumed identity of the Emperor you mentioned before? My group can travel rather extremely quickly, so we could go in, strike, destroy that Emperor, and get back here in less than a day." Andrew proposed.

"I have no idea of what the Emperor's name is, but he had a golden sword, along with being fat. His current location is Gaul, two of my General's are in Massillia holding the line. But know this Lord Andrew I will be coming with you, I want to watch the ones who have torn my Rome apart die as their life leaves their eyes." Nero said darkly.

"Ah, while your want for vengeance is justified, I meant to leave immediately. You said you needed to survey the damage, my group could very well destroy the false emperor and return before you finish." Andrew said, trying to keep her from interfering in the fight. Like him, she was a human and was automatically _extremely fragile_ in a Servant-based conflict. The only reason he felt 'comfortable' going into battle was because of his trust in his Servants and Da Vinci's genius.

"And relegate that to others, to confirm their deaths for my own eyes is more Important, I shall simply use my chariot to follow you." Nero being steadfast in her desire to come along.

Andrew shook his head. "No, if you insist on accompanying us you should ride with Mash and me. Unless your chariot can cover the distance from here to Gaul in mere hours, you would just be left behind."

"Of course it can, its wheels have been blessed by Mercury, it does not even require horses," Nero said.

"Alright, if you insist. But please, allow one of my squadmates to ride with you for your protection." Andrew said.

"Ah, I see now Lord Andrew, you believe me weak and defenseless is that right." As they argued, Andrew took notice of other soldiers putting out the blue fire behind them.

"Ah, one moment. Ice Runes." Andrew said, before firing one of the Runestones at the center of the blaze. Instantly, the flames disappeared as the heat was drained from the surrounding area, forming the characteristic ice crystals.

"Sorry about the interruption. But, the short answer is yes. You're just as weak as I am, emperor, against these enemies. Without this armor, I would be nothing compared to them, and with it, I am at best an annoying bird instead of an ant. The revived emperors are Servants, Heroic Spirits from the Throne of Heroes given physical vessels, empowered by their legend and impact on history. Their magnitudes above anything a living human can be. It's just a simple fact of this fight. So, for your safety, I insist that if you come with us to Gaul, you allow one of my Servants to accompany you." Andrew explained.

"Allow me to dissuade you of that notion Lord Andrew," Nero stated as if taking Andrew's word as a challenge.

" _Andrew, the instrument's are sensing a massive build-up of magical energy within the Emperor, it's starting to rival a Servants."_

As Dr. Roman said that. Nero moved her fist and punched the wall next to the two. Andrew watched as her fist _sunk_ in and cracks spread out from the hole she had formed. "I am Nero Claudius, the fifth emperor of Rome, I am Rome and Rome is the world, such there is no way I can be defeated, as I wield the Original Flame in the form of my sword Estus Aestus." Nero started with a smirk on her face. "So, Lord Andrew, do you think myself weak now?"

"Compared to a human, absolutely not. There was never any doubt about that." Andrew said. "But against a Servant? You might have the strength needed to hurt them, but your still a flesh-and-blood human. One strike, chances are you die instantly. And if you are Rome, then so is each and every one of those revived Emperors, on top of them being Servants." He sighed. "Please understand. By this era's standard, you might damn well be the strongest person alive. But on the scale of Servants that doesn't really mean anything. They're just conceptually _better_ than living humans."

"You are wrong." The statement was short and simple.

Andrew sighed once more. "Ok, I can see we're getting nowhere. I can't really stop you, so if you do fight, let Mash be your shield and the rest of us your sword. If I can't persuade you to not, might as well do my damnedest to make sure we win."

"I was not finished. I do not care about Servants or Heroic Spirits. They can be former emperors or not I do not care in the slightest. This my Rome, and it is greater than all other before it. It shall never fall, and neither I shall. So I say to them bring it, for Rome shall defeat them." Nero declared.

xxx

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	27. Gaul

"I told you my Chariot could keep up Lord Andrew," Nero said as she rode on her horseless Divinely blessed Chariot. As they were headed towards Massaillia, where they would meet up with the army and Nero's two Generals. Where they would sleep through the approaching night, and when attack in the morning.

Mash clung to his back as they rode on Hurricane Ride.

The rest of his Servant running beside them.

With the exception of Caster Cu who had chosen to stay behind in Rome, as defense in case the United Empire attacked again while they were gone.

"Rome sure has some advanced stuff," Andrew replied neutrally.

"A lot of old civilizations seem to have some magic, stuff that predates their modern technological invention Senpai." Mash stated.

"Yeah, that was something I've kinda been picking up on, that modern technology is old magic turned science or something?" Andrew said. "I haven't really seen too much, but Ancient Uruk apparently had sewing machines and hoverbikes, and now Rome has super-fast horseless carriages. Honestly, some of the stuff humans have been able to do without magic is crazy given how magic has been around the whole time." Andrew said, carefully self-censoring his words in case Nero was still listening. Didn't want her calling their bluff about their origins. "I mean, it's even possible to give a human the abilities of a Servant now, and that's probably the craziest thing I've seen first hand."

"It is Senpai, but with magical items, they are kind one of a kind, like Nero's Chariot is probably the only one in Rome right now, while modern humans have mass produced cars for almost everybody." She said in a low tone of voice so that only Andrew was able to hear her.

"Mhm. Yeah, I guess you're right…" Andrew went quiet for a moment. "Does that mean you're one of those 'one-of-a-kind' situations too?"

"Yes, Senpai I was the only successful Demi-Servant, all others did not survive the experiment, even when as I was considered a failure as the powers of the Servant inside of me didn't manifest until that happened a month ago," Mash answered, but Andrew could hear that was a topic she wasn't comfortable talking about.

"Wait, what? In Fuyuki you said the Servant you merged with was summoned by one of the other Masters in advance, but now you're saying you already had it?" Andrew asked, confused.

"Oh, yeah I did, I lied. That is one of the highest of Chaldea's secrets, and I'm not supposed to tell anyone, but I trust you Senpai that's why I'm telling you the truth now. You can discuss it with the Doctor later he knows most about it."

Andrew put together certain things he knew about her as she said that. "Yeah. I'll _definitely_ be having words with him later."

"Hey everyone, I'm able to see a camp ahead of us, and I'm detecting two Servants among them." Announced Arash.

"Good, that should be The Massilia Frontline Army I've got about 200,000 soldiers here," Nero said.

"Wait, you already have Servants on your side?" Andrew asked, confused. He was hoping it was that and not that there were two _enemy_ Servants in the middle of the camp of soldiers.

"No, those are my two generals he must be sensing they are very powerful," Nero answered.

"...Right." Andrew said skeptically. "And what are the names of those generals?"

"I'll have them introduce themselves, it would be rude to not let do that. Look they are coming to greet us." Nero pointed forward, and Andrew saw two people come into his field of view. He quickly slowed down coming to a halt in front of the two.

"Are you oppressors?" Asked the _instantly_ recognizable Spartacus.

"No they aren't Berserker, they are with Nero." Said the female Servant. A woman with long red flowing hair, holding a sword and shield in her hands. "It is good, to see you, your Majesty, the strategists, are waiting for you in the main tent."

"That is good to hear, I shall go talk to them about tomorrow's attack. You introduce yourself to Lord Andrew here, I hired him and his group of warriors to assist in taking down the United Empire." Nero said as she speeds off on her chariot towards the camp.

"And like that she is gone, well aren't you an interesting bunch, well I guess you in the Dragon Armor is Lord Andrew and these must be your Servants. Well, this Berserker Class Servant here is Spartacus, and I'm of the Rider Class, my True Name is Boudica." She told them.

"...No offense, but I highly admire your self-control not to attack Nero when you see her, Boudica." Andrew said. "Ah, but where are my manners. I am Andrew Murphy, Master of Chaldea, and we are here to fix this Singularity error in time." Andrew got off Hurricane Ride and offered a hand to Boudica first. "It's a pleasure to work with you."

"It will be our pleasure as we were summoned by the Counter Force through Grail to help you. And it's easier than you think, I hate the Empire more than I do her after getting to know her as a person. And there is the fact that she doesn't know that I have died yet." Boudica said. "And are you a Servant of Britain perhaps?" She asked as she looked at Alter.

"Yes, I am Arturia Pendragon."

"Then allow me to be your Big Sister," Boudica said as she shoved the tyrant's head into her cleavage. "There, there Big Sister is going to take care of you." She said as she patted her head.

Andrew felt a bit put down at his handshake being ignored but then suppressed a snicker at the antics. And then remembered the massively muscled man behind him, turning to face the Berserker. "Ah, Spartacus. It is an honor to meet you, sir." He said, extending his hand. He hoped being in Rome might have restored the revolutionary's sanity, at least a little bit.

"I am honored to, let us fight oppressors together." His speech was slurred like he had trouble with forming words. But looking at his eyes, Andrew could see a mind capable of complex thoughts. It seemed his madness was lowered to the point that it only affected his speech patterns, and guessed that if it involved something with oppressors, it was easier for him to do so.

"Yes, there are many oppressors in the enemy forces. One could even say they intend to oppress all of Human History." Andrew said.

The Giant of a man just gave a large smile.

It was rather off-putting. The too-perfect teeth made it worse, but Andrew was just happy to know Spartacus could at least somewhat think clearly. He was a tactical genius, after all. Unable to smile in return without removing his helmet, he just opted to give the Berserker a thumbs up.

Which he returned in kind.

"Remove your hand woman!" Andrew heard Alter shout. He turned around to see that the Saber had removed her head from the valley and was blushing up a storm.

"Sorry, but I can't help it when I meet with Heroes of Britain I just have to act like their big sister," Boudica admitted. "It's hard to keep myself from hugging the girl on that thing you rode on."

"Oh yeah, that reminds me I should probably store that for now." He said, walking back over and offering Mash a hand to get down. "M'kouhai."

Mash took the hand with a blush on her face and right after she got off he sent the bike into hammerspace.

They stood there for a moment before Andrew remembered he was still holding onto her hand and let go. "Sorry…"

"I don't mind," Mash admitted.

Andrew was very happy he was still wearing his helmet since he was pretty sure his face matched the color of his armor at the moment. He slowly offered his hand once more.

Mash smiled as she took it.

"Young love, such a wonder to see." Came Boudica's comment.

Andrew sputtered, trying to come up with a response. But he didn't let go.

"Please Miss Boudica, Senpai is just being friendly. He doesn't like me that way." Mash said.

Andrew half-shrugged. This he knew how to react to. "...Weelll, to be honest, I'm not sure. I haven't really even considered dating anyone in like five years so I can't remember what the line is between really good friends and dating." This had been something he'd said multiple times over the years, but the answer was always friends, so he wasn't sure.

"Well, it seems little Shielder still has a chance, hey Alter tell Lily later I'm doubling my bet." Said Lancer Cu.

"That is noted dog."

"Wait, you guys have a betting pool?" Andrew asked incredulously. "About me?" It made sense they would have one for something or other, but about him? And apparently about who he dated?!

"Yep, mine is you two do the deed before New Years." Cu answered.

Andrew heard a sputter come from Mash.

"You're gonna lose that one, dog. No way I'm doing that so quickly, ya hear? I got values, and one of those is chastity you got me?" Andrew said, trying very hard to think of literally anything else than what Cu had just suggested.

"Your life must have been so boring before this Master." Cu said.

"Yeah, boring was good. Boring meant I wasn't dealing with deranged Roman suicide bombers under the banner of the ghosts of former Roman Emperor's brought back from the dead while in Ancient Rome, arguing with Cu Chulainn. Boring at least _makes sense._ " Andrew said.

"Now you two can argue later, I think we need to get to the camp and make sure Nero doesn't do anything crazy," Boudica suggested.

Andrew sighed. "Yeah, we probably should."

Xxx

They had made their way to Roman camp, thankfully before Nero had done anything meaningful, though they had been told by the female emperor, that they would all march to Gaul at dawn. And that scouts had confirmed a large presence of Golems there numbering in the thousands to support the enemy troops.

And so they had gotten dinner, but before Andrew went to his assigned tent to sleep. He had made his way into the forest to have a private conversation with a certain doctor.

Andrew looked at the holographic form of Roman, he no longer had his helmet on so that the doctor could see his angry face.

"Roman." He practically growled through gritted teeth. "Could you _please_ explain as to why my wonderful Kouhai was part of some experiment where she was the _only survivor_ and happened a good while ago, meaning she was still _just a child?_ "

"Because she was designed for it Andrew," Roman answered.

"Designed?"

"Mash isn't a human she is a homunculus designed to be a vessel for a Heroic Spirit, to use their powers without dealing with their personality. She was created in 2001 and 2011 the Demi-Servant experiment was fully carried out, she was the only who survived of her fellow homunculi and had a Heroic Spirit successfully bound to her, but it was only awake for a limited time that allowed for the summoning of Da Vinci afterward it went into slumber. Because of that, the Director deemed her a failure, and she was left in my care, where I gave her, her name after having been without a proper one for ten years, being designated serial number 35."

Andrew was practically frothing at the mouth as all the pieces clicked into places. "So that's why she'd never been outside Chaldea…Wait." He had a horrible realization. "Wait a minute. You said she's a homunculus. Doesn't that mean she has an an...an expiration date?" He said, spitting out the words as he lacked a better way to ask.

"Yes, Mash Kyrielight will cease to exist on her eighteenth birthday of January 5, 2019."

"Not if I have anything to say about it," Andrew said. "We have the fucking King of Heroes, we have the smartest genius ever, we have a Holy Grail. We **will** prevent that by any means necessary. Tell Da Vinci to shelf the project I talked to her about before, this takes the-" Andrew was cut off by Roman yelling.

"DON'T YOU FUCKING THINK I HAVE TRIED THAT ANDREW! Da Vinci and I have been working for years to try and extend her lifespan, and we have made no progress, that date is coded into her very being, her soul basically self-destruct on that day. And there is nothing we can do about it." Andrew saw tears run down Roman's face as he cried.

"Don't you dare give up," Andrew said. Giving up would be saying there was nothing to be done. "Like I said before, we have the fucking _King of Heroes_ now too. There has to be something he's got that can fix it. The Philosopher's Stone, soul-expansions, I don't fucking know. But we haven't tried everything. And that means there is still _something_ that can fix it, you hear? There is no fucking way I'm letting Mash go like that, and I can't imagine what it would be like to lose your daughter. But we absolutely cannot give up."

"You can try Andrew, but I have given up on trying to save her, now I'm just trying to make everyone of her days count. And I must you're the best thing that has ever happened to her Andrew." That was the first time Andrew, had seen Roman look so fucking miserable.

"You might have given up, but I'm way too bullheaded to stop. There is no _fucking way_ I'm going to give up. I don't care if I have to make a deal with the fucking devil or punch god in the face I will _never give up on her._ " Andrew declared.

"Senpai, what are you screaming about?" Came the voice of Mash behind him. Andrew saw the hologram of Roman disappear.

Andrew whirled around to face her and pulled the Shielder into a hug. "I-its nothing Kouhai. Just something Roman said." He unconvincingly lied.

"It didn't sound like nothing, but you need to go to bed so, you're fresh in the morning Senpai," Mash said.

"Such a selfless, wonderful Kouhai I have," Andrew said dramatically to distract from what had happened. "That she would worry about me so. Truly, I am blessed."

"Senpai, why do you keep saying that stuff?"

"What, the truth about my beautiful, wonderful, amazing Kouhai? Isn't it the job of the Senpai to praise their Kouhai when they do good? Because you've been doing nothing but good from the moment we met, and I haven't been living up to being your Senpai."

"Yes, you are, your the best one." She said.

"No no, I have been a horrible Senpai while you've been nothing but the perfect Kouhai. I am not worthy to be called Senpai by you." Andrew said.

"Then, if you're not going to be my Senpai, then you're my boyfriend now instead."

Andrew sputtered. He was regretting taking off his helmet somewhat since he was pretty sure he did, in fact, match the color of his armor at that. "Well, I mean, if, that's, what you want then, I guess that's that." He eventually got out. "Which, would, of course, make you...my girlfriend?" He was completely unsure how to respond and to be honest wasn't sure if she was joking. It didn't help that his only real even remotely romantic relationship previously had been with a crazy person.

"... I think so, I don't know how this works, Senpai." Mash admitted. "I have never had a boyfriend before, or even a male friend really. And I wouldn't call Kadoc one."

"Kadoc?" Andrew asked, latching onto his own confusion to try and calm himself a bit.

"He was part of the A-team along with me, but he was kind of creepy along with one of the others kept trying to sneak into my room, but Roman kept them out. I have a picture of him you to see what he looks like?"

"I mean, he's stuck in a coffin for the foreseeable future, so it doesn't really matter what he looks like, but if/when he does get out, we're going to teach that pervert a lesson," Andrew said before catching onto his own words. "And that only means beating him up if he's that much of a creep."

"I don't think was about that Senpai, I think he was jealous of me and wanted to try something so that I would be thrown off the team. He has a lot of self-esteem issues, he is very average compared to the rest of the former A-team."

"That doesn't excuse him being a creep," Andrew said, before realizing what she had called him. "Though I guess I am still just your shitty Senpai then?"

"Yes, but you're mine. Now we need to get some sleep."

Andrew sighed and chuckled a bit. "Yeah, that's probably for the best."

As they began walking back to the main part of the camp, Andrew's resolve redoubled.

He would do whatever it took to keep her alive.

Xxx

The sun was rising over the horizon as Andrew walked alongside Mash and his Servants as they followed the Roman Legion to Gaul to retake their territory and for them take down the emperor holding up there.

In front, him was Spartacus and Boudica, and all the way up front was Nero leading the army riding on her chariot.

Andrew took the opportunity to use his Stat-o-Vision on the two 'generals' as he had forgotten to do so the previous day, checking the more unfamiliar Boudica first.

True Name: Boudica

Class: Rider

Master: -

 **Parameters:**

Strength: C

Endurance: B+

Agility: C

Mana: D

Luck: D

Noble Phantasm: B++

 **Class Skills:**

Riding: A

Magic Resistance: D

 **Personal Skills:**

Battle Continuation: A

Oath to the Goddess: B

Protection from Andraste: A

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Chariot of Boudica: Chariot Without Promised Protection(Anti-Army): B++

Sword of Boudica: Sword Without Promised Victory(Anti-Unit): B

The 'Without Promised' thing she had going for her Noble Phantasms implied that they were relatively normal in life but brought up to something greater as a Servant as opposed to Excalibur, Andrew thought. The high Battle Continuation looked promising, though he had no idea what the other two personal skills did.

"General," Andrew said, getting the attention of Boudica (and Spartacus). "Forgive me for being rude, but do you mind me asking what your Noble Phantasms do?"

"No it's fine to ask, this isn't a Holy Grail War, and we aren't enemies, so it's fine to ask if we're working together," Boudica said. "My first one is the chariot that I can summon, pulled by my two horses, it can fly and its best at being used defensively. My sword shoots out blasts of magical energy."

"Ah, I see. And what about your 'Oath to the Goddess' and 'Protection from Andraste' skills?" Andrew asked.

"Well, the first one allows me to deal more damage too-" She pointed her finger at army they were walking beside. "And the second It enhances defense when I participate in a defensive battle."

"Ah, I see," Andrew said before turning his Stat-o-Vision onto the musclebound Berserker.

True Name: Spartacus

Class: Berserker

Master: -

 **Parameters:**

Strength: A

Endurance: EX

Agility: D

Mana: E

Luck: D

Noble Phantasm: A+

 **Class Skill:**

Mad Enhancement: D(EX)

 **Personal Skills:**

The Honor of The Battered: B+

Unyielding Will: A

Triumphant Return of the Sword: A

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Crying Warmonger: The Howl of the Wounded Beast(Anti-Unit(Self)): A+

"Ah, and Spartacus, what do your personal skills do?" Andrew asked, already knowing the effects of Spartacus's Noble Phantasm. He made a note of the multiple ranks of Mad Enhancement though.

"The pain of oppressors heal me, can't hurt my mind and sword hurts oppressors more, when hurt." He tried to answer as best as he could.

"Oh, so that's why your outfit is like that, it's based on your skills, I get what you're saying big guy," Andrew said. "I'm really glad to have the both of you on our side. To be honest, before we came here I had been expecting one or both of you to be enemies given the location, but that was before we found out about the United Empire."

"We probably would be, but as the saying goes bigger fish and all that," Boudica said sheepishly.

"Yeah, I figured. Still, I'm glad you're both on our side. Especially since the enemy is still basically 'Roman,' and they are most definitely being led by Oppressors." Andrew said. "Though the enemy soldiers themselves might actually be being oppressed now that I think about it, what with how that soldier we captured before seemed brainwashed."

"The oppressors must die," Spartacus said coldly. His face became angry, guess he really hated the ideas of mind control and brainwashing.

"Calm down Spartacus, the enemies aren't here yet." Boudica patted him on the back.

"Sorry." He apologized, looking forward now instead of backward, walking with heavier steps.

"The big guy sure has a temper, reminds me of when I was a kid, and accidentally Warp Spasmed. I was pretty pissed at the time." Cu commented.

"You really need to tell me more about that after we deal with this Emperor," Andrew said. "You're Warp Spasm as a Servant must be insane, but I'm guessing you'd need to be a Berserker to use it, right?"

"Yep, as a Berserker I would be able to use it naturally, but I would not have Gae Bolg, but since it is a part of my being, as a Lancer you could use all your Command Seals, and break the limits of my Saint Graph to use it." Cu told Andrew.

Andrew held up a finger at that. "1. I didn't know something like that was possible." A second finger joined the first. "2. Would that be permanent or harmful to you?" The third joined its brethren. "And 3. Would you want to? Because if you want to, then I'm probably going to do it at some point."

"Yeah, but I think would be only possible with innate things, like you couldn't use that method on the Tyrant here and get her to use her Lance or summon her ship. It would be temporary as my Saint Graph would reset to its original state and would probably hurt like a bitch. As for using it? I'm not opposed to it as a trump card if a situation goes to hell." Cu answered.

"I'll keep that in mind," Andrew said.

"Enemy troops spotted! Get into formation and get ready for combat!" Shouted Nero. "Arrows!"

And by that Nero meant incoming arrows as sticks with tips of steel on the end rained from the sky.

And it did nothing to any of them, as they hit the Roman soldier's shield and Andrew was amused as they bounced off his armor.

It lasted for a few seconds, and soon Nero shouted again for everyone to advance.

The roar of two-hundred-thousand men followed that statement.

"Archer, make it rain. Alter, go wild. Lancer, stay close to me until we locate the enemy, Emperor. And it would be nice if I had a helping hand from the shadows." Andrew ordered, trying to speak tactically. "Mash, prioritize whoever you feel needs the most protecting."

"Yes, Master." They all answered.

"DEATH TO THE OPPRESSORS!" Spartacus shouted, and Andrew saw him run off towards the enemy in the distance, almost skipping across the ground.

"That is even more unsettling in person…" Andrew said before remembering they were now fighting. "Right. Deploy Claws." He thought for a moment before deciding on the best weapon, given the situation. "Gun whose bullets only hit the enemy."

Andrew watched as the cube turned into a musket, with a bayonet at the end. "Well, let's hope this works." He pointed the musket into the mob of enemy soldiers, humans mixed with Golems, aimed, and fired. The bullet shot through the air with the distinctive thundercrack of a gun, and one of the soldiers fell...and so did the one behind him. And the one behind him. As Andrew watched, whatever soldier he looked at had the bullet burst through their bodies. It was like he'd just become Yondu.

The bullet did come to a stop when it hit a Golem and whatever connection he had to it ceased. He had to try it out more to test its limits.

He took aim and fired again, this time aiming specifically for the gap in the soldier's armor near the nape of the neck. The Lorica Segmentata was designed in a time when ranged attacks came from above. The protection from below was unheard of and unneeded.

So the bullet whizzed right through the gap and out the other side, over and over again through soldier after soldier, until it came to a stop and Andrew realized he could only control as long as it had momentum, which ceased after about going through twenty soldiers.

That was when Andrew saw a pillar of darkness rise into the air.

"Excalibur Morgan!" Andrew heard the shout of Alter come as she unleashed her Noble Phantasm.

Andrew watched as the enemy army was split like the red sea.

"Huh. So that's what it looks like when its used on someone else." Andrew said, more than a bit awed at the display of power. It was a stark reminder that he was at best an annoying bird compared to the dragons that were Servants. Still better than being an ant, but the power gap was still insane.

"Master, I have located the enemy Servant, he is currently fighting against Nero in the middle of the field." Came the voice of Arash as he appeared next to Andrew.

"Shit, Archer start providing supporting fire, Lancer get over there and help out, I'll be right behind you," Andrew ordered. There was no way he was going to let Nero, let herself get killed because she got cocky about power levels or whatever. "Mash, you go ahead too. The soldiers can do jack-all against Tenfold Shields." He didn't wait for a response before he started moving towards Nero. This was only a slight alteration of the plan after all.

Andrew bulldozed his way through the enemy forces to make his way towards Nero and the enemy Servant. He saw the Arrows of Arash rain down clearing out the Golems. Mash and Lancer were right behind him, it didn't take long to find Nero as she swung her red sword at the enemy it seemingly blazing with fire, but she was covered in wounds while the Servant only had some charred clothes.

"Master, grab the girl, I'm going to take him out in one-shot." Cu suggested.

"If you're certain it'll work, by all means," Andrew said as he ran at Nero as fast as he could, intent on grabbing her and jumping away.

Andrew activated Prana Burst towards his legs as he blasted off towards Nero he was beside her within a single second. He grabbed her and quickly jumped up with another one, and in the air, he deployed his wings.

And it was where he got a good, look at the situation ignoring Nero as she cursed at him. It was where he to saw Cu in the air.

"GAE BOLG!" The Irishman shouted as he threw the demonic spear straight at the enemy Servant.

The spear exploded as it collided with the enemy Servant consuming the area below Andrew as the Noble Phantasm also took out some surrounding enemies.

Andrew continued flying away from the site as the dust was still about, knowing damn well by now to only assume a Servant dead when holding their Saint Quartz. He adjusted his grip on the Emperor as he did, tuning in to her words.

"Andrew how dare you interfere with my duel against the false emperor, that was my right!" Nero screamed at Andrew.

"I don't know if you noticed, but you didn't even scratch him, and you look half dead. I meant what I said before about Servants being _better_ than humans." He motioned with the musket-shaped claws at the still settling dust cloud. "Like how I can guarantee that would have killed you, but I'm not sure if the False Emperor died."

"And you're absolutely correct!" said a male voice from inside the dust cloud that was settling and Andrew could begin to see the man again, now lacking both his chestplate and the fat, revealing a rather handsome looking warrior. "So, that is why my army is losing you have Servant's on your side now Nero." The dust was gone now. "If that is the case, I shall go all out! Now come and face the man who laid the foundation for your title, for I am Julius Caesar!"

Xxx

Passive's Reactions:

When Prydwen is mentioned.

 **Hoping for a Rider Mordred.**

When Passive realizes he fighting Caesar in Gaul:

 **OHHHH SHIIIIT!**

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	28. This Is!

Andrew watched as Cu rushed at Caesar trying to pierce his him with his red spear. Caesar parried it with his blade, and soon the two Servants were in a duel of blows.

Andrew quickly used his Stat-o-Vision on the Emperor while he had a clear look at him.

True Name: Gaius Julius Caesar

Class: Saber

Master: ?

 **Parameters:**

Strength: A

Endurance: B

Agility: B

Mana: D

Luck: C

Noble Phantasm: B+

 **Class Skills:**

Magic Resistance: C

Riding: B

 **Personal Skills:**

Divinity: D

Military Tactics: B

Charisma: C

Incitement: EX

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Crocea Mors: Yellow Death(Anti-Unit): B+

Just as Andrew had feared, Caesar was equipped with the Yellow Death. Despite not using much it in life, it _was_ his sword once upon a time, and any wound it gave proved to be fatal when used by the man who stole it, whose name eluded him at the moment. More importantly, it was now being wielded by Caesar himself, in Gaul. This could go bad really, really quickly. _"Cu, make sure he doesn't even nick you, that sword's wounds always prove fatal._ " He said telepathically to the Lancer currently engaging with the false Emperor.

" _Heard Master."_

"Caesar, the man who led Rome, before the first emperor. Is that truly him?" Asked Nero who was still in Andrew's grip, but seemed to have calmed down.

"The Emperor before they were called Emperors, yes. That's him, brought back from the dead with all the power his reputation brings." Andrew replied. "And we're in Gaul, the place of his most epic conflict, which means that he's probably getting a boost from that, too."

"Then I apologize Lord Andrew for not believing your words when you first told of them. But it seems that these compatriots of yours are these Servant too, as the man blue used Gae Bolg, a weapon wielded by Chulainn." Nero said.

"That's because he is the Hound of Ulster," Andrew said. "All of my compatriots are people, _warriors_ with just as much history and legend behind them. That is why I know we _will_ win this because they've proven to be just that good."

"I see, then I'm a blind fool then, Boudica is a Servant too, isn't she?"

"Yes, as is Spartacus," Andrew replied, adjusting his aim with the musket still in his right hand. He was waiting for the right moment to shoot even as they spoke, eager to contribute directly even a bit in the fight.

"Then she has died, and I didn't even know, and here I hoped to marry her in order stop the pointless conflict in Londinium and keep her in power after her husband's death. And that hulk of muscles is the legendary gladiator, I had thought they just shared the same name? What a surprise."

Andrew was about to respond, but before he could begin, they heard Caesar speak again. "This battle has been fantastic Child of Light. But I came, I saw, and I conquered. CORCEA-." The man was about to unleash his Noble Phantasm, but it was stopped as Andrew saw the most unexpected thing happen.

From the ground right behind Caesar came forth the giant form of Spartacus who moved his hands in haste and caught Caesar's own putting him in a hold.

"DEATH TO THE OPPRESSOR!" Shouted Spartacus.

Which was quickly followed up by Hassan appearing in front of the restrained Caesar. "Zabaniya!" Andrew watched as the Assassin's Noble Phantasm was unleashed, from underneath his black cloak, the demonic arm was unleashed. It seemingly stretched to touch Caesar's chest, and in its grasp, a heart appeared, one that was red and pulsating. The arm retreated back, and Andrew watched with discomfort as Hassan ate it.

"Damn you!" Came the shout from Caesar as he vanished and the familiar crystal fell to the ground at Spartacus' feet.

"That was surprisingly easy," Andrew said as he began flying down towards the spot of Caesar's death to retrieve the Saint Quartz. He was a bit disappointed at yet again not contributing much, but he was happy with a quick victory. He then remembered he was still holding Nero and stored The Claws so as to hold her in a more comfortable grip-bridal instead of like a sack of potatoes- as he swiftly alighted on the ground.

"Ah sweet ground, now excuse me. MEN THE FALSE EMPEROR HAS BEEN DEFEATED, DEFEAT THE REMAINING SOLDIERS AND RETAKE GAUL. WHEN MOVE ONTO THE REST OF THE REGION!" Nero shouted the orders in such a way that Andrew swore she was speaking in all caps instead of actually yelling.

"Contractor, I have managed to assassinate the enemy Servant with the assistance of the Berserker. Thanks to him I was able to utilize the heart switching function of my Noble Phantasm and gain information on the enemy. I have confirmation on the location of their headquarters and that the Saber had been summoned by one Lev Lainur." Hassan informed Andrew after appearing right next to him.

"That's rather useful information, thank you for your good work Assassin. But did you get any information about the other Servants, where the enemy intends to strike next, how they've brainwashed the soldiers, anything like that?" Andrew asked, as his other Servants gathered up next to him along with Boudica, as Nero's soldiers did their job, they had accomplished theirs.

"He had no clue of their True Name, but at the time of his summoning before he was sent to conquer Gaul. Lev Lainur had a Berserker, two Lancers, a Caster, and one Assassin under his command. And he seems to act through one of the Lancer's to control the rest of the Servants." Hassan relayed all the intel he had gathered.

Andrew took in the information and was hit with a grave realization. "The Lancer who seemed to be controlling the others, did he have a bloody spear?" Andrew asked.

"The visual images from his memories are rather blurry, but the Lancer's spear was definitely red in color," Hassan answered.

"Fuck," Andrew said. "Then there's a non-zero chance, hell a pretty good chance considering everything else, that Lancer is Longinus, and he's got the Spear that pierced the side of Christ, which was told to have so many different powers-chief among which is controlling others- that if it isn't limited by being a Servant, we're screwed."

"If he has that spear Master, it would definitely be troublesome." Alter stated.

"Yeah, especially since we're in Rome. I'm not even sure how it would even work considering how some Servants' weapons are changed by their legend, and others aren't, but either way we need to kill that Lancer the instant we can. _Especially_ if it's the only thing keeping the other Emperors on Lev's side. If we can take out that Lancer, we could turn those enemy Servants, if not to our side, then at least against Lev." Andrew said.

"Yes, that should be our immediate concern contractor. Now the location of their Headquarters the capital of the United Empire is located in the middle of what will become Spain." Hassan informed them all.

"Mhm. Assassin, do you think you can run reconnaissance and scout out the place without getting caught?" Andrew asked. They actually had a sneaky Assassin now, so he was going to make use of him.

"I shall do so post haste Contractor." And with that, the Hassan vanished before Andrew's eyes, but he could still feel the connection they had.

" _Hey Master, get back to Rome quickly two Servants are attacking alongside an army!"_ Came the telepathic message from Caster Cu.

"Shit! Everyone, we're heading back to Rome right now, it's under attack! Nero, whether you stay or go stick with Boudica, my Servants and I are heading there top speed." Andrew said, deploying Hurricane Ride once more. Mash quickly joined him on the bike.

"Ah, yes, yes I shall go with Boudica," Nero said, but her voice sounded like she had just come out of a trance.

Andrew nodded and sped off back towards Rome, going full speed. He trusted Boudica to keep Nero safe for now, but Caster probably wouldn't be able to defend Rome from two Servants all by himself. His other Servants sans Assassin quickly joined him in their flight to Rome.

Xxx

As they approached Rome Andrew was extremely glad for the speed of his Hurricane Ride, and that it also was a hoverbike, as it let him cut the travel time from Gaul to Rome, by a tremendous amount going from the fifteen or so hours it would have taken by modern cars and roads. To only about three.

During the rush back Caster Cu had kept Andrew informed about the situation, that the two enemy Servants were a Lancer and a Caster. And that thankfully he had been joined by two free-roaming Servants had joined him in defense of the city. Two female ones that were a Caster and Rider. They hadn't given Caster Cu their True names to him, so he didn't know their identities, but he did know that all four of the new Servants were Greek.

And that the enemy Caster, had tried to explode Rome with a giant laser beam, but he had managed to counter it with Ochd Deug Odin.

Now they were approaching Rome, he could see the city on the horizon.

Andrew's mind was racing as the possibilities of the identities of the unknown Servants on both sides and what they could mean for this Singularity. Caster Cu had already confirmed that it was the other Lancer attacking but had been unable to provide much more information than that. "Alright, Arash as soon as you spot the enemy Lancer, start firing. We'll figure out who's who for the others once we reunite with our Caster." Andrew ordered as they approached the city.

"Seeing him Master, and drive left now!" Shouted Arash.

Andrew did so without hesitation, swerving off to the left, and as he did, he saw something fly past his eyes.

A second later he saw it return and this time he got a look at what it was.

It was a completely circular shield.

"I had perfectly calculated that to hit all of you, but seems somebody is cheating." Andrew saw the shield being grabbed by the enemy Lancer.

Andrew was left awestruck with what he was seeing as Hurricane Ride came to a stop. The presumed Lancer from his spear was wearing a cape, a loincloth, and little else save for a helmet. An undoubtedly Spartan helmet. And he was _incredibly_ muscled, not in the way of Spartacus but more like an actual person. And he was rather intimidating with the cold demeanor and the look. The glowing red eyes under the helmet helped with that part.

"Hello Master and Servants of Chaldea, and to you Emperor Nero. Allow me to introduce myself I am Servant Lancer Leonidas King of Sparta. Now come crumble my wall to save this era. FOR THIS IS SPARTA!" The Lancer shouted.

"I don't have time for this. I'm taking him down, Master. Excalibur Morgan." Andrew saw Alter unleash her Noble Phantasm in a split second, the wave of darkness approached the king who stood confidently a bit away from them.

"And so I have won. Thermopylae Enomotia!" Leonidas shouted.

Andrew watched as Spartan warriors appeared in front of Leonidas, three hundred to be exact.

Excalibur Morgan met the army of three hundred men.

The energy of the sword rushed through the men like a hot knife through butter, but as it approached Leonidas, it lost its power and fizzled out before it touched the Lancer.

Leaving a hundred men still standing.

But after a second they too disappeared, and Leonidas was alone once again.

He thrusted his spear from his position in a forward motion at Andrew and his Servants.

The world went silent for just a moment before a female voice shouted.

"Lord Chaldea!" Mash shouted as she landed in front of them, the magical barrier forming.

A second later an explosion occurred right in front of Mash shield.

The barrier stood, after whatever attack Leonidas had just used.

"Good timing there Mash," Andrew said, still processing what had occurred. He quickly used his Stat-o-Vision on Leonidas to confirm a suspicion.

True Name: Leonidas

Class: Lancer

Master: Lev Lainur

 **Parameters:**

Strength: B

Endurance: A

Agility: D

Mana: C

Luck: C

Noble Phantasm: B

 **Class Skills:**

Magic Resistance: C

 **Personal Skills:**

Dignity of the Rearguards: A

Battle Continuation: A

Warcry of the Warrior: B

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Thermopylae Enomotia: Guardian of the Hot Gates(Anti-Army): B

Andrew's worry deepened. Those skills gave him the feeling Leonidas wasn't going to go down easy. "Arash, those soldiers of his Noble Phantasm don't seem to strong on their own, next time he uses it, make it rain so the others can get through. Alter, wait to use your Noble Phantasm again until you're a bit closer so he can't block it like that. Lancer...hound him, he's got D-Rank Agility." Andrew ordered.

"Got it, Master." They shouted, and a blue rocket shot forward. "This one is mine like Alter said. Gae Bolg!" Cu thrusted his spear.

And then the spear seemed to bend as it struck Leonidas right in his heart, unable to escape the effect of the Noble Phantasm, even as he tried to backpedal.

"Not done yet!" Leonidas screamed even with his heart eviscerated, and Andrew could see blue lines moving from his impaled heart through his body. The enemy Lancer lets go of his spear and then grabbed Gae Bolg still stuck in his chest.

And shoved it further inside and through his back, sliding down the polearm till his face was right in front of Cu's own, where he took his shield and smashed its edge against Cu's head and did so again.

"Arash, headshot," Andrew ordered, seeing as Leonidas was literally impaled he couldn't really go anywhere. Though it was hard to stay calm with how Leonidas was repeatedly striking Cu.

Andrew heard the sound barrier being broken and an instant later he saw three arrows go through Leonidas' head in various places with one right through his helmet where his left eye was. The two other go through his skull.

And that did the Lancer in before he turned Cu's brain into mush as he crumpled into mana particles and a Saint Quartz fell to the ground.

"Cu, I know your spear is important but couldn't you have astralized Gae Bolg and disengaged?" Andrew asked as he walked over to the Lancer, intoning his new heal spell under his breath towards said, Lancer.

Andrew watched as Cu's bloody face was patched up. "Sorry, I was about to pull out, didn't expect him to do that. Freaking Battle Continuation, annoying when your opponent has it." Cu said as he flicked his spear and whipped it of Leonidas' blood. While Andrew picked up the Saint Quartz and sent it into storage.

"I'm sure everyone you've fought ever thought the same thing," Andrew said.

"Yeah, people don't really die when they are killed do they?" Cu asked rhetorically.

"I mean, with how Servants work, I don't think they do, no," Andrew said. "Oh, wait, there's still that Caster, we need to beat it."

"You managed to beat Leonidas, expected really, the man was a brute despite his clear mathematical mind." Andrew heard a male voice speak from behind.

Andrew turned around, and he saw a man sitting on giant floating gear.

" _Andrew, the system isn't picking him up he is hiding from our sensors somehow, and he isn't an Assassin."_ Came the voice of Roman.

"Are, you the one who tried to destroy Rome before?" Asked a now present Nero besides Andrew, Boudica right next to her.

"I did, but my Noble Phantasm was stopped by that Caster who along with the other two Servant are being occupied by the replica I created to fight them. Though I will say, it is good to see you once more Emperor Nero." Said the black haired man.

"You seem like you're more of a talkative fellow than the spartan, do want to have a cup of tea and talk about this like civilized folk?" Andrew said, half-sincerely. _"Arash, get ready to unload as many arrows into this guy as you can."_ He said telepathically.

" _Acknowledged Master."_

"And how do you know me, I have never met you before, and who are you?" Nero asked.

"I a man of rationalism, I don't fight when there is no need to. Well, it's more accurate to say that we will meet in the future, after you win the Holy Grail War created by SERAPH, and defeat Twice, along with Savior. As for who I am? I am the great mathematician Archimedes, Servant Class Caster." Archimedes presented himself.

Andrew immediately used his Stat-o-Vision on the enemy Caster.

True Name: Archimedes

Class: Caster

Master: Lev Lainur

 **Parameters:**

Strength: E

Endurance: D

Agility: C

Mana: C

Luck: A

Noble Phantasm: B

 **Class Skills:**

Item Construction: A+

High-Speed Incantation: A

 **Personal Skills:**

Technique Eludaction: EX

Aptitude for Slaughter(Tools): A

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Katoptron Katho Phlegon: Clustered straws, burn out like the Moon(Anti-Army): B

"If you do not fight when there is no need to, then you need not fight. You aren't Lev's Servant anymore, right?" Andrew said, metaphorically putting all his cards on the table to make himself seem more trustworthy. "Then you don't need to help the United Empire, and you can even join with us, but if you cease now and leave this conflict permanently, we will not attack you."

"Yes, I broke the contract with the "man" that had summoned me, but I'm done here, for now, my curiosity has been satisfied-"

Andrew interrupted him, hoping to sway him to the side of Chaldea. "If you're driven by the quest for knowledge, you should join us! We're traveling to Singularities like this one and fixing them throughout all of the time, imagine the kinds of things you could see at first hand like that!"

"-You propose a good deal boy, and if I had been anybody else I would have accepted that deal, but I hate human society, and this Incineration is the best thing that could have happened. I will not try to progress it or stop it. I'm curious to see what will happen afterward. But if you manage to stop it, we can talk later. Prove to me that a single individual can make a change. Well if _he_ doesn't kill you first." At that Archimedes snapped his finger and he was gone.

"...That felt weird even by my new standards." Andrew said after a moment. "But what did he mean by 'he'?"

"Lev Lainur perhaps Lord Andrew?" Nero proposed. "Though I wonder why he did that thing with his fingers when he described him as a "man,"" Nero said, making air quotes with her fingers.

"Ah, that motion tends to mean that the word being used is only accurate on a surface level or allegedly," Andrew said, before realizing for himself what that meant. "Which means, in all likelihood, Lev isn't human anymore, if he ever was to start with…"

" _I don't know what to think about that Andrew I knew him for over a decade, but then he went and betrayed us. So I don't know what to think about him anymore. But your Caster is returning along with two other Servants."_ Dr. Roman said and informed Andrew.

"Thanks for the heads up Boss." Andrew said before turning towards where he 'felt' Caster was coming from. "Two new potentially permanent allies inbound, after all."

Andrew watched as Caster Cu came running over towards them, with one of the two Servants, one flying and the other running beside Cu.

And he instantly recognized them.

He felt very stupid for not realizing Rider had been Medusa until that moment. He used his Stat-o-Vision on her first, before turning it to Medea.

True Name: Medusa

Class: Rider

Master:-

 **Parameters:**

Strength: B

Endurance: D

Agility: A

Mana: B

Luck: E

Noble Phantasm: A+

 **Class Skills:**

Riding: A+

Magic Resistance: B

Independent Action: C

 **Personal Skills:**

Divinity: E

Monstrous Strength: B

Mystic Eye: A+

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Bellerophon: Bridle of Chivalry(Anti-Army): A+

Blood Fort Andromeda: Outer-Seal, Blood Temple(Anti-Army): B

Breaker Gorgon: Self Seal, Dark Temple(Anti-Unit): C-

True Name: Medea

Class: Caster

Master: -

 **Parameters:**

Strength: E

Endurance: D

Agility: C

Mana: A+

Luck: B

Noble Phantasm: C

 **Class Skills:**

Territory Creation: A

Item Creation: A

 **Personal Skills:**

High-Speed Divine Words: A

Golden Fleece: -

Teaching of Circe: A

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Rule Breaker: All Spells Must Be Broken(Anti-Thaumaturgy): C

Andrew was internally starting to panic a bit. While it could be assumed the two would be on their side, for now, Medea was the wildest wildcard he could think of, since she could sever a contract- _any_ contract- in an instant, but her Item Creation skill made her an enticing candidate to try and bring back to Chaldea once the Singularity was over. He decided to push all of that aside for now though and worry about the present for now. "Greetings! Thank you for your assistance in defending Rome." He said once they were close enough.

"It was nothing." Said Medusa as the three of them came to a stop in front of Andrew.

"Sup, Master, it seems that enemy has been defeated. So, I picked up some assistance they are going to help us."

"Yes, as the dog said, Rider and I will assist Chaldea in fixing up this Singularity and help with any further ones," Medea announced.

"And I brought them both up to speed."

"Well, thank you both for joining the cause to save Human History. It is a pleasure to be working with the both of you." He said, removing his helmet as a sign of trust, while also knowing Mash and Caster Cu could handle any sudden attacks from others. "I am Andrew Murphy, Master of Chaldea." He said, offering his hand to Medea.

The Caster took it and gave Andrew a shake. "By, the gods, who made that Mystic Code you're wearing? The spell work woven into that dragon armor is impressive, but it's so bulky, and it needs to be more streamlined and slimmed down." Medea commented.

"Ah, this was made by the genius Leonardo Da Vinci, she made this in a few weeks, and it's still the prototype so a Caster from the Age of the Gods would find the few existing flaws easily," Andrew said.

"A Magus from the modern era made something using The Transcendent Kind, I have to meet her later. Now, when we haven't made a contract yet, and it seems you can only supply six Servants at a time, we're going to be your Servants until we can make an official one later." Medea said.

"She's more from the 15th century, but I have no doubt you two will work wonders together." He turned to Medusa, offering her his hand as well. "I take it you are fine with this arrangement as well, ma'am?"

Medusa responded to the gesture. "Yes, it is, and it is nice to have a male Master, that isn't _him_." Andrew heard the hatred in that word, and he immediately knew she was referring to Shinji.

Fucking Bastard.

"I can absolutely guarantee that I am nothing like him," Andrew said almost immediately. "And it is nice to meet you again under these better circumstances."

"Yes, I recognize, your face you were the ones that showed up in Fuyuki after it burnt, sorry for any actions I committed against you, the memories aren't very clear. I remember the other ones better, oh Sakura."

"Ah. I'm sorry for your loss." Andrew said solemnly, not wanting to reveal what he knew about the world at large while in a Singularity, not even the cover story. If such a thing got heard by the wrong people, it could lead to some bad misunderstandings that Andrew did _not_ want to deal with.

"Ah, don't be she isn't suffering anymore at least. Now, do you have any orders for us Master?" Medusa asked.

Andrew thought for a moment. "Medea, how fast can you produce your familiars?" He asked the Caster, trying to formulate a plan.

"So, you know my identity, and I see no scorn, perhaps I chose right, I need to set up my Workshop, to start producing them. Then I will be able to call on them no matter my location." Medea explained.

"It would be a good, idea for her to set it up in Rome if the Emperor permits it, so we can rest and you can eat Senpai. While we wait for Hassan to report back." Mash suggested.

"Emperor, would you permit this?" Andrew asked as Mash had basically said what he had had in mind.

"Yes, of course, anything for one defending my Empire, let us all feast and celebrate our first great victory against the United Empire." Nero said with joy, "Come Boudica, fly me to the capital as fast as possible the chefs, shall need to be informed."

"Well, you heard her," Boudica said with a face of acceptance.

xxx

Donate to my P A Treon. com (slash) TheBlacklightProjekt if you want to help me as a creator. And now take commissions, which is you paying for me to write any one-shot you want. Price depends on the length of One-Shot.


	29. Disgruntled Berserkers

Andrew sat on the bed in his assigned bedroom, while he heard Hassan give a report of what he had discovered about the United Empire since he had sent him off after the death of Caesar that morning.

" _I met up with the other two Servant Generals under Nero's command on the western front, the two of them are Chinese an Assassin by the name of Jing Ke, who specializes in assassinating Emperors, and another Berserker this one is Lu Bu, a general from the Three Kingdoms period. They have already defeated two enemy Servants though none that Caesar knew about. As for the enemies forces, I have found the capital, but I'm unable to enter at the moment. But three new Servant's have left the Capital. A Caster, Rider, and Berserker. The Caster and Rider are working together and seems to have a plan. But the Berserker is advancing slowly towards the frontline, he is riding on top of an elephant, and at his current speed, he will hit Lu Bu's and Jing Ke's position in about twelve hours. What should my actions be now Contractor?"_ Hassan asked.

Andrew thought over the new information. _"...Which direction do you think the Rider & Caster duo is heading?"_

" _They are heading forward to, but they are working with converted troops, and from the information, I managed to gather, the Rider wants to have a confrontation with Nero. Also, the Caster refers to the Rider as his King."_

"Mhm." Andrew filed that away for later. _"Assassin, regroup with the Generals. We'll be heading to your location to face the enemy head-on as soon as we arrive."_

" _Right, now Contractor, it is getting late and should you not rest properly, I do not want a sleep deprived commander,"_ Hassan said.

" _Don't worry. I'll be awake and alert by the time we meet up."_ Andrew said. He and his Servants would wake at dawn and head out on Hurricane Ride at top speed so they could annihilate the enemy before they even had the chance to attack.

There was a knock at the door.

"Who is it?"

"It is I Lord Andrew, may I come in I wish to speak with you?" Came the voice of Nero from the other side.

"Of course, this is your palace after all," Andrew said.

"Umu, but I did not wish to be rude," Nero said as she entered.

"So, what did you wish to speak about?"

"I had a talk with Boudica, and I managed to squeeze the truth out of her. So, you're truly from the future?" Nero asked.

"...Yes. From the twenty-first century, to be precise." Andrew said, figuring honesty to be the best policy.

"Umu, so far into the future, tell me how is my reign over Rome remembered, is written in the annals of history as its much glorious time?" Nero asked as she placed herself on the bed.

Andrew kept his expression as neutral as possible. "Your reign is…"

" _Andrew, there is no harm in telling her, it's not like she is going to remember after the Singularity is completed._ " Said, the holographic form of Dr. Roman as it appeared in front of the two.

"Ah, GHOST!" Nero screamed as she flipped backward, went behind the side of the bed her, head popping over the edge, glaring at Roman's slightly see-through form.

Andrew suppressed a laugh. "No, Emperor this is merely a form of communication Magecraft from the future. Dr. Roman here is the acting director of Chaldea and my boss."

"Umu, of course, I knew, I am the great Nero I know everything, I was merely shocked, by the man whose name is that of glorious Rome," Nero said confidently as she got back up on the bed crawling like a child.

" _Your Majesty my name is Romani, Roman is just a nickname."_ The good doctor told the short-stacked woman.

"Close enough for me, now let's back to how my name is remembered."

Andrew sighed. "Okay, I guess beating around the bush on this one isn't going to help. In my time, I'm sorry to say that the record of your rule is overwhelmingly negative. I think there were a few things that said otherwise from this time period, first-hand accounts that managed to survive, but those are entirely in the minority compared to the rest of what history says."

"So, my name become despised like that of Uncle, do I lose my sanity like him, is my blood cursed with insanity. Though if that is true, makes me feel better about killing my mother." Nero admitted.

"Well...it's less that you go insane, and more like in a few years you start some really, really heavy prosecution of Christians, who ended up being the world's 'main' religion for a while and were the ones in charge, so their view of you was likely shaped from that part," Andrew said.

"Well, that certainly sounds like that Karma thing from over east," Nero said.

"E _h_ h," Andrew gave a verbal shrug. "Basically, yeah."

"Why did, start prosecuting them, they have so far just been annoyances so far, just preaching about that 'Kind God' of theirs."

"Its...you kind of...use them as a scapegoat after a truly massive fire, and then it just kinda became the thing for Rome to do once your reign ended."

"That sounds reasonable if the people, demanded perpetrators for such a thing happening, they would be an easy target. With their desire to denounce the great Roman Gods, and try to nip that weed at the roots, before it grew too wild." Nero said.

"...The fire was... your fault, due to negligence, though."

"How? I love Rome and Rome loves me, how could I ever be neglectful of it?" Nero asked, in shock as she looked at Andrew, not believing what she was hearing.

"Most sources say that either you ignored the start of the fire, ignored warnings about the fire starting, or…" He paused. "That you started it yourself. But from your, rather _obvious_ love of Rome, I figured it was one of the first two."

"I do not, want to hear anymore Andrew, I should never have asked in the first place, I will be, auch!" Nero said as she grabbed her head in pain.

"Heal." Andrew intoned, activating Tenfold Shields. He was happy he was still wearing the gauntlet with the communicator.

His hand flared with the familiar green light, and Nero let out of a sound of relief. "Thank you for lessening my migraine Lord Andrew, my head feels better now." Nero thanked him.

"No problem. I know I would have loved to have a healing spell last time I had one." Andrew said sympathetically.

"Yes, my court mage was able to use his magic to lessen the effects of my mother's poison that still lingers in my body, that gives me these migraines. Unfortunately, it's proven incurable as my mother took that secret to her grave."

"Was it a magical poison?" Andrew asked, confused how it was able to still affect her after what seemed to be a good period of time.

"Yes, Simon identified it a such, made from a now extinct beast, its shame, but I'm able to deal with it."

Andrew suddenly had an idea. "So, you're certain the poison was magical in nature and came from a Phantasmal Species?"

" _Andrew, I know what you're thinking, but it will be a temporary fix at best, as history will correct itself to what it should be. So don't try to waste breath on it."_ Dr. Roman said.

Andrew glared at Dr. Roman's holographic form. "If we can help her out, even for a little bit, while we're still here, I'm going to at least try. She's our ally, and if we're shit to allies, our alliances go to shit."

" _Suit yourself."_ He said and vanished.

Andrew turned his attention back to Nero. "Do you know where the new Caster decided to set up her workshop?" He asked.

"Yes, I gave the one Simon had in the palace," Nero answered.

"Then let's head over there right now. I think she might be able to remove the effects of the poison from your body." Andrew said.

"I hope so, even if it _is_ temporary."

The two of them removed themselves from the bed and room, Nero leading Andrew to where Medea was at.

It took a little bit of walking through the palace, but they got to the room and entered it, where Medea was waving her hand over a magic circle saying words in Greek.

"Form." She chanted, and Andrew saw a Dragon Tooth Warrior form. Where it soon walked over to a mass of there ones.

The Caster turned her head towards the two. "Good evening your Majesty and Master, shouldn't you be in bed sleeping?"

"Ah, sorry to bother you, but I was wondering if you could Sever a magical ailment afflicting her Majesty?" Andrew asked, getting straight to the point.

"If I had been summoned as my younger-self, it would have taken but a wave of a hand. But as my current role as Witch. It is… Significantly harder to heal, but doable. I can whip up a potion ready in the morning. But first, what is it that ails the leader of Rome?" Medea asked.

"I was poisoned by my mother at a young age, and it gives me in frequent migraines that make it difficult for me to think," Nero told Medea.

"I see, that is rather cruel, now give a drop of your blood, so I can figure out what poison it is," Medea said, holding out a metal bowl and a knife.

Nero took the knife and cut her finger a few drops of blood flowing into the metallic bowl. Andrew quickly healed the wound up.

"If that was all, I shall then return to my quarters, and get some rest. Unless do you wish to join me, Andrew?" Nero asked with a certain smirk on her mouth her, eyebrows going up and down.

Andrew made an X with his arms, though his face did redden at the suggestion. "No offense your Majesty, but no."

"Most, men would kill to get to sleep with me Andrew, but if you wish not to, then I shall leave," Nero said, leaving the workshop.

He turned his attention back to Medea. "Sorry for not asking sooner, I didn't want to interrupt, but could you not just use your Noble Phantasm and Cut off the magical part of the poison from affecting her Majesty?" He said, trying to get his mind off of Nero's suggestion.

"Doesn't work like that, the poison might be magical in nature but it's not Magecraft, it's not a spell. And Rule Breaker doesn't cut through magic Master, it returns spells to their basic components. Namely magical energy." Medea answered.

"Ah, so the semantics specify Magecraft specifically, I see," Andrew said. "Sorry for burdening you with this project then, if it is as antithetical to your current form as you implied."

"Your so overly polite Master, more so than that boy, it is no problem. I just do healing via potions, and the Fleece, when I get it to work that is."

"'That boy'?" Andrew asked, curious if she meant Shirou or someone else.

"The Master of Saber, from a Holy Grail War I participated in, nothing of importance now, just a distant memory for this version of me," Medea answered.

"Ah, I understand. I believe my Lancer is from the same Holy Grail War." Andrew said.

"Yes, I recognized him, summoned as both a Lancer and a Caster. The Hound was a troublesome individual for my Assassin to fight, but he retreated, and I didn't get to some him again for the duration of the War. Now is there something else you need Master?" Medea asked.

"Well, this might sound like an...odd question, but your familiars, the Dragon Teeth Warriors, if I remember correctly, are they replicable? As in, can anyone other than you make them with the right materials and knowledge?" Andrew asked.

"Yes, it is a spell first created by Cadmus, other with materials can make them like, Circe and I believe that poisoner can too," Medea answered.

"I see. Well, once we get back to Chaldea, if things follow the same pattern as before, there could be quite the gap between Singularities, and...I'm trying to get every advantage I can get, so, if I might be so bold as to ask, but once we do return to Chaldea, could you teach me?" Andrew asked.

"That I can not, Magecraft from the Age of Gods and Age of Man are incompatible, they rely upon very different Foundations," Medea explained.

Andrew blinked owlishly. "Forgive my ignorance, but I don't quite know what that means."

"Ah, a first generation then? A Foundation is where one draws their magical power from. Mine is, of course, the Gods, using Divine Words, making requests to them to enact Mystical Phenomena."

"Oh. So Magecraft from your time is just completely incompatible with humans from mine?"

"Somewhat, I can not teach you Divine Words, but if Hecate descended from the Throne of Gods, she could teach you properly. Maybe? I don't actually know. A thought for later, anything else Master?" Medea asked.

"Sorry for keeping you up for so long, but I do have one last question if that's alright?"

"Yes, it is. I find it rather nice somebody is coming to me for knowledge, despite my incomplete education and not my body." She said the last bit, with disgust on her tongue.

Andrew was a bit taken aback by that. "O _h_. Um, well, I had been wondering, if we managed to capture an enemy Servant if you could use your Noble Phantasm and make them ours, or at least not Levs?"

"Yes, but that wouldn't change their allegiance unless they were forced to obey."

"Well, from our current understanding, they are currently being controlled by the enemy Lancer, so could you cut that if its a form of Magecraft?"

"I could un-hypnotize them, yes," Medea answered.

"That's good to hear. I have a feeling at least some of the enemy would be happy to join us if we did. And sorry for keeping you up so late."

"It is nothing, see you in the morning Master."

"Goodnight."

Xxx

The morning sun shined as Andrew and Mash rode of Hurricane Ride towards where Hassan was waiting with the other two Generals of Nero. His Servants ran beside with Nero and Spartacus riding with Boudica on her Chariot. And Medea being on Medusa's mount which turned out to be the fucking Pegasus. The summoning of which had been rather morbid as she had stabbed her own neck with her nails to make a circle of her blood where the Pegasus had been summoned from.

They were nearing the mountain area that would become the French Spanish border.

And speaking of Medea, she had managed to make that the cure for Nero's migraines, so that was taken care of. Making Andrew feel a little good about himself for helping her, even if it was a temporary fix. But the smile of relief on her face after she drunk the potion was definitely worth it.

" _Andrew, I'm able to detect the presence of Assassin and two unknown Servants now, probably Nero's Generals. They should be on the side of the pass you're going through."_ Dr. Roman informed Andrew.

"Got it, Boss," Andrew replied. He had no real idea who either of these Servants were, but he was still going over in his head what would be the best way to talk to them so as to not anger them, which basically amounted to 'being nice like normal' given how little he knew.

A minute passed, and they finally got through the mountains and came right into a camp looking like the one in Mesilla.

"We are here everyone, now let us find my Generals," Nero said as they all dismounted their respective mounts.

The blond woman moving fast as to announce her and their presence to the troops.

Andrew went off in the direction that he felt Cursed Arm to be to join him and the Generals quicker after quickly confirming via telepathy he was with them.

They were in the center of the camp, and they were easy to spot, like the one he assumed was Lu Bu towered over most being at least from eye measuring, eight feet tall.

Next to him was Hassan and the other Assassin, at least he presumed so.

"Salutations," He greeted the two Chinese Servants. "I have come with the Emperor to assist you in this fight; my crew and I intend to cut off the advancing Elephant-Rider before they can even get close unless you have a different plan," Andrew said, cutting straight to the chase. He wanted to make a good impression sure, but he wanted to actually be proactive in this fight even more and wanted to go off to fight the Berserker asap.

The Assassin spoke up. "Would you quit with the formal speak its grating and annoying to our ears."

"Jink Ke, Contractor is just trying to be polite he has never met the two of you before," Hassan said.

"Hmm, yeah makes sense. Don't do it again, it makes me think of the people used to be towards the nobles. Pure ass kissing, isn't that right Lu Bu?"

"▂▂▃▃▄▄▅▅." The Berserker spoke with incomprehensible speech.

"He agrees, makes him want to stab you in the back. Yeah, good idea to go and fight the dude head on Lu Bu is getting antsy, and I don't want him running off again. Honestly, that Mad Enhancement makes behave like an untrained dog." Jing Ke said.

Andrew decided to use his Stat-o-Vision on the two, with the Berserker being first to see just how high Lu Bu's Mad Enhancement was that he couldn't speak.

True Name: Lu bu Fengxian

Class: Berserker

Master: -

 **Parameters:**

Strength: A+

Endurance: A+

Agility: B+

Mana: C+

Luck: C+

Noble Phantasm: A

 **Class Skills:**

Mad Enhancement: A

 **Personal Skills:**

Bravery: B

Nature of a Rebellious Spirit: B

Ruthless Warrior of the Turbulent Times: A

 **Noble Phantasm:**

God Force: The Five Soldiers of the War God(Anti-Unit/Anti-Army/Anti-Fortress): A

True Name: Jing Ke

Class: Assassin

Master: -

 **Parameters:**

Strength: D

Endurance: E

Agility: A

Mana: E

Luck: D

Noble Phantasm: B+

 **Class Skills:**

Presence Concealment: B

 **Personal Skills:**

Suppression: A

Planning: B

Like There's No One Watching: A

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Only For Killing: Non-returnable Dagger(Anti-Unit): B+

Andrew filed away the information for later before realizing he had just been staring at them while they were talking. "Um, sorry? I kinda just default to more formal language when I meet someone new." He then realized he hadn't introduced himself. "Oh, I almost forgot, I'm Andrew Murphy, Master of Chaldea. It's nice to meet you."

"Yes, yes. It's just that such words do not truly come from the heart. Now from what I'm able to hear Nero have rallied the troops and is planning to have them advance towards the capital avoiding the Berserker. Shall we go join them? You shall have your fight this time Lu Bu the other two weren't much of a fight." Jing Ke said.

"▂▂▃▃▄▄▅▅." Groaned the Berserker and he began to walk away from towards where Nero probably was.

"Other two?" Andrew asked as he followed the two towards Nero.

"Yes, we killed two other Servants, while stationed here." She answered.

"Those didn't happen to be the Rider and Caster my Assassin told me about?"

"No it was another Assassin and an Archer, never found out what their true names were, but the Assassin was a woman." Jing Ke said.

"Oh, okay," Andrew said simply. "You didn't happen to pick up a small crystal from where they died did you?"

"You mean these?" Jing Ke said as she pulled two Saint Quartz out from her sash.

"Yes, those. Could you please give them to me?" Andrew asked. Any and every Saint Quartz was incredibly valuable to their future.

"Eh, why do you need them for something, are they valuable? I was going to use them as jewelry." The Assassin asked.

"Yes, they are incredibly valuable to my group, we use them to Summon Servants. Can I please have them?" Andrew asked again.

"Ah, sure. I can get some different rocks later." She said as she handed them to Andrew, who quickly stored the valuable objects in his Hammerspace.

"Th _a_ nk you," Andrew said as sincerely as possible.

"Hmm, well you certainly have a large group of Servants at your command." Jing Ke said as the three approached Andrews group of waiting Servants and Nero.

"Ah, I see you found my Generals and your Assassin Andrew. Come let us head towards the Berserker so that my army can advance without difficulty." Nero said.

"Actually, Emperor, my plan was that my Servants and I would go on ahead to take out the Berserker first and then you all could follow once it was dead," Andrew said.

"But you're faster than my walking army you would have long since defeated him before the troops, and I manage to catch up," Nero explained.

"Exactly. It'll be _dead_ , and unable to threaten your army so you can focus on the important part of the entire rest of the enemy forces." Andrew said.

"Then what are you waiting for go and attack the False Emperor of The United Empire," Nero said, planting her sword into the ground.

Andrew noticed that there was likely a communication error here, but she had given her blessing to go out and kill the Berserker, so he decided to let it slide. "Alright, you heard her, we're moving out! Lu Bu, would you like to join us?"

"▂▂▃▃▄▄▅▅!" Lu Bu roared, and with a single step, he ran forward.

"And there he goes, as expected of him too. Let's pursue Lu Bu shall we?" Jing Ke suggested.

"Right. Ride, On!" Andrew said, deploying Hurricane Ride, where he was quickly joined by Mash before they sped off, the rest of the Chaldean Servants plus Jing Ke following behind.

Even going at max speed Lu Bu was still faster than them, and at the time they caught with him he was already fighting, swinging around a massive spear.

Not against the Berserker but seemingly against the massive army of skeletal soldiers that was in front of them.

Andrew could see the Elephant riding Berserker in the back of the army, easy to see due to how absolutely fucking _massive_ the animal and the man sitting on top was.

And the worst was that when Andrew saw Lu Bu break a skeleton, it reformed a few seconds later.

"Hey, Master I recognize that Servant." Caster Cu spoke coming up beside him.

Andrew turned to the Caster. " _Please_ tell me you know his weakness, or at least his name."

Before Cu answered a massive roar coming from the Berserker was heard, saying only a single word, it being a name. " **ISKANDER!"**

"He is Darius the Third. The King of Persia and the rival to the King of Conquerors." Caster Cu answered. "That Army of his is his Noble Phantasm along with the Elephant they are Undead and Immortal, they won't die until he dies."

" _A_ h." Andrew quickly used his Stat-o-Vision on the Berserker to gather as much information as possible.

True Name: Darius III

Class: Berserker

Master: Lev Lainur

 **Parameters:**

Strength: A

Endurance: A+

Agility: B

Mana: E

Luck: D

Noble Phantasm: A+

 **Class Skills:**

Mad Enhancement: B

Riding: A

 **Personal Skills:**

Golden Rule: B

Disengage: A

Battle Continuation: A

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Athanaton Ten Thousand: Immortal Ten Thousand Soldiers(Anti-Army): A+

Andrew decided the best way to go about this was to just throw everything at once. "Dogs, clear a path through the skeletons for Alter! Alter, use your Noble Phantasm as soon as you have a clear shot! Medea, Arash, pour out as much covering fire as you can! Rider, distract him from above! Everyone, ATTACK!" Andrew shouted, launching a Runestone-Ice- into the army of skeletons as he did.

"Yes, Master!"

xxx

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	30. ROMA

"Now we get time to use 'it' don't we?" Lancer Cu asked his Caster counterpart.

"That, we do. On three. One, two, three!"

Andrew watched the two Cus attack simultaneously, they thrusted their weapons forward, Andrew didn't know how to describe it.

It was like the space in front of them had become twisted, and then returned to normal a second later, and as it did Andrew watched as several hundreds of skeletons just exploded simultaneously.

Doing so started the path for Alter to attack with her Noble Phantasm.

More skeletons were broken faster than they could reform as Medea and Arash rained down the artillery.

Arrows being fired like they were missiles and great elemental spells doing devastating damage to the undead army.

And then there was Lu Bu, the Chinese Berserker that seemingly could thrust his spear so fast he set the air on fire and used it as projectiles.

It was insane to witness, and Andrew kept being reminded how awesome they all were and how rather insignificant he was compared to the power of the Servants.

But still, he was happy that it was because of _him_ that such a thing could occur.

And then came to Medusa flying in on Pegasus.

And like a goddamn bulldozer, it tore its way through the undead army and hit the elephant causing Darius to abandon his mount jumping off it as Medusa destroyed it using hers. The Pegasus coming out as the superior of the two.

But that was when the battle came to an end.

A path had been cleared, and as Darius landed on the ground, he came face to face with Alter, Excalibur Morgan ready to be fired.

"Excalibur Morgan!" Andrew heard the sound of joy in her voice as the Berserker was consumed by the black beam on the sword.

And after it was fired the giant of a man was nowhere to be seen, the skeleton army dissolved.

Andrew waited till the skeletons were gone before moving in on Hurricane Ride to grab the Saint Quartz Darius had dropped. "Ah, the joys of superior firepower." He said after depositing the Quartz in Tenfold Shield's storage. He turned to the Servants present. "Hows about we cut off the Rider and Caster duo before they get close too?"

"Yes, that sounds like a good idea Master." Alter said. "If we hurry up we can be back in Chaldea before it becomes dark."

"I doubt it, but I like that optimism!" Andrew said, riding the high of the battle. "If everyone else is fine with it, we're heading out!"

"You do that Andrew, I'm flying back to Nero and informing her of your decision. Though don't attack the capital before she does or she is going to get mighty pissed." Said Boudica.

"Alright, then tell her we'll meet up with her and the main army on her way there. We'll destroy any enemies in her way so she can have her 'glorious invasion' or whatever." Andrew said.

"Don't be mad at her Andrew, she just has this certain idea of how she wants this to go down, so it can make for epic poems and plays. It would be rather boring if she didn't get to experience it personally, or so she says." Boudica scratched the back of her neck.

"Oh, I can understand that. I'm not mad at _her_." Andrew said. "I think everyone at Chaldea would agree when I say Lev _needs_ to be...brought to justice, I'd say." His voice was oddly jovial as he spoke.

"See you in an hour or two then Andrew, and Spartacus, behave would you," Boudica said as she summoned her Chariot, two white horses tied to it.

"No worry about me, Andrew is not oppressor." Said, the rebel with a happy voice. Andrew turned around to see the gladiator smiling at him, and it was still creepy with those perfect teeth of his, but Andrew still gave the Berserker a thumbs up. As far as he could tell that was a glowing recommendation from the maddened rebel.

"See, you latter," Boudica said as she flew off towards Nero.

"Alright then, does anyone know which direction the Rider/Caster duo would probably be?" Andrew said upon realizing he didn't actually know.

"Sorry, but I forgot to mention it Contractor, but they are holed up in an abandoned tower, about halfway to the capital. I do so apologize." Hassan informed them all as he materialized himself.

"Don't worry about it, you informed me in time, so it's fine, this time," Andrew said. "But ah, which direction is that again?"

"Towards the west and a few degrees to the north Contractor. I shall lead the way." Hassan said.

Xxx

It did take an hour for them to arrive at their destination, easily found as Roman had popped up saying that he had detected two Servants on the radar, though strangely enough no other lifeforms, despite Hassan had said that those, two worked with the enemy soldiers. Said Assassin was moving with his Presence Concealment up as Andrew had instructed him.

They moved with caution as they came upon the old tower, looking already like a ruin.

In front of it was a camp but it was completely empty.

And in front of it waiting for them was the Caster and Rider.

"Hello there Master and Servants of Chaldea, we have been waiting for you, I'm disappointed that you don't have Nero with you I had wanted to talk with the Emperor of this era, but we had calculated for that happening, so I hope she has fun fighting Caligula." The child spoke, which Andrew guessed to be the Rider Servant due to the sword.

"Do any of you think you could make it there in time to do anything?" Andrew asked his Servants hurriedly. Caligula would probably be able to wipe out the army in an instant, and he wasn't sure if Boudicca could handle the Berserk Emperor.

"I'm on it." Said Medusa, as she rocketed off on Pegasus.

Andrew hoped that would be enough and turned his attention back to the, very well dressed Caster and the child Rider. He _really_ didn't like the idea of having to kill a child, directly or no, Servant or no, so he was definitely going to try the capture-Rule Breaker method if he could. But of course, the best thing to do when faced with an unknown Servant was to get them talking. Especially now that he had an Actual Assassin, getting into position. "So, why would you side with United Empire? Surely you two could rebel."

"Hmm, I not really siding with them, I just wanted to fight, Nero and see what kind of ruler she is." Rider answered.

"And I go, where my King goes." Said, the suited Caster.

"Now, before we talk further I believe we haven't introduced ourselves yet. Lev has spoken your name with great hate, but I would like to hear it from your mouth." Said the child and did so in a way that Andrew, filled it under adorable.

"Of course. It's only the honorable thing to do; I am Andrew Murphy, Master of Chaldea, and I am here to save Human History." Andrew said, purposely laying on the grandiosity.

"I have been called many names in my life, but you Andrew, Master of Chaldea, can call me Alexander. Alexander the Great. The one that will become the King of Conquerors, Class Rider."

"My name is Waver Velvet, El-Melloi II. A Pseudo-Servant, host to the Heroic Spirit Zhuge Liang, Class is Caster." Waver said.

"Wait? Pseudo-Servant don't you mean Demi-Servant?" Came the voice of Mash.

"No, girl there is a difference between the two of us. A Pseudo-Servant is created when a Heroic Spirit possess the body of a human when they aren't normally able to be summoned. The only reason my personality is in the front is that Zhuge Liang hates dealing with people." The Caster answered.

Andrew took a moment to very quickly use his Stat-o-Vision on the two as he spoke. "I don't suppose you know of any other Heroic Spirits willing to do the same for one such as me?"

True Name: Alexander the Great

Class: Rider

Master: Lev Lainur

 **Parameters:**

Strength: C

Endurance: B

Agility: B

Mana: C

Luck: A+

Noble Phantasm: B+

 **Class Skills:**

Riding: A+

Magic Resistance: D

 **Personal Skills:**

Divinity: E

Charisma: C

Rosy-cheeked Adonis: B

Signs of a King: A

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Bucephalus(Anti-Army): B+

Zeus Thunder: God's Blessing(Anti-Unit(Self)): C

True Name: Zhuge Kongming/ Waver Velvet

Class: Caster

Master: Lev Lainur

 **Parameters:**

Strength: E

Endurance: E

Agility: D

Mana: A+

Luck: B+

Noble Phantasm: EX

 **Class Skills:**

Territory Creation: A

Item Construction: B

 **Personal Skills:**

Discerning Eyes: A

Advice of the Strategist: A+

Command of the Strategist: A+

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Unreturning Army: Stone Sentinel Maze(Anti-Army): C

Chu Shi Biao(Anti-Army(Self)): EX

"Only if they aren't able to be summoned as Servant normally as before and they are few and far between. It is a mingling of Personalities, and when it normally happens, they are not the same individuals they were before the fusion. Thankfully I'm more Waver, than Zhuge. Now would you all like to hear why Nero can do the things she can? My King would like to have said the speech with her present, but she isn't here, and he doesn't want to make it go to waste."

The child Alexander smiled.

How could something be so cute?

"Of course, I shall act in Nero's stead," Andrew said. "Once this is over, I'll convey the message for you."

"Why, thank you, Andrew. It's quite simple- Imperial Privilege." Alexander said. "It's normally a skill possessed by Servants after their Ascension to the Throne, but Nero. Nero was born with it, allowing her to become and achieve anything she wishes to. Artist, Emperor, Singer, Smith. She could even become a Beast if she so chose to. Quite something don't you think?"

"Ah, I see. I believe I saw her 'Imperial Privilege' firsthand before. Are you implying that that's the only reason she became Emperor?" Andrew said.

"No, its because she is the Emperor, she has and not because she has it she is. To have Imperial Privilege is to be one's nation in its entirety. You have heard her proclaim it numerous times haven't you that she is Rome and that Rome is her?"

"You mean to say that is a _literal_ statement?"

"Yes, this is Nero's Rome not anybody else's. But Nero is the one to have the skill while alive. Others got it after becoming Heroic Spirits, like Caligula. They became their nation post-mortem."

"And you want to challenge Nero, or, I suppose, _Rome_ , to...what, test her conviction? Your own?"

"Something like that, to fight Nero is to fight Rome. But I'm going to have to settle for you." Alexander stated.

Andrew laughed, short and quick. "Well, I'd say we're going to be a lot more difficult than fighting Rome. To fight us is to fight all of Humanity. I'd much rather prefer to have the two of you on our side, helping in that fight, but I have a feeling neither of you would, or perhaps, _can_ , agree to such a thing, yes?"

"You're right, you can summon us later, but right now my blood is boiling for battle. That is why I'm going to go all out. ZEUS THUNDER!" At that shout, a thunderbolt struck from the clear sky and hit Alexander. Andrew decided now would be a good time for Assassin to strike, and told him as much via telepathy.

"Zabaniya!" Came the shout from Hassan and Andrew heard, the sound of the Noble Phantasm being unleashed.

But he couldn't see due to the smoke created by the lightning strike.

That was when Hassan came running out the smoke. And stopped right next to Andrew.

"Sorry Contractor, but the Caster managed to put himself in front of my arm when I launched, didn't manage to get the Rider."

The smoke disappeared, and Andrew saw the body of Waver with a gaping hole in his chest, laying on the ground disappearing as the now transformed Alexander stood in front of the group.

"YOU SHALL FACE ISKANDAR THE KING OF CONQUERORS. IONIAN HETAIROI!" Iskander shouted and then the entire area was consumed in white, and when Andrew's vision cleared, he was still standing beside his Servants, but now, they were all standing in a desert and in front of them was Iskander on a horse, and the massive army was behind him.

"This, this is a Reality Marble." Came the shocked voice of Medea.

"Sh _it_." Was the only thing Andrew could really say to that. He vaguely knew how they worked as a whole from Shirou's, and from that, he _really_ didn't like the massive army. Andrew was starting to realize why Darius had an undying army, given the size of this one. "Archer, Casters, start shooting him!"

"Their bodies may return to ash, but their spirits still hear my call!  
These men are my legendary heroes – my loyal followers! They're my true friends - breaking the rules of space and time to fight once more at my side.  
They are my treasure within treasures; they're my right to rule! They make up Iskandar's mightiest Noble Phantasm – Ionian Hetairoi!" Iskander shouted. "Charge my comrades, today we face the mighty defenders of humanity itself, let see if they are worthy of that burden. AAAALaLaLaLaLaie!" Came his warcry.

"Arash, Cu, Medea, could you _please_ start bombarding them?" Andrew said, a more bit of annoyance leaking into his voice from the fact that that massive army was charging _right at them._

"Sorry, Master, but that man makes you want to listen to him. Firing now." Medea and Arash said, simultaneously. Arash began to fire his arrows. And Medea launched her magic beams at them, magic circles appearing in the sky in the hundreds as she chanted a large string of words.

Andrew turned to face his other Caster, who had already started writing out a particularly large rune sequence. "Hey Magic Cu, how many Command Seals would it take to use Och Deug Odin r _igh_ t now?"

"Just one Master." Caster Cu answered while Andrew heard the shouts of the Berserkers on the team.

"Alright then. In that case…" Andrew turned around with a flourish. "KING OF CONQUERORS, FALL! By this Command Seal, I order Cu Chulainn to _obliterate_ this army with Och Deug Odin!" He said, reveling in the moment. There was no animosity held towards the king, and Andrew was confident in their victory, so he decided to enjoy the ensuing destruction.

"Face, the divine judgment of the Allfather, OCH DEUG ODIN!" Caster Cu shouted, and Andrew saw a circle of large runes appear in front of them. Lines going between each of them creating a integrate pattern of lines forming three interlocked triangles.

Cu hit the back of the circle, and the laser was fired against the King of Conquerors. Who just rode towards the beam with a smile on his face.

And a second later they were all back in the camp, two Saint Quartz laying on the ground.

"Fuck me that felt epic to do." Caster Cu stated.

"Yeah, why do you get the cool moments. I only got to use Thunder Feat with you against the skeletons. Gae Bolg has been denied twice so far." Lancer Cu complained.

"Sorry Lancer, you'll fight something that dies when it is killed eventually," Andrew said to Lancer Cu in an attempt to reassure him. "But also, hot _damn_ does that feel good to just wipe out an enemy like that, this rush is insane!"

"Don't go and become an adrenaline junkie now Senpai," Mash said.

"I don't think I'll be able to keep that promise Kouhai, this feeling is incredible. Almost as good as we'll all be feeling once we find the green bastard and turn his insides out!" Andrew said cheerily.

"And I'm surprised you haven't summoned Mordred yet, Master, cause you sounded just like her right now." Alter stated. "And here are your Quartz, don't forget them." Alter handed them over to Andrew.

"Ah, right, thank you Alter." He said as he stored them. "But Mordred huh? You sure she wouldn't try to kill you (again) or something?"

"Mine did not rebel, as she got her piece of land to rule over." Alter stated. "But let us return to the army and hope Caligula has not dealt too much damage to it."

All of Andrew's mirth left him. "Shit, right, top speed back over there, can't believe I forgot even for a bit…" Andrew mumbled to himself as they all sped towards the approximate location of the army.

He hoped there would be an army still there.

Xxx

And mercifully there was, as Nero and Boudicca had been brought to a stalemate against the Berserker before Medusa had hit him like a truck, that then decided to back over the corpse to just make sure it was dead.

"So, you managed to defeat the two other Servants that the United Empire had summoned?" Nero asked from Boudica's Chariot, as the two rode beside Andrew and Mash after the initial 'are you still alive' were done.

"Indeed. I had to use a Command Seal, but they have been defeated." Andrew said. "Also, excuse me asking, but did you happen to acquire a gemstone from the false emperor's 'corpse'?"

"I did indeed, it was the same one those others left behind. Here, you have greater need of it than I do." Nero gave the Saint Quartz to Andrew, in a quick exchange.

"Thank you. These are incredibly valuable to our efforts." Andrew said as he quickly stored it. "I know I asked you earlier, but are you alright, Emperor?"

"Yes, but sometimes, sometimes. I doze off like there is something pulling at my mind, calling to me, and I can feel it now. It's calling me towards where we're going, but why?"

"It could very well be Rome Itself crying out for you to save it." Andrew half-seriously mused aloud, given what he now knew of her relationship with the seeming essence of the Empire.

"Perhaps, you're right, this pull feels like Rome," Nero said.

"Mhm. I would say it could mean another, previous Rome is trying to impose on yours, but we already slew Caesar, and he was the most Roman Emperor-y you could get with the age rule…" Andrew mused aloud.

"I can not dismiss that, but for now let us make haste towards the United Empires Capital."

"Right."

xxx

"And so as the afternoon sun shines down upon our Hero as he travels towards the enemy's stronghold, he, he... Lord Andrew, what do you think would be a good follow up line?" Nero asked as she wrote on some papyrus.

"'He contemplates the best way to make the traitorous Lev regret the day he was born'?" Andrew supplied. It was what he had been doing, after all, when the 'what-ifs' of strategy had fallen to the wayside. Really, he'd been thinking about it a bit more than what he would call healthily, but it was keeping him focused, so he decided it was fine for now.

Especially since, if he got his way, Lev would not be leaving Rome.

"Yes, a tale of vengeance this shall be, a story of wrath that shall surpass the Iliad," Nero said, enthusiastically. "But that will have to wait, we're at the capital."

And Nero was right, as Andrew looked forward he could see a city, and it was Rome.

Wait, what?

Andrew used the zoom in function of the helmet to confirm, and he hadn't been mistaken, the United Empire's Capital looked to be an exact copy of Rome. The Army waiting outside.

"Oh, f _uckmesideways_." Andrew breathed upon having a revelation. "Emperor, how long ago did the United Empire show up?" He asked to confirm his suspicion. Rome wasn't built in a day.

"About a month or so ago. I believe I answered this already. And how dare these mongrels, tarnish the image of Rome, of me. Men get ready to attack, and Lu Bu uses that 'Noble Phantasm' of yours Jing Ke told me about."

The Berserker roared and sprinted in front of them, coming to a stop. "GOD FORCE!" Andrew saw a bow appear in his large hand and then saw him pull back the spear on its string.

And when it pulled fully back, four more spear arrows appeared.

Which were then released and soared towards the Capital.

But before the attack hit, trees seemingly sprouted up in front of the city creating a barrier that stopped the attack.

"ROMA!"

Andrew heard a male shout and saw a man land in front of the now created opening in the wooden defense by God Force.

And gaped as he saw a Roman Pillar Man with a massive crimson 'spear' standing with a 'Y' shaped pose of his entire body. If he weren't Roman Andrew'd say he was praising the sun.

"Everybody halt." Came the shout of Nero.

And so they did.

"Nero, my dear child." The Lancer spoke with a rather soft voice.

"I might be Rome, but Lord Andrew this man, this man is _Rome_. The Divine Ancestor, the founder. Romulus." Nero announced in shock.

"I was really hoping you wouldn't say that…" Andrew said after she confirmed his suspicion. "I mean, at least he's not Longinus," Andrew said, before realizing who _else_ might show up, given how things had gone in France. "And at least there's a chance Remus could show up to help."

"Yes, child it is I Romulus, ROMA. I am the one that created the United Empire, now come child join us and your sins shall be forgiven, even those to come. Come and join the true ROMA." Romulus said as he held out his hand.

"No." Came the voice of Nero.

"You reject ROMA! Emperor Nero."

"No, I do not, reject Rome, for _I_ am Rome, and I will not abandon it, even if you're the Divine Ancestor," Nero announced.

"I see, then I shall see you in the Throne Room. ROMA!" Romulus shouted and jumped backward doing a summersault back over the wall.

"Well. That was odd." Andrew said. "Oh well, time to do what we came here for, right? How about we show 'em what the Real ROME is about, Emperor?"

"That, we shall Lord Andrew. I shall prove my worth as Rome before the Divine Ancestor."

xxx

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	31. Flauros

The sound of battle was roaring as the two Roman armies clashed with each other as Andrew and his Servants along with Nero moved towards the palace through the recreated Rome.

Andrew had deployed his Claws and was taking shots whenever he had a clear one. Arash, Cu, and Medea were providing most of the real firepower, but it was still better than just running. It helped that he knew this would all correct itself once they had the Grail, so he was able to rationalize away the truth of what he was doing.

The group was heading straight for the center, going through or over any buildings in the way with little issue, taking out any troops they saw along the way.

It didn't take long for the group to reach the center and enter the replica of the palace that was in the real Rome.

Nero was leading the way as she was one who knew the direct and shortest way to the throne room of the palace, due to its rather maze-like structure.

But as they all turned a corner, suddenly Medusa spoke out. "You might be able to hide, but I can still feel your presence. What are you doing here sister?"

"Well, if it isn't freakishly tall Medusless." Said a voice and in front of the group appeared a very short looking girl.

"Stheno," Medusa answered as she walked in front of the group.

"I wonder why you're here and helping them out. Not like they are going to think better of you."

" _Andrew, I'm confused here the instruments are saying that a Divine Spirit and Servant is standing in front of you."_ Came the voice of Roman through the speakers inside Andrew's helmet. _"And that should not be possible. Gods cannot be summoned, unless… Ask Medusa about after the family spat is over, I think I might know why."_

"Affirmative will do once the enemy is dealt with," Andrew responded quietly as he used his Stat-o-Vision on the newly revealed Stheno.

[spoiler=Stheno's Stat Sheet]

True Name: Stheno

Class: Assassin

Master: -

 **Parameters:**

Strength: E

Endurance: E

Agility: B

Mana: EX

Luck: EX

Noble Phantasm: B

 **Class Skills:**

Presence Concealment: A+

Magic Resistance: A

 **Personal Skills:**

Goddess Divine Core: EX

Blood-Sucking: C

Alluring Nightingale: A

Goddess' Whim: A

 **Noble Phantasm:**

The smile of The Stheno: Goddess' Smile(Anti-Unit): B

[/spoiler]

And he did not like most of what he saw. Way too many EX ranks. And why the hell did she have 'Blood-Sucking'? What kind of snake sucks blood? But he did like that little - next to Master. "Oh lovely goddess, why do you assist these fools? Their empire shall fall by dusk, so why not join our cause, the cause of the righteous?" He said, playing up the little he knew of the Gorgon sister.

"Hmm, it not like I wanted, but I get the treatment a goddess such as myself deserve. Just smile at those idiot men, and they do everything I say. And do you mind I'm the middle of some family talk. You really got yourself an idiot of a Master, sister. Who talks like that."

"I'm fulfilling the duty of my name, to protect those in need. Like I did you and Euryale, sister." Medusa stated.

"Hmm, _you_ protecting anything how ridiculous, you couldn't _protect_ anything. You lost yourself, became a monster and ate us. So, do yourself a favor and kill yourself before a hero comes and cut-" Whatever she was about to say was interrupted as in an instant Medusa appeared right next to her and kicked her into the wall. Where it broke and the Gorgon sister collapsed and fell unconscious.

"Sorry, about that Master, shall we continue to our target?" Medusa asked.

"Well, this was beyond awkward." Stated Lancer Cu. "Divine relationships no matter which pantheon it's a fucking mess."

"Not now dog," Andrew said, turning to Medusa. "Medusa, forgive me for this suggestion, but it seems we will be unable to convince your sister to stop assisting the enemy, and I think she's the one controlling the human army. I hate to even suggest this, but, it is likely the best course of action- should we end your sister? She would just return to the Throne like when the Singularity ends anyway, right?"

"She won't wake up for a few hours with how hard I hit her, so there is no need to worry about her. And besides, since it's her that has been doing it, it won't last forever. Her Charm has always been temporary. When used like she has been doing." Medusa stated.

"My apologies for making the suggestion at all," Andrew said sincerely. His own worst fear (before getting swept up in this whole mess) was something happening to his family; if someone had asked him something like that about one of his siblings he very likely would have decked them right then and there. "But I am wondering about something. How was she able to be summoned as a Servant at all? Dr. Roman called her a Divine Spirit, so she's not really a Heroic Spirit right?"

"Right, normal Gods, can't be summoned like a Heroic Spirit, but my sister is just that weak that becoming a Servant has made her stronger," Medusa answered.

"Ah, I see. Do you want us to come back for her then once we have the Grail?" Andrew asked.

"Yes, that would be nice. She might be mean but, she doesn't mean her words, we all love each other deeply. She was actually trying to warn me that killing myself, would be preferable to what is ahead of us."

"Mhm. Well, she obviously is underestimating us. We're the saviors of Human History, we're going to take down anything in our way." Andrew said. "We have to." He said quieter.

"Then let us go and be heroes, Lord Andrew!" Nero yelled.

"You heard the woman Master, no need to be down let's just go and do it," Arash spoke with words of support.

"Yeah...yeah, let's go get the Grail!" Andrew said, raising the Claws over his head like a banner. "And then we can turn Lev into elementary particles!"

Andrew's words were met with affirmatives and roars from the Berserkers.

After Medusa laid her sister down to the ground, they headed off towards the throne room once again.

It only took a minute as they entered the room and Andrew was once again met with the sight of the Roman Pillar Man.

"So, you all made it? And Nero do you still refuse ROMA?" Romulus asked, his verbal tick coming through as it did before.

"I do Divine Founder, this is Nero's Rome not Romulus' Rome." She answered pointing her red sword at the Lancer Class Servant.

"Then prove it to me, Emperor Nero, I Romulus challenge your ROMA against my own. Let have a duel, a duel that shall be decided in one strike."

" _Hey, Andrew there is something off about Romulus' Saint Graph. My readings are saying that is becoming unstable like he is about to burst."_ Came Roman with his informational tidbits.

Andrew took that as his cue to use his Stat-o-Vision on the Founder to see if he could tell what it was that was unstable.

[spoiler=Romulus' Stat Sheet]

True Name: Romulus

Class: Lancer

Master: Lev Lainur

 **Parameters:**

Strength: B

Endurance: A

Agility: A

Mana: C

Luck: B

Noble Phantasm: A++

 **Class Skills:**

Magic Resistance: B

 **Personal Skills:**

Natural Body: C

Imperial Privilege: EX

Septem Colles: A

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Magna Voluisse Magnum: All Things Lead to My Spear(Anti-Army): A++

Moles Necessrie: My Love Reaches All(Barrier): B

[/spoiler]

Andrew did not like the look of anything on this one; there were no obvious weaknesses to exploit, no hints how to defeat the Founder. The only information that at the moment was mostly useless.

"I accept Divine Founder." Nero accepted the duel.

"Then, let the fate of Rome be decided on a single strike," Romulus said, and the atmosphere became tense.

"Medea, layer on any and all offensive buffs you can on Nero please thank you," Andrew said hurriedly, recalling how she had been able to boost Kuzuki in the Fifth Holy Grail War, and accepting that there was nothing he could do to stop the two egomaniacs from having the duel short of one-shotting Romulus. _"Mash, get ready to use Transient Wall of Snowflakes on Nero. Romulus wants to end it in one strike, so it should be perfect for this."_

Andrew only got a quick nod from the both, as Nero and Romulus moved.

The room was silent as suddenly the two Romans were where the other had been.

And the match was decided as Nero stood proudly and Andrew saw blood spill from a large slash on Romulus chest.

"It seems that you picked up on it Master of Chaldea, I challenged Nero, I challenged her ROMA, and you're very much a part of her Rome. And it seems that this is the end of Romulus." The Lancer said as Andrew could see golden lines start to spread across his body. "When I died, I was worshipped as the God Quirinus, and so I gained Divinity. But I did not like it and used Imperial Privilege to suppress it. But, where I would have been able to suppress it just fine my summoning was forced. And so I think I'm about to blow." Suddenly the Founder of Rome began to smile. "Do summon me properly Master of Chaldea I would be happy to answer. Remus would have found this funny. These are the final words of ROMA!" At that tell of his verbal tick, Romulus jumped upwards and through the roof of the throne room. They all looked up to see a golden explosion in the sky.

"Great Founder," Said Nero from her spot as she looked up at the hole and explosion created by the Servant.

And Andrew was met by a Saint Quartz landing in front of his feet, which he immediately picked up and stored before going over to Nero, resting an attempted comforting hand on her shoulder, figuring a moment of silence would be for the best.

"And just as useless as the rest of them. Idiotic Servants, acting like they matter." Came the voice of the person Andrew wanted to eviscerate.

Lev Lainur walked from behind the throne clapping his hands.

"Congratulation on making it this far Chaldea and Andrew, hows it going." He said, with a smug smile.

"Lev! You wouldn't be _lieve_ how over _joyed_ I am to see you!" Andrew said faux-cheerily. "How have you been? Kick any puppies lately?" _"Arash, keep an eye out just in case he summons something on the spot or pulls anything funny."_ He said telepathically.

" _Yes, Master I'm preparing a salvo."_

"I wish, I have been dealing with uncooperative Servants."

"Yes, unlike in France Professor Lev, you have not been able to summon a Servant that want to destroy, this era and leave them to their own devices. No this time you had to do it yourself, commanding them using the Grail and Romulus. And from your face, I can tell that I'm correct this Singularity has been a failure on your end. Wait, no you do have the option of summoning a Servant that can destroy Rome and has done it before. But he is too destructive even for you right, he would have killed you first before moving to Rome." Mash verbally eviscerated the traitor through calm analysis.

"Yes, Mash Kyrielight your correct and now that you have killed the Servants I've summoned that just means I have to destroy this Era by myself." Andrew immediately fired at Lev's smug face.

The bullet he fired hit Lev's forehead making his head whip backward, stopping him from talking. But unfortunately, it didn't kill him, as evidence of how he remained standing. But Andrew could see the bullet hole in his skull bleeding.

"Now feel the power of my King," Lev stated- and then his body exploded, mass generating from his body at a tremendous rate.

Andrew activated his wings quickly and ordered his Servant to retreat away from Lev as he flew out the hole Romulus created. He had Nero in his arms, as he had grabbed the Emperor so that she wouldn't get crushed by Lev's rapidly growing form due to being to slow.

"Lord Andrew, what manner of beast am I looking at?" Nero asked, and Andrew wondered the same as they looked at Lev's massive form that towered into the air.

" **Look and behold them form of one of the Seventy-Two Demon Gods, The Demon God Flaurus. All shall die."**

" _Wait did he just say Demon God? That can't be possible Demon Gods don't exist that's not possible. That's a contradiction. Andrew watch out his magical output is above that of Servants. Kill him before he destroys everything."_

"Yeah, commencing murdifcation," Andrew said, slightly to distract himself from the fact that the massive tentacle thing looked like it was made up of _human corpses_. He was about to order his Servants to unleash everything before realizing this _massive_ thing that apparently _should not exist_ probably qualified as 'a worthy opponent for the King of Heroes.' He quickly pulled up the little menu he had for his Servants and swapped out Lancer Cu for Gilgamesh with zero hesitation. "Sorry about this Cu!" He said as he pressed the 'confirm' button.

And just like that in a brilliant flash of golden light, Gilgamesh appeared right beside Andrew on top of some ancient flying machine.

The Golden King decked out in his full golden splendor sat upon its throne.

Andrew quickly flew over to the flying machine with Nero still in his arms and landed on it right next to the throne.

"So, Master what unsightly thing have you stumbled across?" Gilgamesh asked.

Andrew pointed at the pillar of flesh. "That... _thing_ used to be the one who betrayed Chaldea and is now claiming to be the 'Demon God Flauros,' whatever that means. I figured it might prove worthy enough a challenge for you, My King."

"Yes, this is clearly a True Demon and a powerful one at that, and I guess the woman with you is Emperor Nero?"

"Yes, I am Nero Claudius the Fifth Emperor of Rome, now I would ask who my fellow majesty is but that thing is going to destroy my nation." She pointed at the thing that used to be Lev, that was being preoccupied with the attacks of Andrew's other Servants trying to kill it. And it responded with shooting laser beams out of its many eyes.

"Very, well Master you have found something that is worth entertaining me for a bit. Now, you need to get off of Vimana, or you will fall off." Gilgamesh said.

"Glad to be of service, My King." Andrew said before picking up Nero once more and flying off of the Vimana and began to move backward somewhat away from 'Demon God Flauros.'

When he did Andrew saw the ship start to lit up and seemed to be shaking with energy, and then it shot off, creating a shockwave as it broke the sound barrier.

They watched as Gilgamesh flew around the pillar of meat, golden portals being created all around it.

"Senpai!" Andrew heard Mash yell he looked down to see her looking up at them waving her arms.

Andrew dropped down to her level, moving just slow enough to not snap Nero in half from the stop as he came down close to where Mash was on the ground. "What is it Kouhai?"

"Just wanted to see if you were okay, I was worried when Lev transformed into that, and you flew off. So, you called in Gilgamesh to assist. That was good thinking Senpai." Mash beamed.

"Well, if anything deserves the 'Nuclear' option, I think it's _that_ thing," Andrew said, motioning at the pillar that was currently being assaulted by the other Servants.

"Yes, it's really tough Senpai, and it managed to kill Jing Ke, and Lu Bu-" Whatever Mash was about to say next was cut short when the ground suddenly shook beneath them.

"Die oppressor die!" Shouted the voice of Spartacus who had gone full giant himself, his massive form crawling on the ground, as he kept growing as the pillar began to focus fire of the rebel.

"Oh, my!" Exclaimed Nero, still in Andrew's arms.

"Damn, I was really hoping he was going to survive this," Andrew said, knowing full well what Spartacus would do next. It would be glorious, but a shame nonetheless. "Also, Nero, I'm going to apologize on his behalf for what's about to happen."

Andrew deployed the bubble shield around him and Nero, Mash quickly hiding behind hers following his lead.

Andrew watched as all Spartacus' flesh began to envelop Lev. Who was now actually screaming in panic. "Get, off, get off me." His distorted voice rang out. "I am Flaurus, of the Seventy-Two, I command you to cease."

And all he got in response was a voice shouting in happiness. "Crying Warmonger!"

And what followed next was the biggest BOOM Andrew had ever born witness too. As all the pillar's body was consumed in another pillar one of pure energy that was the power of rebellion. Andrew was awestruck at the display.

And it ceased quickly, Spartacus and the Demon God Flauros nowhere to be seen.

Andrew gave Spartacus a moment of silence for his sacrifice.

"Holy _shit_ though Spartacus buddy I'm not sure if you can still hear me, you can bet I'm going to try and summon you after this!" He said after a moment, really more to himself, but it was the thought that counted.

"Is, is it over?" Mash asked.

"I hope, so that was rather terrifying if I must say so," Nero said.

"Well, that was the crystallization of Rebellion in the form of a Noble Phantasm," Andrew said, making a wild guess as to why a rebel turned into a fleshy beast-nuke. "It makes sense his final moments, his final rebellion would be an act for the ages. And, by God, did he pick the right Oppressor for it."

"And I feel rather wasted, but I can say that was quite finally, his form reminds me of some the beast I thought." Came the voice of Gilgamesh as he walked up beside the group of three.

"Ah, My King. Sorry about not being able to slay the thing yourself." Andrew said. "But thank you for your assistance either way."

"Hmm."

"So Master is it over now?" Asked Caster Cu as he and the other Servants appeared, along with Hassan who materialized.

"I believe so. We just need to collect the Grail and Stheno, and I need to properly contract you three." Andrew said, motioning towards the Servants present who was not already his.

"I already picked her up," Medusa said, and Andrew took notice of the small form laid across Pegasus's back.

"Oh, good. In that case, we just need the Grail and to finalize the contracts. Did anyone see where it went after Spartacus used his Noble Phantasm?" Andrew asked, a feeling of dread creeping up on him as he said it. Last time the Grail had just floated off towards Gilles and made him into an Eldritch Abomination; hopefully, Lev doing so already would fill the apparent quota for 'giant tentacle beast fight' for this Singularity.

"As if you ever could hope to defeat me!" Came the voice of Lev, as his human form stood up, his clothes were disheveled, looking like he just got a bomb thrown in his face.

Which was very accurate.

"I have been given a mission by my King one that will come through to the end. Holy Grail I call forth destruction." At his words, the ground in front of them lit up.

And in front of him stood.

"Heroic Spirit Altera, by my orders destro-" Lev's words were cut off, literally as his body was split in half by the summoned Servant's rainbow sword. Andrew saw the Grail fall to the ground as Lev's body dissolved into goo.

"Who, who the hell is that, and why am I feeling scared?" Caster Cu.

"Titan," Came the shocked voice of Gilgamesh.

The woman began to speak. "I am the Scourge of God, the one who wields the sword of the War God, King of the Huns. I shall destroy Civilisation."

" _Andrew I'm detecting the build-up of a massive amount of magical energy, Anti-Fortress Level."_

"Teardrop Photon Ray." She pointed the hilt of the sword up into the air, and then it shot something up into the sky and a second later a massive magic circle.

"Mash by this Command Seal block that attack!" Andrew said hurriedly, hoping it would be enough, working through his overwhelming befuddlement at who this even was. "Everyone else, get the grail and stop her from doing anything else!"

"Lord Chaldea!" Shouted Mash as she deployed her Noble Phantasm, but this time instead of slamming into the ground she held it up into the air, as the space laser was sent down.

"Ahh!" Mash screamed as she held against the blue beam, but it seemed her will was stronger as the laser vanished first.

But she went down on her knees afterward breathing heavily. At that, the Servant's engaged.

"Mash!" Andrew yelled as soon as the beam ended, rushing over to her side.

"Hah, I'm okay, Senpai. That was just a little bit tired, I won't be able to help from here on out. Go assist the others." Mash said.

Andrew shook his head. "I'd just get in the way up close, it's probably better if I stay over here anyway."

As he looked at his attacking Servants, Andrew saw that Gilgamesh hadn't moved from his spot and was not attacking.

Andrew used his Stat-O-Vision on 'Altera.' His best guess as to who she was was 'Attila the Hun, but fatified' but he wasn't sure.

[spoiler=Altera's Stat Sheet]

True Name: Attila The Hun/Altera

Master: Lev Lainur

Class: Saber

 **Parameters:**

Strength: B

Endurance: A

Agility: A

Mana: B

Luck: A

Noble Phantasm: A++

 **Class Skills:**

Magic Resistance: B

Riding: A

 **Personal Skills:**

Divinity: B

Civilisation Erasure: EX

Military Tactics: B

Natural Body: EX

Star Emblem: EX

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Photon Ray: War God's Sword(Anti-Army): A

Teardrop Photon Ray: Star of Tears, War God's Sword(Anti-Fortress): A++

[/spoiler]

And the _only_ things that actually told Andrew was that she had really good stats and that it was in fact 'Attila the Hun.'

"My King, is she beneath your notice? Or are you merely respecting a divine presence?" He asked, hoping he could get Gilgamesh to help even a little. Mash wouldn't be able to block another Teardrop Photon Ray.

"Of course not I would fight if I could, but I can not suffice it to say I owe her a favor which I'm repaying. If you wish to know more, seek me out after this is over." Gilgamesh responded.

"Understood, My King," Andrew said, not understanding at all. "In that case…" he thought for a moment before falling back on old habits. "Well, it's an oldie but a goodie. By this Command Seal, I order Cu Chulainn to _obliterate_ Attila the Hun with Och Deug Odin!" He ordered.

"Och Deug Odin!"

"Photon Ray!"

Explosions occurred once again, and Andrew watched as two Noble Phantasms collided with each other.

And she was standing right in front of him.

"It seems there was something I couldn't destroy, it kinda makes me feel happy." At that, she exploded into spirit particles.

A Saint Quartz dropping to the ground.

Andrew took a moment to catch his breath and calm down a bit after having an enemy Servant suddenly in his face like that, his heart beating erratically. "How was _that_ scarier than the giant tentacle demon made from human corpses?" He asked once he got his breathing back under control.

"Senpai, are you alright?" Mash, asked as she stood back up.

"Yeah, yeah I just think I'm going to sleep for a day once we get back," Andrew said, picking up the Saint Quartz off the ground and storing it. That had been the closest he'd been to an enemy Servant period, and it was terrifying. He then walked over and picked up the Grail. The cup felt like just a cup to him, but he knew the power it held. "Now, Medusa, Medea, we need to properly make the contracts as Master and Servant." He said, turning to the purple haired servants in question.

"You two do still want to help Chaldea right?" He asked, to make sure they were still on board with being his Servants.

"That we do Andrew, and give me a moment. Wake up, sister." Medusa said as she hit Stheno 'lightly' on the head, waking the tiny girl.

"Wahh!" She shouted as she fell of Pegasus. "My head feels like Dionysus just decided to give me his strongest brew." She quickly looked around and saw the devastation the two short battles had created. "You managed to defeat that monster?"

"Indeed. There is nothing left in this Singularity keeping you here, and it shall collapse back into normal history in a matter of minutes. Would you like to come with us and, as it were, not die and return to the Throne?" Andrew asked, hoping he could sway her. He knew what it was like to be separated from family by a more-or-less insurmountable barrier, and he didn't wish that on anyone else.

"Is Medusa going too?"

"I am, sister."

"Then, I will, but I better be given a room worthy of one such as myself." She said haughtily.

"Then I, Andrew Murphy, Master of Chaldea, shall become your Master," Andrew said to the three.

"We accept the contract." At that, Andrew felt the connection form, but the available output of magical energy to each of them fell.

"The contract is sealed. The forces of fate have brought all of us together; may we ever triumph in our fight to save Human History." He finished. He then turned to the remaining Servant, not his. "Boudicca, do you wish to join our fight as well?"

"Well, I have nothing better to do, and besides it would be nice to 'Live' for a little while, while spoiling my fellow Britanians."

"Damn, woman." Came the response from Alter.

"Ah, don't be like that."

"Well, then I, Andrew Murphy, Master of Chaldea, shall become your Master." He said, continuing on despite the interruption.

"I Boudicca Queen of Victory, accept your contract Master Andrew of Chaldea," Boudicca answered.

"The contract is sealed. The forces of fate have brought the two of us together; may we ever triumph in our fight to save Human History." He finished, and he could feel the connection being established. He could also feel that it would be best if they left ASAP, so he didn't get drained dry with all these Servants, but he still had one more thing he had to take care of.

Andrew walked back over to where Nero was standing, holding out his hand. "Thank you, Emperor. It was a pleasure fighting alongside you, despite your insistence on punching outside your weight class." He said.

"I live to live Lord Andrew but has been my pleasure to. Thank you for saving my empire. The saddest thing is I won't be able to remember this, so could you do one last thing for me?" Nero asked.

"What is that, Nero?"

"Take that helmet off would you?"

Andrew did as he was asked. "May I inquire as to why?"

Nero smiled, and what he expected her to do didn't happen.

Instead, she pulled down her top and gave him a full view.

Andrew looked away after about 2 seconds as his brain processed what was happening, face redder than his armor. "Y-y-you don't have to do that…"

"I just wanted to see your reaction, your such a prude Lord Andrew." She put her tanks back into the place. "I hope we meet again."

Andrew looked back at her. "I actually had an idea about that, Emperor. The summoning of Servants can involve Catalysts important to them in life, and I think your Sword would probably be enough for that, right? Since everything will be corrected anyway once we leave, it might mean you'll remember this since its the sword from this Singularity's 'you.'" Andrew said rapidly. He would take any opportunity to get more Servants, and with her Imperial Privilege in life she had to have at least A, if not EX as a Servant; that could be incredibly useful to them.

"My how bashful to demand my sword, I had hoped for something more personal like my panties." Nero grinned.

Andrew sputtered, not having expected her to be so forward despite having just flashed him. "J-just your s-sword should work, since its m-magical right?"

"Here, Lord Andrew, and I expect you to keep it in good condition," Nero said holding out the red blade.

Andrew took it carefully in both hands. "Of course, Emperor. But I suspect you'll be wielding it again rather soon."

"Yes, I hope so too that fate allows me to remember," Nero said.

Andrew nodded, before storing Nero's sword away. "Then, we'd best be off. I feel like if we stay for much longer, my Circuits might explode."

They bade farewell, and a second later, he heard Dr. Roman say that he was Rayshifting them all back.

Andrew saw the blue vortex, and a second later he stepped out of his coffin, Mash leaving hers at the same time.

"Congratulation, Andrew, Mash you have managed to correct this Singularity. Though this time we learned some startling info." Dr. Roman greeted them. The Servants he had contracted in that Singularity of to the side.

"Right. Lev, may he burn in hell, said that he had was 'the Demon God Flauros' and 'one of the Seventy-Two,' which implies there are 71 more of those things." Andrew said. "I don't know much about the 'real history' of the Moonlit World, but it sounds like something straight out of the Ars Goetia."

"Yes, but Demon Gods can't exist, you can't be a demon and a god at the same time. And while True Demons along with normal ones exist. They aren't like _that,_ they are spiritual beings, and they can't have a physical form if they try they kill their host." Roman complained.

"I'm not sure if you got a good visual, but it looked like Flauros was made up of millions of _human corpses_ so it might have already done that," Andrew responded.

"I need to do some research before I can give you definite answer Andrew. So, for now, take a bath get something to eat, bond with your Servants. And all that until we locate the next Singularity or something else." Dr. Roman said. "And I'll have Da Vinci check in the new ones."

"Well, there was something else that was pretty important though. Lev, may he burn in hell, every time we've encountered him since he betrayed us he kept referring to his 'King.' And then he turned into a giant Demon-tentacle-monstrosity calling himself 'Flauros' and 'one of the 72', and I don't think it's a coincidence. Regardless of whether they actually are 'Demon gods,' I think their 'King' might be the one who bound them in the first place. Solomon, King of Jerusalem." Andrew said. "I don't know _why_ he'd want to destroy humanity, but with what little I know about the Moonlit World's version of history I could be wildly off the mark, but it seems likely." He said, wanting to know if he was really going to have to repeatedly fight biblical good guys with mythological heroes and monsters like it seemed.

"I take it consideration there are many variables, like could have found the Original Book. And is pretending to be Solomon. Honestly, we just don't have enough information to be making concrete theories about the truth of the situation." Dr. Roman said.

"That makes sense about the book, the original Ars Goetia could very well be the conceptual predecessor to the one that Gilles has, and he didn't even write that one…" Andrew said, trailing off as the many possibilities raced through his mind, getting lost in thought.

"Possibly, now get going we both have a job to do now."

"Right, right. Sorry." Andrew said, heading off towards the residential area.


	32. Back To France

_August 11_

Andrew was walking through the corridors of Chaldea on his way to The Summoning Chamber along with Mash, having just eaten breakfast. He had several Saint Quartz to use after having returned from Rome yesterday, and in his left hand, he was holding Nero's sword ready to be used as a catalyst to summon her.

The pair turned a corner where they were met by the casually dressed form of Gilles.

"Ah, Master Andrew I was looking for you." The Saber said.

"Gilles, what can I do for you?" Andrew asked.

"You're on your way to the Summoning Chamber correct?" He asked.

"Right. I'm going to get as many summonings in today as I can so it's done and out of the way." Andrew answered. "If this is a request to try and summon Jeanne, please know that I _am_ trying."

"I was going to talk to you about

that Master, you see I was hoping you could save some Saint Quartz for a summoning and go with me on a trip to France and retrieve Jeanne's sword to use it as a Catalyst. I have already cleared it with Acting Director Roman."

"Wait, what? How can we 'go back' to France, I thought we fixed the Singularity?" Andrew asked.

"Senpai, the Singularity still exists, while the Incineration is in effect it just can't get worse, now that the Counterforce is correcting the damage dealt. That's how Dr. Roman explained it to me. It's like a pocket space we can visit." Mash explained.

"Oh, okay, we're just preventing the 'spread' of the problem while we go to the source of it, got it," Andrew said, before processing what that meant. "Wait, Gilles, you know where we can find her sword back in France?"

"It is currently in Paris." He answered. "Where my Estate is."

"Then we'll head there right after I'm done summoning then if you're able," Andrew said, eager at the opportunity to summon Jeanne.

"That is good to hear, I'll be waiting for you then Master," Gilles said as he continued past them.

"Right, see you in a bit," Andrew said before redoubling his pace to the Summoning Room.

It didn't take long for them to arrive, and Mash quickly setup up the ritual.

Andrew took out three Saint Quartz, Nero's sword still in his other hand, and channeled his prana through them into the circle.

The show and dance happened as the circle lit up.

"Hello, there are you my Praetor?" Came the voice of Nero as she stepped out the circle. "Is that my sword you're holding Praetor, where did you find that."

"...You gave it to me for the express purpose of summoning you." Andrew said, hoping this was a joke. "Do you not remember?"

"It seems that I don't, remember other stuff like my other Praetor, though the me who gave it to is still alive isn't she."

"Yes, I received the sword from your living self from a Singularity, a piece of time that's been altered and needed to be fixed. I was...hoping you'd remember if I used a catalyst from the Singularity, but it seems that memories aren't preserved like that." Andrew said, more than a bit disappointed. This was not the Nero he knew and was just a stranger to him. Though he supposed that didn't actually mean much considering he only knew the living Nero for a scant few days.

"Don't be sour Praetor, you can get to know my glory all over again, Umu," Nero said.

"Heh, I suppose so." Andrew said, using his Stat-o-Vision to better know this Nero as she said.

[spoiler=Nero's Stat Sheet]

True Name: Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus

Class: Saber

Master: Andrew Murphy

 **Parameters:**

Strength: D

Endurance: D

Agility: A

Mana: B

Luck: A

Noble Phantasm: B

 **Class Skills:**

Magic Resistance: C

Riding: B

 **Personal Skills:**

Imperial Privilege: EX

Migraine: B

Thrice-Setting Sun: A

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Aestus Domus Aurea: Golden Theater of the Flamboyant(Anti-Team): B

[/spoiler]

The stat sheet confirmed what Andrew had suspected, her Imperial Privilege was EX. "Nero, as a Servant, what is the extent of your Imperial Privilege? And, what does your 'Thrice-Setting Sun' skill do?" Andrew asked.

"Anything, though my Migraines makes me forget the stuff. And that last allows my glorious body to survive three deadly blows to it."

"Survive three deadly blows total, over the course of your existence as a Servant, or per fight?"

"My existence as a Servant, of course, that would be rather broken if that was the case, like who make something so overpowered," Nero said. "So, Praetor do you have quarters for me to stay in and I hope you have a spa."

"Ah, we definitely have a room for you, though I don't know about a spa," Andrew answered. "But, before you go to claim a room, I need to ask, can your Imperial Privilege copy the Item Creation of a Caster-class Servant?"

"Sadly magical skills, like that are beyond me as I never took an interest in life, despite Simon telling me of my high aptitude for it. Anything else I'm good for." She answered. "Fighting of any kind, and the arts. Now though I can finally perform without the idiotic idol interrupting me."

"Idol?"

"Bathory, have you met the annoying dragon?" The Emperor asked.

"Yeah, back in France we ran into her. She helped us out by killing her older self and then left."

"Yes, that is totally her, now Praetor, I have to announce my presence to my fellow Servants. I'll be seeing you after I have oriented myself with the facility."

"Ah, Kouhai, that's your cue."

"Here Nero, this armband will allow you to communicate with others and other things like having a map of Chaldea."

"Thank you Kouhai, though it's rather dull," Nero said as she put it on.

"Ah, my name is Mash."

"Ahh, then why did Praetor call you that? If that is not your name, that is rather strange."

"Says the one calling me general."

"It is an appropriate title, or would you want Maestro instead? So that I can be your instrument that you can play however you like."

"Praetor is fine," Andrew replied. "Or you could call me by my name, which is Andrew." He said upon realizing she might not actually know his name given the fact he hadn't introduced himself.

"Praetor it is, your name sounds so dull on my tongue. Now then I'll be off, you must have other Servants to summon do you not?" She asked.

"Right, right. Oh, but don't you want your sword?" Andrew said, holding out said blade in both hands towards her to take.

"Thank you, and it is perfect just like I remember it." She said as picked it up. "It is a pleasure to hold the actual one and not the one created, by my summoning."

"Well, it is directly from your heyday, and it hasn't even been a day since you gave it to me."

"Time travel is quite strange, isn't it. Now then I shall get going, Chaldea shall know that Rome has arrived." Nero said as she ran out the door.

"Should we stop her Senpai?"

"I don't think anything short of a Command Seal will _stop_ her, Kouhai," Andrew replied. "But that's a problem for later, we still have enough Saint Quartz left for another Servant. Any guesses who we'll get?"

"I hope for an Author Servant." She answered.

"Ooh yeah, that could be interesting," Andrew said. "They'd probably have their literary works as their abilities as a Servant, right? Let's hope we get one now!" He said, channeling his prana through the Saint Quartz into the circle as he did.

The circle lit up, and he saw. "Servant Archer, let's save the World Master." Emiya smiled at Andrew, and his mind ground to a halt.

Andrew was at a loss for words and coherent thought. While with Gilgamesh, that had been because of his splendor and history, Emiya, Archer, whatever, was a whole nother thing. This was a man who had been through hell and back, the Counter Guardian who tried to kill his own younger self. Who had probably gone through pretty much everything his younger-self had before his own interference. Which meant Andrew had seen into his mind, had actually _seen_ his thoughts and acts and deeds (and the memes, but those were far less important); really, Emiya was the Servant he probably knew best, better even than the ones he'd been spending time with these past weeks.

And now he was standing right there in front of him.

"Master are you alright?"

"Don't worry Archer, Senpai just seems to be in a bit of shock or awe at seeing you, Sir." Andrew saw Emiya's face go a little bit stiff at the word 'Senpai.'

Andrew tried to pull himself back together. "Its, uh, well, yeah, something like that." He sputtered out. "It's, an honor to meet you, Archer, let alone to Summon you." He managed to say without actually stuttering despite the fact that he was very much so still trying to put his thoughts back together.

"Well, never expected to get this kind of greeting. So, how do you know who I am?"

"I saw everything from the Fifth Grail War," Andrew said almost unthinkingly, his ability to self-censor having decided to go and jump off a cliff.

"Let me guess, Zelretch?" Emiya asked.

"Uh, yeah, that." He replied, catching his own slip-up. Andrew's brain had really short-circuited upon summoning Archer, and though he was able to recognize that he was still having a bit of trouble putting his thoughts back in order.

The spandex didn't help with keeping a coherent thought either.

"I guess he saw this incineration coming and set you up to be the Master, as after it he wouldn't be able to help. I've only met the Vampire twice, but I got a good look at his character as he is very pro-human life. So, Master, it seems that there is some time to the next Singularity, so is there a kitchen here?" Emiya asked after rambling for a few moments.

While he was rambling, Andrew took the time to use his Stat-o-Vision on the Archer after regaining a bit of sense.

[spoiler=EMIYA's Stat Sheet]

True Name: EMIYA

Class: Archer

Master Andrew Murphy

 **Parameters:**

Strength: D

Endurance: C

Agility: C

Mana: B

Luck: E

Noble Phantasm: ?

 **Class Skills:**

Magic Resistance: D

Independent Action: B

 **Personal Skills:**

Eye of the Mind(True): B

Projection Magic: A

Hawkeye: B+

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Unlimited Blade Works: Infinite Creation of Swords(?): E~A++

[/spoiler]

Really, there was nothing on the sheet Andrew didn't already know intellectually, but it was still something to get his mind back to some semblance of coherency. He then processed Emiya's question. "Right, the kitchen. I'll show you the way there." Andrew said.

"Also Mr. Emiya, please take this armband here, it will be our tool while you stay in Chaldea, it works the same as a phone. Allowing you to communicate with other Servants, and find your way around." Mash said as she handed Emiya the armband.

"Thank you, miss...?"

"Kyrielight, Mash Kyrielight. I'm Senpai's reliable Kouhai and Servant my Class is Shielder." Mash introduced herself. Though as she did Andrew saw Emiya's mouth become a thin line as she said 'Senpai.'

"Hmm, Lord of Light? A pretty name, Mash is biblical too right?" He asked.

"Yes, it though I can't remember the precise book it originates from."

"That is fine, so Master you wanted to guide me, or do you need to finish up here?" Emiya asked.

"Oh, I'm done here for right now these last three Quartz I still need the catalyst for, I can bring you to the kitchen now," Andrew said.

"Then lead the way Master," Emiya said.

"Right, this way," Andrew said and began to lead the newly summoned Archer towards the kitchen.

They walked for a bit in silence before Andrew realized he should probably inform Emiya about the Servants already there. "Ah, Archer, sorry for not mentioning this earlier, but we've also summoned quite a few of the Servants from the Fifth Holy Grail War...actually, all of them now but the iteration of Saber from that war and Heracles. Along with two...variations, I suppose? Of the Saber from that war."

"Well this going to be awkward… and did you say two Arturias?" He asked if had just heard Andrew wrong.

"Yeah, one from just after pulling the sword from the stone, and the other from an alternate timeline with a darkened Excalibur. It doesn't seem like either knows of the Fifth Holy Grail War though." Andrew said. "Oh yeah, there's also another Cu Chulainn who's a caster, but he definitely doesn't remember the version you're from, but he did fight an alternate version of you."

"Really, feels like I've missed out from the looks of it." He said.

"Yeah, we've already taken down three different Singularities, so there's quite a bit that happened so far," Andrew said. "I'd be happy to tell you everything then. I-if you'd like."

"We can talk later Master, I would like to mingle with the others it's rare that I get to experience a quiet like this. Hopefully, no one mistakes for being the devil here." He said grumbly.

"I don't think anyone here would do that…" Andrew said, a bit confused. "But ah, Archer you're a really good cook right?"

"I believe myself a cut above the rest, that angry chef liked it." He answered.

"Well, I consider myself an above-average cook, but I've never done anything with Japanese cuisine so I'd love to learn from a master of the culinary arts like yourself," Andrew said.

"I'll be happy to Master, haven't cooked with anybody in a long time, so I think it will be an enjoyable experience."

Andrew's face reddened a shade. "G-great! We should do that soon then."

Further was cut off as they reached the dining hall and opened the door, there were still a lot of personal and Servants at the table as Andrew and Mash had left after eating breakfast quickly.

"Back so soon Master are you still hungry?" Asked Boudicca as she came up to the three of them, an apron over her clothes. "And I guess you're new?" She asked Emiya.

"I'm of the Archer Class it is a pleasure to meet you, your Majesty," Emiya answered politely giving her a small bow.

"And I'm not really hungry, Archer wanted to see the kitchens. I am a bit thirsty though." Andrew said, rubbing his throat. For some reason, it felt rather dry.

"I'll get you some water Master, and it will be great to have some more help in the kitchen the Brownies are working very hard, and Marie can only really make sweets. There is the fact that Servants eat more than humans, so more than others." Her head turned, and they all saw the gothic Arturia eating, a mountain of plates next to her, added to by Lily.

Boudicca let out a little laugh.

"...You know, that looks so, _so_ very different when you see it with your own eyes." Andrew said upon seeing the Arturia's wolfing down food like there was no tomorrow.

"The more things change, the more they stay the same." Commented Emiya.

"They do so to Faker." Came that voice from behind.

"No fighting," Andrew said as firmly as he possibly could to the golden Archer.

"That is behind me, along with that boy. So, you have no need to worry about me Master, I just came to retrieve some food, and I will return to my games." Gilgamesh said as he walked past them.

"And as arrogant as ever," Emiya said.

"Yes, it was quite a shock to meet the King of Heroes. I felt rather insignificant compared to him when you summoned him during the fight against the monster, Master." Boudicca said.

"Yeah, I think that's just the normal reaction to meeting him the first time," Andrew said, not saying aloud that he still felt that to some degree whenever Gilgamesh was near.

"Anyway, thank you for showing me the way Master, I think I can situate myself from now on," Emiya said.

"Alright, see you later then." Andrew said before remembering he forgot to ask about 'when' earlier. "And would tomorrow work for starting the cooking lessons?"

"Sure thing Master just hit me up," Emiya said as he and Boudicca went further into the dining hall while they stopped at the table where the Frenchmen were.

"Shall, we go and meet up with Gilles in the Command Deck Senpai?" Mash asked.

"Yeah, that sounds like a good idea," Andrew said, having gotten distracted by his own thoughts now that Emiya had been summoned. He'd have to ask the Archer about the limits of his abilities later.

They quickly made their way to the Command Deck, swiftly meeting up with Gilles. "Alright, so where do you think is the most likely location of the sword?" Andrew asked the Saber after they decided to actually make a plan before diving headfirst into something since they actually had a specific goal in mind for once.

"It's in my Estate Vault, where I stored it after, after that." He said.

"Right, and how likely is it that someone took it given the changes to the timeline?" Andrew asked.

"Little, extremely so. It's hidden, and you need a special key to enter, my family was very paranoid about that stuff." He answered.

"That's good," Andrew said before pausing. "We should bring at least one other Servant with in case something goes wrong, and I don't have enough time to Grand Switch, so any suggestions?"

"I believe King Tepes would be a good choice, there is a Leyline running under the area he would be able to access it, and have maximum effectiveness, due to his Area of Effect Noble Phantasm," Gilles suggested.

"Seems reasonable," Andrew said, before telepathically calling for said Servant to come down to the Command Deck. A scant few moments later, Vlad materialized before them. "Vlad, we are going to be heading back to France to retrieve Jeanne d'Arc's sword to use as a Catalyst. Would you like to accompany us?"

"I gladly accept the offer Master, it will be nice to stretch my legs, get some clean air." The impaler said with a smile.

Andrew returned the smile -he hadn't been very cheery lately, he needed to fix that- as he spoke. "Thank you. Then, everything else is in order, I just need to get the rest of Tenfold Shields on, and we'll be good to go." He said.

A few minutes later he was fully armored, and they were in the Coffins.

" _Okay, Andrew this is the first time you're going back to a Greater Singularity, there should be no problems, but I'm Rayshifting you out if something starts to go wrong with communications."_ Dr. Roman said through the comms.

"Understood," Andrew said. "Ready for Rayshift."

" _Rayshifting now to given coordinates."_

Andrew saw the blue swirl again, and within seconds the group of four were standing on grass.

"Rayshift accomplished Senpai, current coordinates a mile from Paris."

"Hmm, a little bit off, but it shouldn't take us more than half hour to get to my home at normal walking speed," Gilles said.

"Good thing we don't need to walk," Andrew said, about to deploy Hurricane Ride, before pausing. "Unless you wanted to just walk the distance?"

"No, I want to get this over as fast as possible, I don't to be here longer than necessary. It was more for comparison's sake." Gilles said.

"Got it. Then, Ride On." Andrew said, deploying and quickly mounting Hurricane Ride, followed by Mash doing the same.

Shortly after they were blasting through the countryside towards the de Rais estate.

It was a rather large place a mansion for the main house with various smaller ones strewn about the farmland.

"I'll be waiting outside while you three go get the sword. I rather enjoy nature a little bit more, and make sure we aren't ambushed if something attacked us." Vlad said.

"That sounds like a good idea. Gilles said we're over the top a Leyline, so try and establish your territory if you can do that quickly." Andrew said.

"I shall do that Master."

Andrew nodded, and then he, Gilles, and Mash headed inside.

The interior of the main mansion was something out of fifteenth-century France, Andrew thought to himself, before realizing it was _literally_ out of fifteenth-century France and feeling rather silly about the thought in the first place. Time travel was weird.

"The vault is down in the basement, the stairs are over there." Said, Gilles, as he pointed to a door.

"Right, lead the way," Andrew said. "It is your house after all."

Gilles nodded, and they all headed over to it, Gilles opened the door, and slowly they walked downstairs the steps creaking as they stepped on them.

As they made their way down to the dark basement, Gilles began to light up the torches on the wall, to give them some visual.

As he did, Andrew quickly realized that this was a wine cellar, by the smell in the air and the large wooden barrels stacked against the walls.

Andrew saw Gilles move over to a specific group of the barrels, where he moved the front of them revealing a secret passageway.

"Wow, Senpai a hidden door?" Mash said with shocked glee. "It's like I'm in a mystery novel, hopefully, no dead bodies on the other end, is there going to be traps?"

Andrew grinned at her reaction and was about to make a remark, but then turned to Gilles. " _Are_ there traps, Gilles?" He asked.

"No, just the vault door and vault room on the other end. My family has no need for such a thing after they got that Magus to make it for them." He answered.

"Oh, okay," Andrew said, a bit disappointed, but he perked up a bit upon remembering what was in the vault. "Do we go in with you or are you going in yourself?"

"You can come with if you want the opening is quite a spectacle." He said.

"Alright, lead the way."

Gilles smiled as they entered the narrow entrance the way lit up by Gilles torch, and as they exited the corridor, they were met by a small room with only a brick wall in front of them.

"Watch this," Gilles said as he pulled out his sword and jammed it into the wall before turning it to the side and pulled out.

And within seconds the brick wall split open like two large doors, that showed of the vault, and its interior. The entire thing was flooded with gold and various other precious objects. And at the end of the room on an altar was a pearly white sword, with a sheath next to it.

"Woah," Andrew said in awe at the spectacle. Sure, he'd seen a lot more impressive things in _fights_ between _servants,_ but he hadn't really seen anything this cool outside of that. "I'm guessing that's her sword?" Andrew asked the obvious after a moment, pointing at the sword laying on the altar.

"Yes, it is," Gilles said as he went into the vault and picked it up, before leaving it quickly. "Here Andrew." Gilles held the now sheathed blade in front of Andrew for him to take.

He took it carefully with a quick 'thank you,' examining it for a moment, before storing it. "Alright, we have what we came for, let's get back to Chaldea so we can summon Jeanne," Andrew said after doing so. "Unless there was anything else you needed from here first."

" _Master we have company."_ Came the telepathic voice of Vlad.

" _Servant, Phantasmal, or mortal?"_ Andrew replied.

" _The last one and a wraith, by her side that looks like Jeanne d'Arc Alter."_

" _Hostile?"_ Andrew asked telepathically. "We got company outside. Should we just Rayshift out or should we deal with them?" He asked, asking Mash and Gilles as much as Roman.

" _Not, the Mortal something is off about her, she doesn't belong here, and the wraith is being entertained by my stakes."_

"Let's go see who it Senpai it couldn't hurt could it?"

"...I suppose not. Let's get up there and see what's going on." Andrew said, the three rushing back up to the entrance.

They exited the manor where they saw the front of it littered by Vlad's wooden stakes, along with small patches of fire. Of to the side, he could see the Jalter Wraith being pummeled by Vlad's stakes the Christian king just waving his arm about to control them like he was barely paying attention to it.

Though in front of them all stood the woman that had come with the wraith.

Her appearance was definitely out of place, what with the bright white-with-black-stripes leotard with part of a skirt and detached sleeves starting well past her shoulder but going all the way to her hands, and pure white thigh-highs, knee-high boots, garters, and carrying a white lacy umbrella. Though Andrew could appreciate the dedication to get the skulls designs in her hair like that.

Overall, she looked like she just came from a goth convention halfway through getting dressed.

"Why hello there everyone it's nice to meet you finally, I didn't get time to last time you were here." She said, her voice sultry.

"Hello, are you lost? Like, in time? Or are you a Servant we missed before." Andrew asked, cutting to the chase.

"The first one, about six hundred and so years from now, I should be alive in this time period, but I was outside of France at that time so I got burnt, this whole Incineration thing is so troublesome, I got a little displaced. I came from 2004. I made that wraith from that Fake Servant's leftover presence while I hoped you would get back quickly. But that boring quickly how could I corrupt the Saint if she already is." She licked her lips.

Andrew did not like the sound of that. "Who are you?" He asked. Hopefully Roman on the other end would be able to tell him if this was some dangerous lunatic Magus who would actually pose a threat.

The woman seemed to ignore Andrew's words as she spoke. "Gilles de Rais, I want my book back, give it to me would you?" She asked with a cutesy voice.

"Gilles, do you know her?" Andrew asked, getting more confused (and worried) by the second.

"Prelati." Came the answer from the Saber.

"Correct, what do you think about my new body? This is the one I was left with after Dirty Red killed me thirty times."

" _Andrew I'm Rayshifting you out now."_ Came the shocked and panicked voice of Roman.

Andrew, catching on that this 'Prelati' must be pretty dangerous to elicit that kind of reaction, launched a Runestone-Ice-at her to ensure she didn't pull anything dirty during the Rayshift. A body hopper who wrote a book about summoning eldritch demons through human sacrifice would not be a good thing to have around.

Which was quickly followed up stakes piercing her from all sides as they were Rayshifted out from there.

Andrew exited his Coffin rather confused. "Okay, what in the actual hell was with that? Is Prelati some kind of body-hopping vampire thing? Why did she say she was burned in 20 _04_? And most importantly, _is there any chance we just brought her back with us?_ " Andrew asked, realizing as he was talking that since she was apparently a body hopper that was a very likely possibility.

"A body hopper yes. Dead Apostle no, he let me know that several times during our time together. Hates them with burning passion." Gilles said as they stood on the deck.

"That is correct Gilles, thankfully Chaldea has records of Francois Prelati and his actions through the ages. Prelati uses a Reincarnation technique that allows him to take over a new body by dying and going through the Root, noted to have been used by one Dead Apostle by the name of Roa during the middle ages, was killed by a Church Executor. Though his temporary presence does confirm that its possible for things to be displaced into Singularities instead of dying if you died outside of its bubble. Time is a bit in flux in Singularities, so be prepared to encounter things that should not be there besides Servants and Grails." Roman exposited as he walked up to the group. "Though just a somewhat confirmed theory, and not something concrete yet needs more data to be certain if she was just fluke, but still something to keep in mind."

"Understood," Andrew said, taking in the information. "And, to be clear, there's no way Prelati could have followed us back correct?"

"Yes, after Vlad killed her current body, Prelati just got booted back to the root, and probably can't come back until the Human Order is fixed, and to her original point of time, thirteen years ago," Roman said.

Andrew breathed a sigh of relief. "Go _o_ d. That is really just the kind of person I do _not_ want to deal with." He shook his head as if physically clearing it. "Anyway, we retrieved Jeanne's sword, so if there's nothing else Boss I'm going to go summon her now."

"No, I got nothing else. Go ahead and summon her, though do remember that Altera thing and Gilgamesh, I'm curious about that too." Dr. Roman said as he left the group and went back up to his station.

Andrew, Mash, and Gilles then made their way to the summoning room, Vlad going off to do his own thing.

Mash set the Ritual up once again that day, and Andrew stood by the circle holding Jeanne's sword in hand.

He retrieved the Quartz from the hammerspace and without further ado channeled his Prana through the Quartz and sword into the circle.

"Hello Andrew, Gilles, and Mash it is good to see you once again, I hope it hasn't been long," Jeanne said as the smoke dissipated.


	33. Golden

"Just a month or so. But it's good to see you again, Jeanne. I'm glad you decided to help us." Andrew said, smiling. He _really_ hadn't liked seeing her use La Pucelle, despite having known her for only a short time.

"And it is great to see you too again my Lady," Gilles said as he kneeled before her.

"Gilles, stand up you know how I hate that."

"Sorry."

"So, this is Chaldea?" Jeanne asked.

"Indeed. Mash here has an armband for you with a built-in map so you can navigate on your own, but I'd be happy to give you a tour if you'd like." Andrew said, motioning towards Mash.

The girl followed up on his words quickly as she handed Jeanne the armband. "Thank you for the offer Andrew but, I would like to explore on my own and talk to Gilles for a bit, but I will be willing to talk with you then I find my own room to stay in," Jeanne said.

"Of course, go ahead. You two must have a lot to talk about now that we're not in a combat situation." Andrew said.

"We do, see you later Andrew."

At that Jeanne and Gilles left the Summoning Chamber.

"I think that Chaldea just got a little bit brighter with Jeanne now here Senpai," Mash said.

"Yeah. I'm pretty sure the real 'Luminosite Eternelle' is Jeanne's personality." Andrew said.

"Urgh, that was horrible Senpai, shame," Mash said jokingly.

"Oh, what a cruel Kouhai, to wound me so!" Andrew said melodramatically. "How could I ever continue on with this ever-burning shame?"

"By not making terrible puns and word plays," Mash said as she picked up her shield from the floor and dematerialized it.

"Oh! 'Tis the ultimate shame! My linguistic prowess is impeccable; if even that is insufficient for mine Kouhai, then I am not but an empty shell of a man, a husk spewing nonsense for the masses." Andrew said, somehow managing to outdo his own melodrama.

"Thanks for volunteering to become my sparring partner Senpai."

"Eh?" Andrew 'asked,' caught off guard.

"I want to practice my grapple Senpai, cause after Rome I feel like I've become stronger," Mash said.

"I'm pretty sure that even with Tenfold Shields you'd snap me like a toothpick, Kouhai," Andrew said a bit nervously.

"So stop being a drama queen Senpai."

"I mean, if you really want to I'm pretty sure Medea or the other Casters could do some spellwork so that I wouldn't break so easily…" Andrew said, trailing off into thought as he began to think of all the new options available now that Medea was in Chaldea. He'd need to talk to her later.

"I was just joking Senpai. Now, do you anything further you want to do today?"

"...Actually, yeah. Do you think you're up for another Rayshift today?" Andrew asked.

"Where do you plan to go?" Mash asked.

"Back to Rome. I forgot about what Archimedes said before, and if there's a chance we can still recruit him, that could be another massive boon for us. I mean, look at what Da Vinci made in a month with just a box of wyvern scraps, with Medea we've already opened a whole new slew of options, and with Archimedes...three Casters with A rank Item Creation, ooh I'm getting giddy just thinking about it!" Andrew said, excitement tinging his words as he thought of all the myriad possible creations the three could come up with together.

"Senpai, didn't he say he would only join us if we managed to fix the Incineration, cause he kinda approved of it."

"Oh, damn. I thought he meant fixing Rome to prove we could fix the whole thing. Dammit…" Andrew said, the wind taken out of his sails before he perked up again. "But we still have Medea, so that's still another Caster, and one from the Age of Gods at that! I need to go see what she's doing and if I can get her and Da Vinci working together ASAP."

"Let's go to her Workshop, then it should be right down the hall," Mash said.

"Oh good she already got set up, let's do that," Andrew said, and they were soon in front of the door to the workshop, which Andrew knocked on.

"The door is open come inside." Came Medea's voice.

They entered and saw what looked to be a greenhouse separated into two room, one with the plants and the second where the literal magic happened.

And there was also a sheep with golden fur walking around the place, the Magus herself turned around from her former position. Now leaning against her table looking at the two of them.

"So, Master, Miss Kyrielight what can I help you with," Medea asked.

"Medea, I'd liked to know the full extent of your abilities. As a Caster with Item Creation, you are one of our most valuable assets in this fight to save Human History, and I would like to know what all you can do so as to better formulate our plans and strategies." Andrew said.

"Flattering words to hear Master, as for what I can do. My Divine Words allow using High-Level Thaumaturgy with barely any effort. With my Item Creation, I can create potions that give temporary immortality, you will find no foolish wand waving in this Workshop." Medea praised herself.

"What is 'temporary immortality,' exactly?" Andrew asked. "Those words don't really parse together properly to me."

"It does what it says on the can, for a few minutes you're unable to die, though that particular potion is a long ways away, that plant used in it is troublesome to grow." She said. "Though I can create artifacts and talismans of protection, items that give passive buffs to you."

"Oh, okay, that makes more sense," Andrew said, before processing the rest of her statement. "Those talismans, what kind of 'passive buffs' do you mean?"

"Lucks, strength, endurance, agility, the standard stuff. A bed that is more comfortable than you could ever hope to have, something that is akin to protection from arrows, and various elements."

"Mhm. I see. And, are you willing to work together with another Caster in your work?" Andrew asked. "Not in everything necessarily, but for instance this-" He motioned towards himself, and more specifically Tenfold Shields. "-Mystic Code and possible future iterations?"

"There are some functions of it I could improve, but I'm mostly incompatible with Modern Magecraft, it would take some time, as to not mess it up. I would work best with other mages from the age of gods, so I do hope you summon some more." Medea explained.

"I'll try, but I don't really have any good Catalysts that I can actually use to do so," Andrew said. "But, ah, would one or two of your talismans, kept separate from this Mystic Code but worn with it, still be able to function without interference?"

"Yes, easily."

"Then, if you could please make one for Endurance and one for Agility when you have the time?" Andrew asked.

"I definitely be having some ready for whatever mission you embark on next Master."

"Thank you, Medea," Andrew said with a smile.

"Now is there anything else you wish to speak to me about?" She asked.

"Yeah, uhm, what's with the sheep?" Andrew asked.

"It's the flesh and blood version of the Golden Fleece." She said.

"Oh, neat. Can it do anything special, or is it just a sheep?" Andrew asked.

"It can heal you if you hug it. And as the Argon Coin, it can summon a dragon. Though I lack the skills to use that function." Medea answered.

Andrew stared at the fluffy golden sheep. "Am I... allowed to hug it?"

"Sure, he likes to be touched… That came out wrong, ignore that."

"Store Armor," Andrew said, and most of Tenfold Shields disappeared into its hammerspace, just the boots remaining. He then carefully approached the sheep and slowly held a hand out to pet its head, making sure he looked as non-threatening as possible. It may have been a magical sheep, but it was still a _sheep_ , so he was being careful not to startle it.

"Meh." It said as Andrew hugged it, the coat was so fluffy and soft, like Fou was, perhaps even more so due to the sheer quantity of fluff.

After hugging for a few seconds, Andrew pulled away to see the two women in the room slightly snickering.

"Kouhai you gotta try this, it's like fluff heaven," Andrew said, only slightly embarrassed. It was fluffy enough to make him not care very much, and he felt very calm from it.

"It is nothing to be ashamed of Master, Heracles had the same reaction to him, he was kinda the Mascot of the Argonaut," Medea said. "Still, you looked oh so stupid while doing it."

Andrew gave her a thumbs up. "Stupid is as stupid does, and by god, if this makes me dumb, I don't wanna be smart."

"Good choice of words, well I'll be talking to you later Master, you probably have other things to do."

Andrew sighed and stood back up, giving the sheep a quick pat on the head. "Yeah, I suppose you're right, I still have training with the Cu Chulainns yet. I think today's a magic day?..." Andrew trailed off as he tried to remember what day was what as he walked towards the exit of the Workshop.

Xxx

 _August 14_

Another week had passed since the last ticket summon and so he had been given a new one by Da Vinci this morning plus an additional five due to the leftover magical energy from the dismantled Grail they had retrieved from Rome.

And so Andrew and Mash were back down in the Summoning Room to go on a summoning spree.

"Who do you hope for us to summon this time Senpai?" Mash asked as she set up the circle with her shield.

"Mhm. Well, I'm hoping for this one pink-haired Rider every time, and but now that Jeanne's here I guess other than that Rider...more Casters, probably. We have more than enough direct firepower, we could do with some more 'utility' types, y'know?" Andrew rambled as he fanned out the six tickets. "Oh, which one do you think we should do first Kouhai? It doesn't really matter, but I bet the one you pick will be lucky."

Mash reached out and took out the left middle ticket. "This one Senpai."

"Alrighty then! We've got the winning ticket, let's see what the prize is!" Andrew exclaimed as he channeled his prana through the ticket she had chosen into the circle after she had handed it back.

"Figured I be summoned by you." Said suit and tie form of Waver Velvet the Pseudo-Servant from Rome.

"Welcome to Chaldea, Mr. Velvet. Glad to have another Caster joining us." Andrew said with a smile, extending his hand to the newly summoned Caster.

Waver took the hand and shook it. "I'm not much of Caster in that regard I'm a strategist, thanks to Zhuge Liang and a teacher. I'm the best there is in terms of teaching you Modern Magecraft as you're a green first generation, with excellent Magic Circuits mind you." Waver complemented as he disengaged the shake and lit a cigarette.

"Ooh, so is that an offer then? Because if so my answer is yes." Andrew said excitedly. The Cu Chulainns were good, but having someone who was an actual Teacher teaching him would be pretty sweet.

"I would curb that enthusiasm if I was you or you're gonna get yourself killed, to be a Magus is to walk with death, and get ready long and lengthy lectures with lots of note-taking." Waver said.

Andrew waved off the concerns literally. "I'm not a Magus, so that doesn't really apply to me, and I was a University Student before all this, so I know how to take some notes."

"Well if you say so, now I just need a room to set up shop in could you help me... What is your name actually I didn't get it?"

"Oh, forgive my manners, I'm Andrew Murphy, Master of Chaldea. And I'll be glad to help you set up Professor if you are willing to wait a few moments, I was going to summon a few more Servants." Andrew said.

"That I can, the summoning of Servants is always interesting to witness, no matter when." Waver said.

"Have you seen one before Mr. Velvet?" Mash asked.

"Yes, I have summoned one before myself, though that is a tale for another time it's not relevant to our current situation. And please don't call me Mister, if you're going to be formal call me Lord El-Melloi." Waver said.

Andrew puzzled for a moment over that. If he remembered correctly, wasn't that the name of Waver's professor from the Clocktower? He decided to ask about it later, and just get on with the summoning. "Well, I hope you don't mind me saying this, but I hope we can replicate that summoning for you today." He said as summoned the next Servant.

"Hello Master, I have many names but you can call me Alexander, and it seems you have Summoned one of my men." Said kid-sized Alexander the Great.

"Close enough," Andrew said softly before speaking to the newly summoned Rider directly. "Welcome, to-be King of Conquerors, to Chaldea. It is an honor to have you with us."

"It is to me to, it's going to be a lot more fun saving the world, than being summoned by that jerk bag, and did you beat him up?" Alexander asked.

Andrew grinned rather sadistically. "I personally shot him in the face before Spartacus gave him a taste of FREEDOM and his own Servant bisected him."

"Ahh, that sounded like fun."

"My King there is probably going to come more of that later, now that we're serving under the same Master."

"Yeah, you're right my strategist, so Master going to summon more Servants, you still got more those things that are brimming with magical energy?" Alexander asked.

"Indeed. Do you want to stick around for those summonings?" Andrew asked.

"Sure be nice to meet fellow soldiers right off the bat," Alexander said.

"Alright, since the cards seem to be in my favor right now…" Andrew said to himself as he picked another of the tickets at random. "Ah, I know. Let's try for Freedom." He said as he summoned the next Servant.

And he got the giant form of Darius standing over them.

"Remember Senpai lower the Madness." Came the voice of Mash within seconds of Darius appearing.

"Right," Andrew said before raising his hand. "Darius III, by this Command Seal I order you to regain your sanity while here in Chaldea." He Commanded, hoping the specificity of the command would allow it to function as he was envisioning.

And it seemed to work as he saw Darius' eyes become normal and actually got irises, along with intelligence to them.

"Thank you, Master, it is nice to think properly, and it seems my enemy is here too, though we have more important things to deal with than a petty rivalry that can be postponed, and this is not the form of Iskander I wish to fight against anyway." Said Darius his voice gruff and heavy.

Andrew looked up at the absolute mountain of a man. He was a lot bigger up close and not atop a massive skeletal war elephant. "It's a pleasure to have you join us, Darius. I have a feeling you'll be contributing quite a bit to our fight to preserve Human History."

"Yes, it is my pleasure to, though I hope our previous engagement will not sour a future partnership Master."

"Oh, of course not. I'm not going to fault you for fighting, that's what Servants do." Andrew said, trying to alleviate Darius's apparent worry. "A lot of our Servants were on the enemy side the first time we met, so it's no big deal."

"Happy to hear that, now shall I take my leave and await orders for the next mission."

"Ah, before you do, Mash here has an armband for you that has a Map on it so you can navigate Chaldea properly," Andrew said hurriedly, not wanting to let the Berserker, Mad Enhancement being suppressed or otherwise, just wandering around aimlessly.

"Thank you." He said as he took the armband from Mash placing it around his finger because his wrist was too big.

A second later he ducked under the door and left.

"Well, it was nice to stay for the moment Master, but me and my King or going to get going now and meet the other Servants, so I can begin devising strategies." Waver said.

"Yeah, meeting Darius got me all excited so I want to meet the others as quickly as possible."

"That's fine before you two go take an armband, so you don't get lost then," Andrew said a tad disappointed Waver was going but reassured in the fact that he'd be getting lessons later.

The two got the armbands and Andrew got around to using his fourth ticket.

And it was a brand new Servant he hadn't seen before.

"Servant Berserker, Sakata Kintoki it is Golden to meet you, Master, and little miss." The Berserker said with a giant smile.

"It is, ah, 'golden' to meet you too." Andrew said as he used his Stat-o-Vision on the newly summoned Berserker, and was not using that as an excuse to stare at the mans very well defined pecs.

True Name: Sakata Kintoki

Class: Berserker

Master: Andrew Murphy

 **Parameters:**

Strength: A+

Endurance: B

Agility: B

Mana: C

Luck: C

Noble Phantasm: B

 **Class Skills:**

Mad Enhancement: E

 **Personal Skills:**

Divinity: D

Animal Dialogue: C

Natural Body: A

Monstrous Strength: A+

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Golden Eater: Golden Eating(Anti-Unit): B

Golden Spark: Golden Shock(Anti-Unit/Anti-Army): C

Andrew was definitely liking what he was seeing. A+ Strength with only E rank Mad Enhancement seemed like a great combo, and in general it seemed like this guy was some kind of gentle giant demigod of some kind. He'd never heard of a 'Sakata Kintoki' before, though he did know enough Japanese to know his name was also 'golden' as it were.

"Wait I've heard of you." Said, Mash. "You're one of Minamoto's four Heavenly Kings."

"Yep, that's my Boss, though you're my new golden Boss, Master," Kintoki said.

"Ah, right, forgive my manners, welcome to Chaldea Kintoki, it is a pleasure to have you join us in our fight to save Human History. I am Andrew Murphy, the sole remaining Master of Chaldea, and this is my cute Kouhai Mash Kyrielight." Andrew introduced, rambling a bit after getting *distracted by Kintoki's physique.

"Yeah, this situation is not golden at all."

"Indeed. Though, with your truly prodigious, ah, strength, we won't have to worry about winning." Andrew said.

"That you don't Master with my ax everything is going to go golden," Kintoki said.

"Is that one of your Noble Phantasms?" Andrew asked.

"Yep, my ax Golden Eater is one of my Noble Phantasms, cause it eats Oni for breakfast and other monsters." He said as he summoned it.

"Wo _a_ h. That's a pretty wicked looking ax. And is that a trigger at the top?" Andrew asked, admiring the weapon.

"Yep, it got that when it became a Noble Phantasm, it can be loaded with cartridges containing the Concept of Thunder and Lightning, it goes boom when I hit stuff with it, golden isn't it."

"Yeah, seems pretty golden to me," Andrew said, deciding to just go with it. It seemed like the side effect of the otherwise low Mad Enhancement and reminded him of Spartacus, so that was nice. And with how low it was he didn't feel the need to use a Command Seal to suppress it. "So, Kintoki, would you like to stick around while I summon some more Servants, or would you rather get acquainted with the facilities here in Chaldea?"

"I like to go and explorer this place seems golden, and I hope there are other golden Servants here," Kintoki said.

"Well, we do have the Golden King Gilgamesh himself, if that's what you mean," Andrew said.

"Golden sounds like a swell guy, I go meet him," Kintoki said.

"Before you go, take an armband from my lovely Kouhai so you can navigate better," Andrew said, motioning with a flourish towards said Shielder.

"Thank you, miss," Kintoki said with a small blush on his face as he took the armband and left the chamber humming.

"Y'know, I never thought I'd meet a man whose boobs were bigger than his head, yet here we are." Andrew absentmindedly said once Kintoki was out and the door was closed.

"Mr. Golden certainly had a golden body Senpai." Mash smiled.

"A-yup." Andrew agreed, before turning back to the circle.

"Next Servant?"

"Yeah, just needed a moment to get my thoughts back in order," Andrew said, before having an idea. "Huh...I wonder what would happen if I used both at once…" he said and without any further thought into the matter, like a fool, he channeled his Prana through both into the Circle at the same time.

"Good to see you, Andrew, sorry if I showed up late." Siegfried greeted.

"Hello Master, Servant Archer Robin Hood at your service." Greeted the green Archer.

And it had caused to two Servants to be summoned at once.

"Siegfried, happy to see you again. And greetings, Robin Hood. I welcome the both of you to Chaldea, it is an honor to have the both of you join us in our fight to save Human History." Andrew said as he used his Stat-o-Vision on Robin Hood.

Strength: C

Endurance: C

Agility: B

Mana: B

Luck: B

Noble Phantasm: D

 **Class Skills:**

Independent Action: A

Magic Resistance: D

 **Personal Skills:**

Sabotage: A

Golden Rule: E

No Face May King: B

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Yew Bow: The Bow of Prayer(Anti-Unit): D

"Ah, Robin, forgive my forwardness but what does your 'No Face May King' skill do?" Andrew asked, curious. He couldn't recall anything about Robin Hood not having a face or wearing a mask or what-have-you.

"No problem Master, it est if you know everything a Servant can do, that skill is my Cloak, something that is close to a Noble Phantasm, but not quite. With it, I can become invisible and completely untraceable." He answered. "But I can't use Yew Bow while using it."

"Ooh, that seems really abusable. With your Sabotage skill, you can probably spread some chaos rather easily, right?"

"That it is, with it I can destroy up to sixty percent of all enemy forces no matter the size. And that's how I work best by poisoning the enemy and then killing them with Yew Bow. It works as a catalyst that makes poison explode. Boom, instant death."

"Oooh, that sounds like it'll be spectacular. Though, when you say '60% of all enemy forces' I assume that doesn't actually pertain to enemy Servants themselves, just the mooks?"

"Best at destroying armies or strongholds, so yes 'mooks' fall before me."

"Hmm, you sound like one without much in the way of honor." Commented Siegfried.

"Yeah, where did that get anybody, said history's biggest whipping boy." Snarked Robin.

"True." Responded Siegfried without any shame.

"Didn't expect that I think I like you."

"Well, would you two like to make yourselves acquainted with the facilities here? We have quite a lot of them, and Mash here has armbands with maps on them, so you don't get lost." Andrew said, a bit hurriedly. He rather wanted to help Waver set up his workshop, since he hadn't seen what that process was actually like yet, and he had forgotten to ask the extent of the Caster's Item Creation.

"Thank you, Mash." They both said as they got the armbands and they all left the Summoning Chamber.


	34. Helping a Queen

Andrew parted ways with his Servants and Mash as he went to look for Waver having forgotten to ask what the Caster's Item Creation was capable of.

It took a little bit to arrive at his current location, which was down in the command deck where he was in a conversation with Dr. Roman.

Andrew waited until there was a lull in their conversation before interrupting. "Ah, pardon me for interrupting, Waver, there was something important I forgot to ask you about earlier."

"No problem Master ask away, Acting Director Romani here was just giving me the files on all currently summoned Servants by the FATE System." Waver said holding a stack of papers in his left hand.

"Well, since you are a Caster you have Item Creation, yes? I was wondering the extent of that skill, and if you would be willing to work with the other Casters on special projects like my armor." Andrew said, cutting to the chase.

"Limited, I can only create items from Zhuge Liang's legend, and my own skills are below subpar, even Territory Creation which is just something to be used in conjunction with my Noble Phantasm."

"Mhm. I don't actually know anything about 'Zhuge Liang' so could you give any examples?" Andrew said, before realizing he had no idea what Waver's Phantasms did at all. "Oh, and more importantly what _do_ your Noble Phantasms do?"

"Zhuge Liang is a strategist and inventor from the Three Kingdoms Era of Chinese history, the same period Lu Bu comes from. He invented the landmine and various other traps, the automatic crossbow. And the Noble Phantasm the Stone Sentinel Maze is an inescapable maze to trap opponents inside." Waver took a whiff of his cigarette.

"Lord El-Melloi, we have designated smoke areas would appreciate you used those." Dr. Roman commented as he blew away the smoke.

"Fine."

"So you can make magical traps, huh. That could work really well with Robin Hood's skillset…" Andrew quickly double checked Waver's stat sheet to see if he was missing anything. "Oh yeah, what does your other Noble Phantasm do, the 'Chu Shi Biao' one?"

"No idea." He answered truthfully.

"Ah. Is Zhuge Liang not sharing?" Andrew asked. "Because I could probably use a Command Seal to-" Andrew was struck by a revelation and promptly facepalmed. "How did I not think of that before? If she wanted to know, I could've just used a Command Seal, but now she wants to follow the Hero's Journey or whatever, a _rgh_." Andrew berated himself in frustration.

"Somewhat correct, but I would not recommend doing that. That Noble Phantasm is something special to Zhuge, at least that's how I understand it. The man has a mind different from most humans." Waver said.

"Gotcha. I'm not going to use a Command Seal to do something like that if the Servant doesn't want it. Can you imagine the kind of stuff I could do with three regenerating Command Seals? I gotta make sure I don't do anything that would make any of our Servants dislike me, so I don't have to actually use them when I don't need to." Andrew rambled, still on a bit of a 'high' from his revelation.

"And with that, you're better than most Masters, as most Magi see Servants as only things to be used and not people." Waver said.

"Mhm. Yeah, I saw one of those in the Great Grail War. It was a relief when Mordred decapitated her…" Andrew said, before realizing Waver had zero context for that statement. "Ah, I kind of observed two Grail Wars from different timelines before coming here due to Zelretch. I also kinda saw the start of the Fourth Fuyuki one, but I got pulled here before the final Servant was even summoned."

"Hmm makes, ran a bit short on time before this whole shit show started?" Waver asked.

"Yeah, I kinda got kidnapped right before the Incineration started," Andrew said, mostly having gotten over said kidnapping.

Waver raised an eyebrow.

"Heh, we were on a hard timetable to fill the necessary Master roster, and Andrew has good Circuits. The same happened to a few of the other Civilian Masters, though less head smacking more bag overhead." Roman admitted.

"...Y'know, at this point I shouldn't be surprised, but somehow I still am. Partially that I wasn't the only kidnapped, and partially that Chaldea was able to do anything in a 'non-violent' fashion under the previous directors at all." Andrew said flatly.

Roman just shrugged.

"And now I have entered the circus, well Master I be calling you then I'm able to commence the lessons." Waver said.

"Ah, didn't you want help with setting up your workshop? I've never seen how a Magus does that and I kind of wanted to help." Andrew said.

"I just needed a place to set up a standard one up, and really it's kinda boring, just setting up Bounded Fields and bring in necessary materials." Waver answered.

"That may be boring to you, but unless setting up those Fields is as dry as writing on paper it would be interesting to me. I was a muggle before all this, so I barely know anything about how Magecraft works, and every time I see it used it's interesting in a different way because it's _literally_ magical and I don't think I'll ever get over that." Andrew explained. "Hell, I've learned how to use Runes from freakin Cu Chulainn, and I'm still blown away by stuff that's 'boring' to Magi. I can set something on fire by tracing my finger along it in a specific way, how is that not exciting?" He paused to take a breath. "So, basically, everything involving Magecraft is interesting to me."

"Well, if you want to come and see Master I won't stop you." Waver said.

Xxx

"As said before Master, one creates a Workshop, which is the designated area that Magi operate in for most of their life as it is here all their research is done into Magecraft." Waver explained as both he and Andrew were inside the room that Waver had chosen to turn into his Workshop. "We designate that area through the use of Bounded Fields, an area created by the Magus that separates the inside of it from the outside, allowing one to create rules for what can happen inside of it." Waver explained.

"Mhm. And the extent of those rules is based on the power of the Field and its maker?" Andrew asked. "Like the difference between 'No Insects Allowed' and 'Up is Green'?"

"Yes, advanced Workshops can allow for great feats, and Magecraft that cannot be performed outside of it, by limiting the observational abilities of the world, some entirely separating it from the Common Sense of Man."

"And the Common Sense of Man is the thing that weakens Mystery based on understanding the universe, right?"

"The Common Sense of Man is also called the Human Order, it is the current layer of reality and what dictate the Laws of Physics. Magecraft at it source is just Science taken up another tech tree if one were to make the comparison. Everything one can do with Magecraft you can do with normal Science and Technology. True Magic is something that Mankind has yet to achieve but will. The whole weakening of mystery is more delegation of resources. If a Magus made a spell that could convert a kilogram of lead to gold and shared that precise spell to another, it would then only convert half a kilogram next time it's used. That's why Magi keep their research secret." Waver lengthily explained.

"Ooh, so Magecraft is kind of like a catalyst that lets humanity go beyond what it's currently capable of, but there's only so much to go around?"

"Yes Magecraft is a cheat to skip a bit ahead of normal science, but it's catching up and able to do things better than Magecraft, mass production is never going to be a thing in most cases with Magecraft."

"Huh. I wonder if there are any ways to circumvent that. I was really hoping to make what I've taken to calling 'Team Scarves,' and I figured I could sew some passive Runes into them eventually but I guess that would just be a waste of past the first few, right?"

"Your misunderstanding it doesn't matter if you use the spell several times, and besides Runes are exempt from that as they rely on a different Foundation to function than normal Magecraft does. Based more on the rune the quality of the material and the power input." Waver said.

"Oh, ok. Though what's the difference between a Mystic Code and 'an item with Magecraft on it' then? Because I was pretty sure, there was something about Mystic Codes not being easily replicable."

"No difference, Mystic Codes are just items with magic on them, what makes them difficult to be replicated is the spell put on it, that you have to basically reverse engineer."

Andrew perked up. "So I could make the runed Team Scarves for everyone without having to worry?"

"Yes."

"Then, do you know what is actually possible with Runes for that? I figure you don't practice Runecraft, but you probably know some things about it right?"

"Nope, Runecraft is looked down upon in the Clock Tower as a lesser field, the only ones who study it in the modern age are the Fragas and the Wandering Sea." Waver answered.

"Oh. I guess I should probably ask the Cu Chulainns then...but, sorry for getting off track. How does one set up a Bounded Field?"

"It is like rolling foil over food, anchoring it in one end and then pulling it over the area you want it to fit and then creating anchors so that it stabilizes." Waver said.

"Mhm. And theoretically, is that possible with Runes? I'll ask Caster Cu about how to actually do it later if it is."

"It is the same as if you do it with Formalcraft, you create the anchors first, and then the foil is put over given the effect of the anchors."

"Got it. Can I watch you make the ones for your workshop to see it in action? I work best with a practical example with the verbal. I-if that's not too much trouble."

"It isn't, but there isn't going to be much to see." Waver said as held out his arm and began to chant in Chinese.

Andrew felt the wave of magical energy being released as seemingly moved from one end of the room to the next and then stopped.

"See told you there wasn't much to see." Waver said as he looked at Andrew.

"Yeah, but I felt it, which was close enough. What does that one actually do?" Andrew said, an insatiable curiosity taking hold. He _was_ speaking to an actual Magic Teacher right now, and he was going to use Waver to the fullest of his abilities.

"One of the more basic ones that act as a stabilizer for other Fields, so they don't get bundled up as well as a security lock." Waver explained.

And so they continued on, Waver making his workshop while Andrew asked what every single piece did and asking anything that came to mind.

Xxx

August 19th

Another week had passed that had gone by; there was a lot of helping Servants getting acclimated, a lot of learning for Andrew now that he had another Magical Teacher and a lot of cooking with Emiya to relax. And so Andrew and Mash were back down in the Summoning Chamber with a new ticket provided with by Da Vinci.

"The system is ready to be used Senpai," Mash said as she stepped away.

"Thank you, Kouhai. Let's see who's lucky ticket this is!" Andrew said as he proceeded to summon the newest addition to Chaldea's roster.

"I am Spartacus." The Berserker said, with a massive grin.

Andrew returned the grin. "Hey, big guy! Glad to see you decided to join us, your attack on Lev was truly... _liberating_ , as it were." Andrew said enthusiastically.

"Yes, oppressor was destroyed."

"Remember Senpai, Command Seal?" Mash said quietly into his ear.

"Yeah, I'm getting to that, I need to ask because of the word choice," Andrew replied just as quietly before turning back to Spartacus. "Hey, Spartacus, I know how you feel about Oppression, but here in Chaldea things can get a little dicey, and I find we can better oppose oppressors if we can hold a proper conversation, so is it okay if I use a Command Seal to 'suppress', not oppress, the Rank of your Mad Enhancement while we're here, where there are no Oppressors?" Andrew asked, carefully wording his question knowing full well that Spartacus would not hesitate in trying to kill him if he thought Andrew was an Oppressor.

"Yes, Yes. Suppress the oppressor, madness is oppression." Spartacus said in his Spartacus like way.

"Alright, then, Spartacus, by this Command Seal, I order you to suppress your Mad Enhancement while here in Chaldea as low as possible," Andrew ordered.

As it did Andrew saw Spartacus's smile become less crazy and more gentle looking. "Ah, thank you, Master, it is great to speak with you properly within these halls."

Andrew smiled back up at him. "And it is an honor to properly hold a conversation with you, Spartacus. I hope you don't mind that you'll be on the strategizing team from this point onwards?"

"Yes, I shall put my now sane mind to defeat our enemies with as little waste as possible," Spartacus said.

"Awesome. Oh, and just so you're aware you can still come with into battle if you want, I just want to make sure you're tactical genius isn't wasted." Andrew said.

"Of course, the great oppressors shall feel my rebellious spirit." Spartacus grinned. "And by that, I mean a bomb of magical energy going off in their faces."

"Hehe, yeah, that was a truly spectacular way to go out," Andrew said, grinning before his expression became more serious. "You absolutely _cannot_ do that again. If you can use a lesser explosion that won't kill you, that's fine, but I refuse to have any of my Servants perform a suicidal act in some grand gesture unless it is _extremely literally_ the only way."

"That is touching to hear Master that you care for us Servants that way, we are just strength to be used and thrown away, our existence is temporary, but worry not that shall not happen like that again. The damage came to quick for me to properly expel the accumulated magical energy." Spartacus explained.

"Just because you're 'temporary' doesn't make you less of a person. I mean, I'm pretty damn sure I'm only temporary, as is literally everything else, so don't think of yourself as just a tool to be used. You are a person. And also the fifth person I've said this to, why do you all think like that?" Andrew said, trailing off at the end.

"You are truly one of the best to have aren't you. It is our Nature as Heroic Spirits. We are a power of the past meant to support those of the present. The last line of defense against Evil, but to be summoned as a Servant is a Miracle, so most will do everything to repay the one that has summoned them. Though that is just my opinion."

"Huh. That's a surprisingly optimistic take on it. But doesn't that...interfere with your wish?" Andrew asked.

"Depends upon the nature of the summoning, if it had been for a Grail War, I would have used to not be summoned once again for one, to be used by petty mages in their bid for power. But here, I can truly be a Hero." Spartacus answered.

Andrew smiled at the grey giant. "That's good to hear. Now, speaking of being a Hero, we need to introduce you to the other strategists…"

Xxx

"Senpai, I think it happened again." Came the voice of Mash, Andrew opened his eyes, but instead of finding himself in bed he was laying in a brick hallway that was covered by mirrors.

"Oh, joy," Andrew said as he got up and looked around. "Any idea which Servant it is this time? I'm drawing a blank with all these mirrors."

"Senpai, I think I recognize this hallway, I saw it in a history book about famous buildings-" Mash's voice was cut off by the sound of a tune being whistled.

They turned their heads, and from the side, they saw Marie skip into their hallway.

"Hello Master, Hello Mash did we Rayshift or something?"

"This is the Palace of Versailles." Mash finished her sentence as Marie approached them.

"Huh. I didn't think Marie had any deep-seated psychological issues." Andrew said, before putting two and two together from Marie's comment. "Unless this is Sanson's 'moment.' Though that doesn't make much sense either…" Andrew trailed off in thought, trusting the Marie approaching them was normal.

"Wow, this is surprising, we're in my Palace, say Master do you know what happened did we Rayshift or what my homie," Marie said.

"Uhm, what?" Andrew said, completely thrown for a loop. He had not heard Marie talk like that at all since the month and a half since meeting her.

"Oh sorry, I've been listening to some songs that have been using funny words like that, so I've been wanting to try them out, so wassup my homies," Mare said with a peace sign.

"Really? Actually, y'know what, it fits you." Andrew said, before shaking his head and getting back on topic. "Okay, so did anyone tell you about how Kiyohime went from psychopath to just a teenager?" Andrew asked.

"Ah, so you're saying that we are inside my dream?" Marie asked.

"Well, either your dream or one of the Servants close to you, I'm not really sure. This is only the second one of these, and the first one had two Kiyohimes in it, so I have no idea how this is going to go." Andrew said. "But I would definitely expect something related to your past that we'll have to fight."

"Oh my, I hope nothing bad is going to happen to you Master and you too Mash."

"Thank you for your concern, your Majesty," Mash responded.

"Oh yeah, I kind of forgot about it last time, but I wonder why you're also here Kouhai. Like, believe me, I am immensely happy to have you by my side, but I'm confused how _I'm_ even here." Andrew stated. "From what I knew about Servants before all this the most the Master got involved with their Servants dreams was having dreams about their history, nothing like this…"

"Perhaps, it has something to do with the FATE System itself, Senpai it is very different from the one used in the Grail Wars you have witnessed in Fuyuki, the one created by the Einzbern." Mash theorized.

"True. And now that you've pointed it out about the different systems, the Grail Wars happened over extremely short time periods. I might have set the record for longest-standing Master of a Servant…" Andrew then remembered the apparent focus of the current situation. "Oh, Marie, sorry about that, this seems to be your dream so where do you want to go? Or rather, where do you feel we should go?"

"I think the throne room is our best bet, it was there we were taken, also Master, we Servants do still experience your memories, you were adorable looking as a child, it's quite a gossip among us females, except for Alter the brute that she is."

"Wait, what? You all have been seeing my memories?" Andrew asked worriedly.

"Yes, the whole memory thing goes both ways, I'm surprised you haven't seen pieces from our lives yet, though we have only gotten bits and pieces from your childhood, you adorable little tyke," Marie said as she pinched his cheek, standing on her toes.

A laugh was heard from Mash.

"Wait, Mash, have you been seeing them too?"

"No I haven't, perhaps it's due to my Demi-Servant nature, or our bond has been reinforced in different ways that allows me to accompany you on these lucid dream walks."

"I suppose that makes sense…" Andrew said, before turning back to Marie. "The _second_ you or one of the other Servants sees my teenage years you need to tell me _immediately_. There is some sensitive information in there that could jeopardize our entire operation if mishandled. If it gets to that point I might even consider using a Command Seal, so you need to tell me if it happens, understood?" Andrew 'ordered' nervously, not wanting any of the Servants not in-the-know to see his memories of Unlimited Blade Works, as it would raise a lot of questions.

"Ohh, are you really that nervous of us seeing you jerk it to pretty ladies?"

Andrew's face turned tomato red at that. He sputtered for a bit trying to make a coherent sound. "That's not what I meant! I mean _actually sensitive information_ that if some of the Servants knew it could ruin our relationships! I don't want anyone seeing anything else, sure, but the actual _memories_ with Zelretch could ruin a lot of things!" Andrew rapidly explained.

"Ahh, I get it secret magus stuff, just like Amadeus. But still, I wouldn't mind about that especially if it was about me." Marie said with fluttering eyes.

"Shut up, please." Andrew half-ordered. "Unless the point of this whole dream is for you to become sexually active it has _nothing to do with the situation at hand_ , so can we please get back to the weird dream that could potentially end in our deaths?"

"You're so easy Master, now then the throne room is this way." Marie sang as she began skipping.

"She is correct Senpai, you are rather easily flustered," Mash said.

"That part is because I'm surrounded by pretty idiots with crass tongues," Andrew said as he began to follow, trying to push aside what had just occurred for now. "And then the ones that aren't idiots are able to eviscerate with their words, like you."

"Shut up." Was the response from the now also tomato red Mash. "Let's go, Marie is leaving us behind."

Xxx

The three of them entered the throne room and immediately set their eyes upon the altered Marie Antoinette that sat upon the throne.

"My, my if it isn't the girl playing queen and her Master, so have you realized your true thoughts or do I need to beat them into you?" Came the question from the Dark Marie.

Andrew wasted no time in using his Stat-o-Vision on the other Marie to at least get an inkling of what she was supposed to _be_. He didn't expect much based on previous experience, but it would at least be a good hint.

He didn't know if he got a Noble Phantasm or Skill name. But Andrew saw the words Vengeful Flower floating above her head.

Which told him jack-all about what this was about.

Great.

"Marie, what is she talking about with 'true thoughts,' exactly?" Andrew asked the real Marie.

"Oh, haven't you told you're, _our_ dear Master what our thoughts were when we summoned into that Singularity. To join the vengeful form of Jeanne d'Arc and help her destroy France?"

"I had no such thoughts."

"Yes, you did for I am those thoughts, those dark desires you keep suppressed behind that happy attitude, our need for vengeance against the country that took everything from us." The Dark Marie spat out.

"Mhm. And lemme guess, you're going to want to fight this Marie and become the dominant personality, right?" Andrew asked of the Dark Marie.

"No such thing, I just want her to accept our need for vengeance, to not ignore her true desires. To ignore me."

"Huh. Surprisingly civil of you. I suppose the two of you can talk this out then, yes? No need to go full Persona if its a simple acknowledgment of feelings and not a need to embrace them, right?" Andrew asked, looking back and forth between the two Maries.

"I think you misunderstand she needs to embrace me and us right the wrong that you 'corrected.' France shall be choked by our vines and thorns. It is not to avenge our death mind you, we would have accepted that, but they tortured us and harmed by going too far. Our children, our boys, and girls there was no need, but still they die as their heads were cut off in front of one by the one we called a friend as a child, while we begged for them to stop for Amadeus to come and save them, but he couldn't for he was already dead. But why her, why her our youngest she was only four." The dark image cried out, and Andrew heard tears come from the real one by his side.

Andrew placed an attemptedly-comforting hand on Marie's shoulder and spoke to both of them. "Your anger is absolutely justified. No one should have to go through that. But revenge won't change anything. It doesn't sooth the pain. It doesn't make it any easier to think of the people you've lost. Everyone involved is already long dead, so it doesn't prevent it from happening again. And if you go for revenge now, on people who were never involved in the Revolution, its just going to start a cycle of revenge since you'd just be doing the same thing to those people over and over again until one of them is strong enough to get revenge on you. Revenge just doesn't work." Andrew said in what he hoped was a coherent and helpful manner.

"I know that Andrew, that is why suppressed those thoughts, because even though that happened I was summoned to save France, that means that somebody believed in the good of some the French Nobility and I am the symbol, even if those memories are painful I would never betray my kingdom like that, so you can go and screw yourself," Marie said pointedly at her dark counterpart.

"You still deny me?"

"No I have accepted those thoughts and just decided to ignore them."

"That's a contradiction!"

"I don't care! Go Guillotine Breaker."

"Oh, cr-" Was all she said as the crystal horse kicked her in the face and through the wall.

"And that takes care of that," Marie said as she clapped her hands. "Sorry, you had to see and hear that Master."

"...I'm just happy you've made 'peace,' or maybe piece _s_ , with your inner demons," Andrew said.

"I'm not done with you-" Came that voice again and was immediately cut off again as Andrew saw a vase collide with the dark image and both shattered.

"Yay, I contributed." Said Mash, still in a throwing position.

"Nice throw, Kouhai. Maybe we should start a baseball team so you can put that throwing arm to use." Andrew said.

Mash blushed again, and at that, the world around seemed to begin to wobble.

"Well, it looks like we're waking up," Marie said.

"Looks like. You feeling okay?" Andrew asked her.

"I'm fine better than ever, thank you for those kind words, Andrew." Marie thanked.

"No problem. That's what friends are for, right?"

"They are Master."

At that Andrew woke up in the early morning it was now August 20th and the first thing he did that morning was to punch Sanson in the face with his gauntleted hand.

The day was off to a good start.

Xxx

[spoiler=AN] We're back again as Passive has returned from his vacation and I have graduated. Also up next Dumplings.[/spoiler]


	35. Does a Moon Goddess Love Dumplings

August 21st

Andrew was walking through the hallways of Chaldea, and according to the clock, it was about eight in the evening when he ran into Da Vinci holding several cans of beer in her arms.

"Oh, hey Da Vinci. There a party going on or something?" Andrew asked of the alcohol-laden Renaissance Woman.

"Didn't Romani tell you?" Da Vinci asked.

"Tell me what? Is there something special today or something?" Andrew asked.

"Well, we are nearing the end of summer, and with the solar eclipse having supposed to happen today, we thought that we could have a little Harvest Moon Festival to relax a bit, by having some drinks and sweet snacks. Our chefs have been making tons of dumplings for us to eat. And seems Romani forgot to call and tell you to come. Well, it's a good thing you ran into me then." Da Vinci explained.

"Yeah, a good thing. Though I've never been to a Harvest Moon Festival, is that just a thing from farmers in general or is it a specific culture's festival?" Andrew asked, curious as to the ways of non-city folk.

"A bit of influence from our more oriental Servants in regards to the dumplings, but it's just a way to celebrate a good harvest, Grails in our case." Da Vinci said.

"Ah, gotcha. Seems like that'll be fun." Andrew said. "Where are we having this Festival?"

As Da Vinci was about to answer. The sound of a siren was heard throughout the hall. "Hey, why is the alarm going off?" Da Vinci asked.

"Dammit, please don't be another bomb," Andrew said as he rapidly started putting on as much of Tenfold Shields as he could so he'd at least be able to something.

"Come let's head down to the command deck." Da Vinci said.

"Right."

They quickly ran towards the command deck, all thoughts of celebration pushed far from Andrew's mind. Even though he managed to get the legs of Tenfold Shields on before they had run down Da Vinci beat him to the command deck.

There they were meet by Dr. Roman who just looked confused. Well, at least the room wasn't on fire again.

"Hey, do you two have any idea of why the alarm went off?" He asked but as he did the siren finally cut off.

"Shouldn't you be the one who knows that sort of thing Boss?" Andrew asked, taking the time to finish putting on Tenfold Shields. Even if the siren had stopped, there was a pretty good chance it wasn't a literal false alarm.

"I didn't activate it, technically we all can in case of an emergency through the armbands, so I

need to check which one sent the signal," Roman said though that mystery was quickly answered.

"I'm the one that hit the alarm," Mash said as she ran over to them. "Cause we have an emergency."

"What kind of emergency?" Andrew asked of his Kouhai.

"Someone has stolen all the dumplings we made, and the special ones I made specifically for Senpai," Mash said.

"What," Andrew said flatly. "The dumplings going missing constitutes using the same alarm we use when a bomb goes off?"

"Also the staff registered the fact somebody used a Rayshift three minutes ago," Mash added.

"Wait, that's not possible." Came the response from Da Vinci and Roman.

"I feel like that's more important than the dumplings going missing, Kouhai," Andrew said. "Lemme see if it was one of the Servants." He said, about to send a telepathic message.

"Don't bother with that Andrew all Servant's are present inside of Chaldea." Da Vinci said a hologram floating above her hand.

"Are sure? As in, do you have visual confirmation that they're all here and not just tracking their wristbands?" Andrew asked. "Since you didn't know about someone Rayshifting without your permission till just now."

"Tracking their Saint Graph specifically, and I'm also detecting remnants of an unknown Servant that was here. That's why we said that it should be impossible. For only you and your contracted Servants can Rayshift, Andrew."

"Sorry for doubting your genius Da Vinci, but that just raises another question- how in the fuck was there another Servant in Chaldea, _and how did we not know about it?"_ Andrew asked, obviously afraid of the implications.

"I think I have a theory, Chaldea is in its own little special dimension, a little outside of time, but still moving chronologically forward. No one should be able to enter, and the only way to leave is via Rayshift to Singularities, which as stated before only you and your Servants can do. But many Heroic Spirits were of extreme power and magic in life, allowing them to affect things outside of The Throne in minimal ways. So here is my theory the Servant that stole the dumplings and Rayshifted out, is a Servant you have yet to contract with, you following me?" She asked.

"...So your saying I somehow accidentally summoned but didn't actually become the Master of a Servant? Or that it summoned itself and this is some sort of test?" Andrew asked, not quite sure.

"Ah, I get it." Came Roman's voice. "Causality has been reversed, from you will, to you have, which allowed the Servant to materialize itself. Though why did it steal our dumplings?"

"So I Gae Bolg'd the summoning, that's...oddly plausible. But we'll probably find out about the dumplings once we go and drag this Servant back here and make them join us. Speaking off, do we know where did they Rayshifted to?" Andrew asked, slightly off-put at how odd yet not out of place the entire situation was now that it was adequately contextualized.

"They to one of the lesser Singularities, the physical space is France though the era is two hundred years later from the Greater France Singularity." Da Vinci answered.

"Alright let's go and get our dumplings back Senpai. Before the Artorias figure out that the food is gone." Mash said.

"Right. Now, who to bring…" Andrew trailed off as they headed for the coffins.

Xxx

"Alright Senpai we are in France, it's night, and our communications are down so I can't contact the Doctor… Great." Mash said.

"Hmm. That's not suspicious or worrying at all." Andrew said sarcastically before turning to the other Servants. "Emiya, be on high alert for threats. Robin, Hassan, you two will scout out the area once we establish a base. Ushi, stay close to Mash and me. And Darius…" Andrew stared up at the Berserker who was once more consumed by rage. "Stay close by, but stay in Astral form for right now."

The Servants did as ordered. Three of them disappeared, and Emiya came with a snarky remark. "I hope the Servant hasn't touched those Dumplings I've spent hours making those making sure there was enough to everybody. Though I do wonder how they managed to steal all ten tons of it." He said.

Andrew looked at the Counter Guardian in surprise. "You made _ten tons_ of dumplings? By God, I think that might actually be enough to sate the endless abyss that is the Artorias!"

"Why did you think I made so much, they are sweet snacks and don't actually fill that much."

"And if they have, I shall bring their heads to you, my Lord," Ushi said, hand on her katana ready to be drawn.

"No, no no, not doing that Ushi. We're here to contract the Servant, not kill them." Andrew said. "This is more of a capture and recovery mission than a killing one."

"I understand my Lord."

" _Hmm, Master we found something."_ Came Robin's mental voice which sounded very nervous, like something was stuck in his throat.

Andrew turned towards where his connection to Robin said the Servant was and got ready to run to meet him if need be. _"As in 'enemy' or 'interesting'?"_ He asked telepathically.

" _The latter one, found an unknown Servant don't know if she is the thief or not there aren't giant bags of dumplings, but there some laying on the ground, but she has to be seen to be believed."_

" _Coming to your location ASAP,"_ Andrew said before signalling for the rest of the Servants to follow as they made their way over to Robin and Hassan's location, stopping upon getting within a few feet of the two and seeing a white-haired woman in a white-to-red dress that left practically nothing to the imagination (though with her... _assets_ Andrew doubted anything could hide her figure) holding an oddly shaped stringless bow. Most strangely, there was a small, seemingly alive teddy bear dressed like a caveman. The woman was eating dumplings while the bear just sat on her shoulder.

"Da _yum_." Andrew couldn't help but say under his breath upon noticing the _ample tracts of land_ the woman possessed, before clearing his throat and speaking up. "Excuse me, fair maiden, you wouldn't have happened to have taken those dumplings from our kitchen, would you?"

She lifted her eyes and turned her attention to Andrew and his group. "My to accuse a woman of being a thief, but to answer no, I found them laying on the ground, I was hungry, and I couldn't let them go to waste, or the animals were going to." She answered.

Andrew nodded sagely. "That makes sense; few can resist the allure of Archer's cooking, among both the Heroic and the mortal."

"I guess that is one in red, by the way, my name is Orion an Archer Class Servant." She answered happily.

"Wait, Orion is supposed to be male." Came Mash's voice.

"Well, Truth is stranger than fiction as so they say." Was the Archer's response.

Andrew was at that moment very happy his helmet obscured his expression because he was certain he must have looked like an absolute fool as his brain crashed and attempted to reboot at that revelation. After a moment he was able to regain some semblance of cognizance, though before he could say anything Emiya spoke.

"She is telling the truth Mash as shocking as it might be, that bow is the never miss one of Orion," said Emiya.

Andrew used his Stat-o-Vision on the white-haired Servant to confirm her identity; after all, it wouldn't return much information if he had the wrong True Name.

[spoiler=Orion's Stat Sheet]

True Name: Orion

Class: Archer

Master:-

 **Parameters:**

Strength: D

Endurance: C

Agility: B

Mana: A

Luck: A+

Noble Phantasm: A+

 **Class Skills:**

Independent Action: A+

Magic Resistance: D

 **Personal Skills:**

Affections of the Goddess: EX

Whimsical Bonds: A+

Eye of the Mind(False): B-

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Tri-star Amore Mio: Moon Goddess's Arrows of Love and Romance(Anti-Unit): A+

[/spoiler]

Upon seeing the first skill and Noble Phantasm, Andrew no longer doubted the veracity of her claim. Only doubting how on earth any Greek storyteller could have _possibly_ mistaken her for a man.

"Then, Orion, it would be rude of me not to introduce myself as well. I am Andrew Murphy, Master of Chaldea. My Servants and I have arrived here to catch a thief who stole ten tons of dumplings we had prepared for a festival. You wouldn't have happened to see anyone who could have been that thief, would you?" Andrew asked.

"Well, saw them fall out of wagon carrying various sacks, escorted by a lot of Servants at least nine or so. They were heading to an old ruined castle to a party, at least that was what I heard them shout. Except one of them, he kept screaming NEROOO! whoever that is." She answered.

Andrew sighed. "Well, at least we know one of them is Caligula. But _nine_ Servants? This might be tougher than I thought…" He turned to Ushiwakamaru. "You might end up doing your thing anyway, Ushi."

"Yay." She said.

Andrew would have found that incredibly disconcerting coming from a normal child, but considering Ushiwakamaru was a Servant he was only mildly disconcerted. "Orion, you're one of the greatest hunters of Greek myth, would you like to join us in our Hunt for Dumpling Thieves?" Andrew said, knowing precisely how silly that sounded but deciding he didn't care anymore.

"I would love to Andrew, my nose shall lead us to those sweet dumplings, we shall head towards where the moon currently is. Though first." Orion said as she spun around and fired several light arrows into the forest by whipping her bow around, that was in front of them, and they all heard the sound of pained howls.

"That was the worst piece of archery I have ever seen." Said Emiya.

"Sorry, a few werewolves were trying to sneak up on us, probably attracted by the dumplings' smell."

"Ah. Well, if you would be so kind, shall we be off?" Andrew asked of the Greek hunter.

"That we shall."

At that, they all set off towards the dumplings Orion leading them. It took a bit to find the thieves, but they managed to come upon all of them. They were all sitting around a large fire separated into three groups with a sack of dumplings each, the seven other sitting in between them.

What surprised Andrew more was who the groups were composed of.

Marie, Sanson, Deon, Mozart, Kojiro, George, Martha, Caligula and Caesar.

"Hmm, it seems that somehow new editions of our friends and enemies were summoned into the Singularity, probably called upon the deliciousness of the dumplings," Emiya said.

"So, we got four Frenchmen, a trio of Dragonslayers and a duo of Roman Emperors." Came Orion. "This should be fun."

"Please don't shoot until they prove hostile, Orion. I want to at least _try_ to resolve this peacefully." Andrew said to the white-haired hunter. "But, everyone, be prepared to attack if they _are_ hostile." He ordered before speaking up so the thieves could hear him. "Excuse me, I do believe you all have taken our dumplings. If you return the remaining ones now, then no harm shall come to you, and we will leave in peace. This is your one and only warning."

"Never, we found these, so they are ours. You shall not have these sweets, for their fat shall give me bigger breasts!" Shouted Marie. "Sanson take off their heads."

"Yes, they're ours, attack!" Came the rest of the dumpling mad Servants.

"Hmm. I was hoping we wouldn't have to do this." Andrew sighed. "Ushi, by this Command Seal, _destroy as many of them as you can with your Noble Phantasm_ ," Andrew ordered.

"Acknowledged **Secret Technique: Dan-No-Ura!"** She shouted as seemed to blitz towards Marie her first chosen target, and then…

Did Marie just counter by biting the sword into pieces? "Fool you can't stop me for I'm a Killer Queen, dynamite with a laser beam, well not really Guillotine Breaker!"

"Well, time to kick their asses. Everybody attack!" Shouted Orion as she began to fire arrows at the enemy.

What followed next Andrew would almost call a comedy, as they went at each other shouting ludicrous stuff at the top of their lungs. Even Mash having joined in by telling. "The criminal scum to stop."

Though after what seemed an eternity their side emerged as victorious. The enemy Servant having been felled and groaning and moaning in pain on the ground.

"Alright you win, you can have the dumplings, never should have gone up against a Five Star." Came the words from Caesar.

"We won Senpai," Mash said as she joined Andrew by his side.

"Yeah, I guess," Andrew said, still trying to process the kerfuffle that had just occurred. Apparently, Caligula's Noble Phantasm worked really well when dumplings got involved considering how mad literally everyone had been acting. He'd honestly been compelled to yell something about 'dumplings for the dumpling god' and rush in, and the only thing that had held him back was his want to not die. "Let's grab the dumplings and get out of here. This has given me such a headache…"

Mash nodded, and they went to grab the dumplings, though the one Andrew grabbed felt particular heavy more so than the ton that should be in it.

"NOM!NOM!NOM!" Came the sound from the sack.

"Mana Burst," Andrew said immediately and slammed the sack on the ground before stepping back in case that had only angered whatever had been in the bag.

And a second later Andrew watched as Altera's head stuck out of the sack looking rather comical all things considered. "Au!"

"Ah, Altera what you doing here? Watch out Andrew that woman is one who destroys everything she comes in contact with, all civilizations fall before her." Orion said.

"That's not true I do make distinctions! Nom! Nom. There is Good and Bad Civilisation. Dumplings are Good Civilisation. Moon Festival is Bad Civilisation. So I take the dumplings and destroy your festival. Nom." She said as she pushed more dumplings into her mouth. "If you get in my way I will destroy with this War God's sword I just happened to find on the ground." She said waving around her popsicle sword her lower half still in the sack.

"What do you mean "happen to find?" Everything you use turns into it." Said, Orion.

"...Would unlimited dumplings be considered Good enough Civilisation to help prevent the end of all other Good Civilisation?" Andrew asked of the dumpling gobbling Attila the Hun who he still couldn't parse properly.

"You have more dumplings?" She asked.

"Yes, and all other kinds of food that Emiya can cook for you," Mash said.

"Hey, don't get me involved in this!"

"Emiya I will use a Command Seal on you if I have to, just let me negotiate right now!" Andrew said hurriedly to the Archer before turning back to Altera. "What my Kouhai says is true, the cooks at Chaldea, of which Emiya is one of as am I, can make as much delicious food as you want if you become my Servant, which I must add means you can pick and choose when you do and don't go on a mission."

"Food is Good Civilization, Chaldea makes food, so Chaldea must be Good Civilisation. I shall follow you, Master." Altera said as she stepped out of the sack.

"Then all we need to do is shake hands to seal the deal," Andrew said, holding out his hand to her.

Altera reached out with her hand carefully, seemingly not sure what to actually do. But her hand grasped his.

Andrew was very happy she didn't crush his hand in hers as he knew she could very well do. "Then, I, Andrew Murphy, shall become your Master." he waited a moment in awkward silence before stage whispering. "This is the part where you say your name and that you accept."

"Ah, okay I Altera accept, I shall destroy all that you wish me to." She answered.

"Then the contract is sealed. Fate has brought the two of us together; may we ever triumph in the fight to save hu-...Good Civilisation." Andrew said, changing his normal spiel slightly.

" _Hey, Andrew, Mash can you hear me now I'm detecting the provisions near you, so I'm Rayshifting you back in a minute."_ Came Roman's voice.

"Coming in loud an clear Boss, we've recovered the Dumplings and at least one more Servant," Andrew said before looking at Orion. "Potentially a second. Over."

"So are we gonna cancel the deception now." Came a male voice from the bear on Orion's shoulder.

"Guess so, my darling. This was really fun Andrew this Harvest Festival in my image sorry about taking the dumplings. We won't be joining you now, we shall meet again on the sea with no borders. My true name is Artemis the Moon Goddess. And thanks darling for letting me borrow your body. See you later." At that, she disappeared.

"...I have. _So_ _many questions_." Andrew said. "And a massive headache. Let's just...leave." He said, looking over the other Servants to see if any of them were cognizant enough to potentially form a contract, but they were all gone. He sighed again. He really needed to stop questioning things.

And it was at that they through the blue vortex, and they were all back in Chaldea and all hopefully normal now that they weren't near the effect of Caligula's Noble Phantasm.

Xxx

"So that's your field report?" Dr. Roman asked taking a bite of a dumpling; he and Andrew were sitting at a table along with Da Vinci and Mash plus Altera, as the Servant hadn't left his side since they had come back from that weirdness.

Andrew sighed for what felt like the umpteenth time that night. "Yup. In not as many words, The Greek Gods Are Assholes." He said before finishing the dumpling he had been holding. Emiya's cooking was definitely the best.

"You're preaching to the choir Master!" Came the yell from either Medea or Medusa from the other end of the room.

Followed by a "Hey," Which he assumed to be Stheno.

"You don't count, your just asshole-ish Stheno," Andrew said back, recalling how she had and still treated Medusa.

Curses from the small woman followed soon.

"Anyway, you mentioned that she said you would meet at the sea with no borders. Do you think that could be the next Singularity?" Roman asked taking a sip of the beer Da Vinci had provided.

"I'm 99% certain that's what she meant, which is a little worrisome that the Greek gods can apparently just know where we're going before we do and summon themselves into our base to mess with us," Andrew said, heavily considering cracking open one of the beers on the table.

"Yes, but it seems that only Artemis can due to her special connection to Orion." Da Vinci said. "For Divine Spirits reside in the Reverse Side of The World, which there is confirmation of it being atemporal in nature. It does not perceive time as we do."

"Mhm. I still don't like it. For all, we know there could be an Artemis-equivalent for every pantheon in existence who'll just pop in to mess with us. Hell, I'm pretty sure Zeus has enough mortal lovers he could probably fudge the system like Artemis too." Andrew said.

"If they care enough that is." Da Vinci pointed out.

"We're the only people left for them to mess around with." Came Andrew's somber counterpoint.

"We should probably make defenses against any tricksters deciding to show up. Those would be the biggest threat." Da Vinci.

That sent a shiver up Andrew's spine. "I _really_ don't want to see Loki decide to stop by if he isn't on our side, so I absolutely agree on setting up some defenses." He paused. "Do _not_ base those defenses on Gilgamesh's Chain-" Andrew didn't dare say the name out loud "-Noble Phantasm or any derivative of it."

"Hmm, I make something that surpasses those that held the wolf, dwarves never had to contend with a true genius."

"Don't blow your own ego up to much Da Vinci-Chan." Roman teased.

"Say that again Romani, and I will freeze your second head off."

"Okay, I'm leaving." The doctor declared as he left the table.

"For future reference, was the threat because he implied you weren't the smartest or because of the suffix?" Andrew said, need to know for the future to ensure his own safety.

"Questioning my genius of course. I have known the man for years, and he still does it. Anyway, Andrew, I can be your Da Vinci-Chan if you want." She said with a certain smile.

"No signora, grazie ma no." Andrew said.

"Oh how sad, will if you change your mind just come down to my Workshop past 10 I go nude there."

"Noted," Andrew said before getting up to get more dumplings. Altera followed right behind him. He turned to her as they walked. "You haven't been eating as many dumplings as I thought you would be, Altera. Did you get your fill already?" He asked, worried about how much of how she had been acting earlier was actually her, and if he had contracted her while she was basically drugged out of her mind by Moon Juice.

"I'm eating just as much as you Master." She answered.

Andrew frowned. He'd only eaten one or two since they'd gotten back since he'd been briefing Roman. "And how much do you _want_ to eat?"

"Am I allowed to?" She asked.

"As long as you do it politely, yes. I promised you as much good food as you like, and I'm going to keep that promise." Andrew said. "So, eat as many as you please."

Altera nodded and went over to where Boudicca was serving dumplings to some of the other Servants.

Where her plate was filled looking more like Lily's and Alter's plates.

Andrew smiled as he saw her enjoy herself. He looked out over all of his Servants, all laughing and eating and having a good time. This was good. He was content.

It was a shame they'd be going back to the battlefield soon.


	36. Servants New Clothes

August 22

"Hello my Lord what can I do for you?" Ushi asked as Andrew entered her room.

"I've been checking in on everyone who fought yesterday to make sure there weren't any… lingering effects from Caligula's Noble Phantasm." Andrew said. "So, how are you feeling, Ushi?"

"Thank you for considering me worthy of such worry my Lord, do not worry the Light of the mad moon has long ceased affecting my faculties. So I'm feeling adequate at the moment, though I did suffer a temporary set back." She answered honestly from her sitting position.

Andrew remembered that particularly absurd moment from the previous day. "Oh, right, your sword. I'm guessing since you said temporary it can be restored?"

"Yes, the sword is not a Noble Phantasm, but still a powerful weapon used by my Ancestor it will take some time to fully restore it, but do not worry it will be healed by the time of the next Singularity if you have need of me."

"Y'know, considering you didn't get to fight properly yesterday, I think I will bring you with to the next one. I want to see those secret Tengu techniques of yours that require your… 'armor.'" Andrew said. "I really want to know if it's worth the trade-off first-hand."

"Yes, the enemy Marie Antoinette pulled a maneuver I had never thought anybody would logically do. And thank you, my Lord, for bestowing upon the honor of joining you in battle. I shall show my arts to their full ability. All the enemies' heads shall be yours." She boasted.

Andrew let out a nervous chuckle at that. "I've no doubt you'll live up to the hype." He then seemed to remember something. "Oh, right, I almost forgot, Deploy Gift, Designation Ushi." He said, and a reasonably large gift box was deposited into his hands. "These are for you. Vlad helped a bit (a lot), but these ones were designed by me." He said, giving Ushiwakamaru the box.

"Thank you, my Lord, for the gift, I shall hold it dear like any other." She answered.

"It's no problem, you deserve to have more than one outfit, and honestly making them has really helped with my sewing skills," Andrew said. "Oh, right, that reminds me, what color do you want your Team Scarf to be? They aren't ready quite yet, but I'd prefer to make one in your favorite color from the start."

"I like the color blue the most my Lord." She responded to the inquiry.

"Any particular shade of blue or just blue in general?"

"The modern word for it is cyan."

"Cyan, gotcha," Andrew said, writing it down on a screen he had pulled up on his armband filled with other similar notes. "Oh, and while I'm at it, do you want any types of clothes that aren't kimono?"

"Ah, I like some overly large sweaters please."

"Specifically overly large? Any particular reason for that?" Andrew asked, but still marked it down.

"They look very comfortable to wear, and if they are big enough, I won't need pants."

"Oh, like a dress, but you specifically want an oversize sweater instead, gotcha," Andrew said, writing as he was speaking. "I can probably have a simple solid-color one done by tomorrow, Vlad's lessons have been making simple stuff go really quickly."

"Do not hasten yourself for my sake my Lord."

Andrew waved his hand dismissively. "No, no don't worry, I like making stuff like this it helps with the stress. I might have a few too many orders on my hands now with Darius, Spartacus, and Altera now, but you were summoned first, so you're getting my attention first."

"Thank you, my Lord."

"You don't need to thank me like that all the time you know. If I am your 'Lord' doesn't that mean it's my duty to make sure my Servants are well taken care of?" Andrew said, hoping to at least slightly dissuade her from calling him that but knowing he stood an approximate chance of a snowball in Hell of being called his own name around Chaldea.

"Then I'm grateful for being your Servant." She said.

Andrew let out a small sigh before smiling. "And I'm grateful for the same."

"Is there anything else you wish to speak to me about my Lord, or will you be going now?" She asked.

"I guess I should go check in on the rest of the 'needs clothes' group while I'm at it. Did _you_ want to talk to me about anything, Ushi?" Andrew said.

"No, I have nothing I wish to speak about at the moment my Lord."

"Alright then. See you later Ushi."

Xxx

August 23

"Hello, Andrew are you to join me in lifting?" The muscular Roman asked Andrew the two currently finding themselves in the gym where he, of course, was lifting weights, the man was dressed in appropriate clothes now, but they were kinda stretched. Spartacus didn't really benefit from it, but Andrew guessed it was for the novelty of it.

"Well, I more came to talk, but I suppose I could get a set or two in, today is a Magic Day anyway so I suppose there's no harm in it," Andrew said, picking up a set of dumbbells and doing some basic lifting so he wouldn't get too distracted while talking. "So, how are you adjusting to life in Chaldea, Spartacus?"

"It is enjoyable so many funny people to meet, except for the King of Heroes, that man is both the greatest partyer and buzzkill I have met," Spartacus answered.

"Understandable. It seems like Gil is an acquired taste." Andrew said, not bothering to call the King of Heroes by his full name or a title due to the fact he was lifting right now. And knowing said King was far, far away in the game room and couldn't hear him. "One even I haven't gotten used to yet."

"Yes, if Servants were instruments, he would be the hardest to play, but if you succeeded no one would be able to beat you." Spartacus metaphored the oldest human king.

Andrew let out a short laugh at that. "Yeah, I suppose that's right. I'm pretty sure there's only one type of person who really could though, and from what I can tell I am _not_ that type of person." Andrew said. "But enough about the King. I'm going to need your measurements then so I can make you some better clothes unless you like the ripped-up look?" He asked, legitimately questioningly.

"Perfect measurements of course if you wish to gift me with threads, Andrew. I would like them not to rip, that is a stupid thing to have, why would anybody want ripped clothes that offers no protection from the weather, I may be a Servant but still." Spartacus answered.

Andrew did his best shrug without putting down the dumbbells. "Some people like that look. In my home country, people were spending exorbitant amounts of money to get pre-ripped jeans. And honestly, I'm not one to judge considering what I wear into battle."

"That is stupid, and I agree that dragon armor of yours is stupid looking, ask the one who made it drop the design next time," Spartacus spoke a brutally honest truth.

"Hey, _I_ don't think it's stupid, it's tacky. Big difference." Andrew said. "Though I did already ask Da Vinci to make it a bit less conspicuous, and she was still working on it last I checked." He paused in his lifting. "Also, never insult Da Vinci's work where she can hear you. She's not my Servant, so I can't really use a Command Seal on her to prevent her neutering anyone."

"Yes I know never insult a genius, I know that feeling quite well then people questioned my decision, didn't feel like they trusted me to know what I was doing. They have the right to complain after it goes wrong not before."

"Hey, I trust ya big guy. And if I or anyone else makes a plan and you see something in it, I want you to say something about it before. A leader needs people to question his decisions, or he's just an oppressor, right?" Andrew asked, not really thinking about his words.

"True, true Andrew if a five-year-old can see faults in a plan it needs to be fixed. Criticism is always welcome, but it always scratches at one's pride."

"Eh, pride schmide. I know I'm not the best at the whole 'leader' thing, so I'm taking any help I can get. _Especially_ if it means less of our guys get hurt." Andrew said. "But speaking of pride, I _am_ getting pretty good at making clothes, so do you have anything in particular you want?"

"Been looking over a lot of information about the modern age, for military strategies, to see what has been done. And doing so I've developed a taste in suits if that is possible?" He asked.

Andrew pictured the musclebound berserker in a suit instead of the bondage gear. And pictured. And pictured. "Yes, yes, yes, very possible, definitely possible, can definitely do it, do you want black or navy blue?" He said hurriedly after a moment, his face reddening.

"Black very much black," Spartacus answered.

"Gotcha. I don't know when it will be done, but it will be sooner rather than later." Andrew said after a moment when he got his thoughts back in order. "Tie or bow tie?"

"Tie, the tie is better looking than those butterfly wings."

"Understood, everyone's entitled to their own opinion."

"Now then Andrew is there something else you want to discuss, or are we done here for today?" Spartacus asked.

"Nah, I'm good. We can't really talk strategy anyone, and I interrupted your workout sesh." Andrew said as he put the dumbbells back on the rack. "Oh, but before I leave, what color do you want for your Team Scarf?"

"I could go for a standard red color, for some reason that one resonates with me," Spartacus answered.

"Gotcha, red it is," Andrew said, pulling up the notepad on his armband again and writing it down. "Well, see ya, Spartacus."

"You too Andrew." Andrew watched as Spartacus put on larger weights.

Xxx

August 24

Andrew entered the room which Darius had decided to occupy as the door slid open, he saw the massive man already had a guest namely the much smaller soon-to-be King of Conquerors.

The two of them were in the middle of a game of chess.

"Sorry to intrude, should I come back later?" Andrew asked, not wanting to interrupt what was no doubt an intense battle of the minds between rivals.

"Of course not Master, this but a casual game you can enter." Came Darius' deep voice.

"What he said, Master." Was the much more peppy response from Alexander.

"Thank you. How long have you two been playing?" Andrew asked as he entered, knowing full well a game between two normal people could last days, and considering Servants didn't need to eat…

"Two hours now, chess is our casual game," Alexander said as he moved a pawn.

"Yes, for our more serious battle of the minds we use the one from the east Shogi it is called. Now Master what is it you wish to talk to me about, as it was my room you entered?" Darius asked.

"Ah, right. Well, most of the Servants either have proper clothes or can more-or-less fit in standard sized ones, and I figured with your size-" Andrew still boggled at how massive Darius was. "-you'd need some custom made clothes too."

"Yes, as a Berserker I find myself lacking my royal cloth I would have as Rider. Are you saying you wish to craft clothes for my form Master?" He asked with genuine surprise.

"Of course! If you want clothes, you should be able to wear them. Though I don't think I'll be able to live up to the royal quality you were used to in life, I most _definitely_ can and will make you clothing that fits." Andrew said, almost insulted. "I've already said as much to Ushi and Spartacus since they have similar issues, but what kind of Master would I be if I didn't take care of my Servants?"

"I accept Master, then you shall be the second person to grant me a gift," Darius said.

Andrew blinked owlishly in confusion. "Wait, second person _ever_?"

"Yes, the first was my wife who gave me my children, for I owned Persia and everything in it the moment I was born, how could I be given something that was already mine." He answered.

"O _h_. Well, um, I'm honored to be the second then. Do you have any requests?" Andrew asked.

"Ropes and cloaks of the finest material you have available." He answered.

"Mhm. Technically the only material I'm using _is_ the finest material, unfortunately, but it is incredibly durable and in my opinion quite comfortable." Andrew said. "And while I still have you, what color would you like your Team Scarf to be?"

"Wish I had that when I had been alive, so I could have met my end in combat and not a knife in the back. And the color shall be a mix of gold and black."

"Ah. Noted." Andrew said, writing on the armband's notepad. He then remembered the other person in the room. "Oh, right, sorry for ignoring you, what color Team Scarf do you want Alexander?"

"The color of bronze please." He answered with a smile.

"Bronze got it," Andrew said as he wrote it down. "Oh yeah, I know you can definitely fit in normal clothes, but I'm still willing to make things for anyone who asks. Do you have any requests?"

"Some T-shirts, the armor is getting a little constraining wearing it all the time," Alexander answered.

"Gotcha," Andrew said as he wrote it down. "I'm pretty sure you can just grab a few of those, but I'm happy to make some if they aren't up to your standards."

"I'll go ask around then before I come to you Master, as I did notice my fellow Servants walking around in normal clothes."

"That's probably a good idea. If you see any designs you want to take a picture, it'll be easier than having to remember it."

"I remember to do that. And I be taking your knight Darius." Alexander said as he moved another chess piece, the two had continued to play, even while they had talked with Andrew.

"Unless either of you have something you need me for I'll let you get back to your game," Andrew said.

"We have not." Came the dry response from Darius.

"Alrighty then, I'll leave you to it."

xxx

August 25

"Hello, Master." Altera greeted Andrew as he approached the woman, she was currently in the hallway, actually near the spot he had first met Mash, looking out into the seemingly eternal snowstorm that raged outside.

"Hello, Altera," Andrew said, joining her in staring out into the storm. "The storm's pretty calming like this, huh." He said. At first, it had been disconcerting, but now that he had been at Chaldea for so long it had almost begun to be a soothing thing.

"Yes, there is something beautiful about it, I have seen snow before and experienced it, but I have never truly felt it."

"Well, we can't go outside, but…" He thought for a moment before using Tenfold Shields to write out Isa in the air, and snow began to fall from the rune as it hung in the air. "This should be pretty close." He said, rather proud at how far he'd come with his Runecraft, despite it being rather simple.

Altera lifted a hand up to let the temporarily created snow, fall into her palm where it melted. "Cold, but a good cold. These emotions are weird, but I like them." She said absentmindedly.

"Did…did you not have emotions before?" Andrew asked.

"I was not able to feel properly then I was granted the name Attila, I could only understand destruction, it was the only desire that filled my being, as the weapon of the Huns."

"...I hope you don't mind me asking, but it seems like the historical record was almost completely wrong. Would you be comfortable with telling me about your history yourself?" Andrew said, hoping he wasn't overstepping any boundaries with the newer Servant, but her existence completely baffled him, and every tidbit about her past made him question the world (and his own sanity that he would accept it as fact) more and more.

"It is very accurate, the only thing that is wrong is my gender and my origin. I was not born of the Huns, I was found by them the ruins of an old Civilisation. And so they took me in me and taught me their ways, and I came to worship the War God. And so I led them across Europe as a storm of destruction as their king yet not one of them." Altera explained.

"Ah. I see." Andrew said. "And, which war god is the War God you're talking about?"

"The one who would become Mars and Ares." She answered.

"Oh, like the Conceptual Predecessor, that makes sense," Andrew said. "So is the Sword like a divine blessing kind of thing from it?"

"No, it involved my previous existence before the one as Attila the Hun, Altera. I fought and stole the physical blade from him. Teardrop is actually him attacking me which I then redirect with the magic circle."

Andrew pictured the small girl punching out the 'War God' and then stealing his sword. If it hadn't been for seeing her in action, he would have laughed it off entirely, but now it was scarily plausible. Still a funny image though. "Ah. I see. Please do not draw his attention while here in Chaldea, we've already had enough interactions with gods thank you." He said.

"If that is your order Master."

"Oh, right, that reminds me. Do you want any clothes? A-as in, if none of the clothing we already have lives up to your standards I can make some for you myself." Andrew said.

"Have clothes, Medea put me in a lot of outfits, they were very cute, I liked them." She answered.

"Oh. Okay." Andrew said, a little caught off guard. He thought Medea preferred Artoria, but apparently, Altera was fine too. Or maybe the Carnival Phantasm version just fixated on the cutest girl at the time? Thoughts for later. "The offer still stands though if you want anything custom made."

"I will."

"...And do you want to tell me them now so I can make them sooner?" Andrew said.

"Dresses."

Andrew pulled up what had become his sewing page on his armband. "Any particular type of dresses? Colors, styles, designs, anything specific?"

"Cute."

"Cute…" Andrew looked back up at Altera. "You're going to have to be a tad more specific, I'm pretty sure you'd look cute in anything."

"Frilly."

"Alright, now that I can work with," Andrew said, writing it down along with some preliminary ideas. "Oh, and everyone is getting these special scarves I'm calling Team Scarves, what color would you like yours to be?"

"White, I would like white."

"Alright, noted," Andrew said as he wrote it down. "I can probably get a simpler dress done... relatively soon, but since we're going frilly, some of them might take a while."

"Okay."

They stood in a semi-awkward silence for a moment. "Did…. you need me for anything Altera?"

"No, but I'm hungry."

"Let's get something to eat then."


	37. Knight, Kid and Saint

August 26

"So Senpai who do you think you'll summon this time?" Mash asked as she laid down her Shield to act as the catalyst cause it was summoning time.

"Honestly, I only rarely think I 'will' summon anyone in particular that I already know," Andrew said as he approached the circle, ticket in hand. "Still hoping for that pink-haired rider though." He said wistfully before channeling his prana and summoning the newest addition to Chaldea.

What the two of them were met with was smoky form standing in front of them.

"Arggghhhh!" Was the growl from the Servant like he was being drowned and was trying to scream.

"By this first Command Seal, I order you to suppress your Mad Enhancement as low as possible while here in Chaldea. By this second Command Seal, I order you to never attack any Artoria Pendragon that is my Servant." Andrew ordered as soon as he got his thoughts in order, very much so not wanting the crazed Knight of the Round Table trying to kill his own Servants.

The maddened form of Lancelot froze and seemed to quake for just a second, before the dark mist that surrounded his body disappeared revealing his dark armor. His hand soon moved, and he removed his helmet, revealing his face to the both of them.

"I thank you for those orders Master," Lancelot spoke.

"It's no problem, Sir Lancelot. After all, what kind of leader would I be if I allowed infighting among my warriors?" Andrew said.

"One with a level head, unlike me. That Command Spell, is my King here is he here?" Lancelot asked.

Andrew nodded. "Indeed. Two versions of Artoria Pendragon have been summoned; one from right after pulling Caliburn from the stone, and the other from an Altered timeline with a darkened Excalibur."

"I see, my King from the time he smiled more, I've heard those stories from Kay and Ector, and I hope the other made the right decision in regards to my fate if my foolishness still happened." He said in great sadness.

"I'm...not actually sure what Alter did to her version. I should probably ask her about that…" Andrew said before refocusing on Lancelot. "But, I'm pretty sure Lily will actually be happy to see you, she really didn't like our confrontation back in France."

"I do not remember much of that, I was deep in my Madness, though I remember her face it was so sad. But before that, my Master my sword is yours to command as you see fit, I swear so upon my remaining honor as a Knight of the Round." Lancelot spoke.

"Oh, right, how rude of me. Thank you, Lancelot, for answering our call. I, Andrew Murphy, shall try to command you well." Andrew said, not quite sure how to speak around the Berserk Knight.

"I accept your command, Master Andrew," Lancelot responded. "And young lady you feel familiar were you a Knight of the Round too?" Lancelot asked. To Andrew, this all but confirmed that the spirit most definitely was. But the only Shield he knew of in Arthurian myth was Prydwen, which was only used by Arthur, and Mash's benefactor most definitely was _not_ Arturia, so this raised more questions he couldn't ask lest he risks ruining Mash's personal growth.

"The spirit that gave me his power was probably I am Demi-Servant a fusion of Servant and Human, Sir Lancelot," Mash answered.

"Ah, I see that's why your appearance didn't look familiar, but your power does. The name is on my tongue, but it seems my mind is blocking the information it is probably a bad idea to force it, I would rather not be rendered useless." Lancelot spoke.

"Don't worry about it Sir Lancelot, Mash has already decided she's going to figure it out for herself as part of her 'Hero's Journey,'" Andrew said. "Lily and Alter already know as well."

"Of course they do only the King would be able to recognize all his knights on the spot, no matter how small part they played in his army."

"Yeah, that sounds like her," Andrew said, before remembering he had very little idea of the actual capabilities of his newest Servant, quickly using his Stat-o-Vision.

[spoiler=Lancelot]

True Name: Lancelot Du Lac

Class: Berserker

Master: Andrew Murphy

 **Parameters:**

Strength: A

Endurance: A

Agility: A+

Mana: C

Luck: B

Noble Phantasm: A++

 **Class Skills:**

Mad Enhancement: C

Magic Resistance: E

 **Personal Skills:**

Eternal Arms Mastership: A+

Protection of the Fairies: A

Reverse Flow of Mana: A

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Arondight: The Unfading Light of the Lake(Anti-Unit): A++

For Someone's Glory: Not For One's Own Glory(Anti-Unit(Self): B

Knight of Owner: A Knight Does Not Die with Empty Hands(Anti-Unit): A++

[/spoiler]

"Ah, so, Sir Lancelot, I see you have multiple high-level Noble Phantasms and skills. Would you mind explaining what they do? It would be rather useful information to determine when and to best your skills." Andrew asked.

"Of course Master. My first one allows me to fight with all of my skill even while under mental influences, allowing to use any weapon like I have used it my entire life. The second is a blessing from my mother granting me luck in combat. The third allows me to send Mana back to you Master." Lancelot answered.

"Send it back?"

"Allows me to send unneeded magical back to you, so it doesn't go to waste. And as for Noble Phantasms, Arondight is my sword that is effective against dragons and bost my parameters then activated, though it seals my other two. The second is a disguise ability, and it prevents enemy Masters from seeing my parameters. My last one takes control of any weapon I touch making it my own and turns none NP ones into D-Rank ones." He exposited.

Andrew perked up at the last one. " _Any_ weapon? Even enemy Noble Phantasms or modern firearms?"

"Yes, for some reason though I can summon a Minigun whenever I want." He answered.

Andrew was only confused for a moment before the sheer _awesome_ of the idea of a magical minigun overtook him. "Can you please summon that now? Don't use it just summon it, please?"

Lancelot responded by lifting his arm, and his smoke was summoned and seemed to be condensed it into the form of a massive mini chaingun.

"Oo _o_ oh, that is awe _some_." Andrew said upon seeing the massive gun that did not live up to the 'mini' part of its name.

"The only reason I could possibly have this that I got summoned into a Grail War while enough people saw me use it, to affect the Throne," Lancelot said as he dismissed the gun.

"...I think I might have been one of those people? During my time with Zelretch, I saw bits and pieces of the Fourth Fuyuki Holy Grail War, and one of the things I saw was you facing down the King of Heroes, Gilgamesh with a fighter jet and after it crashed you tore the gun from it and kept using it." Andrew said, only able to remember that fight from the sheer awesome factor of the event despite only seeing it once or twice.

"Hmm, sounds more like something _he_ would do," Lancelot grumbled.

"'He'?"

"Merlin." Was the short answer.

Andrew mulled that over for a moment. "The showing people part or the ripping the gun from the plane part?" He asked, legitimately not sure as to the 'true' version of Merlin's capabilities.

"Making so that I have that."

"Oh, okay. I suppose that makes sense." Andrew said, his mental image of Merlin expanding. "Oh, but what happens when you grab someone else's noble phantasm of a higher rank?"

"It just becomes mine to use so long as I'm touching it, though a few exceptions I would never be able to wield my King's sword."

"And how wide is your definition of a 'weapon'? I know it includes inanimate vehicles like fighter jets, but does it include, say, another Servant's body?" Andrew asked, wanting to work out the semantics of this incredibly versatile ability.

"No that, that is a bit too far. A chair could go, and I would be able to do some MMA fighting. Or things which carry weapons." He answered.

"Ah, understood. And your Eternal Arms Mastership lets you fight with that weapon like you were an expert in it, while also letting you retain said fighting ability despite Mad Enhancement, correct?" Andrew asked many possibilities beginning in his mind.

"Yes, it is a very potent combination." He answered.

"Noted. I think I might have to talk to Gilgamesh after this…" Andrew said, many many ideas beginning to form. "Oh, right, I've also summoned Gilgamesh, along with younger forms of the Caster and Rider from the Fourth Fuyuki Grail War, as a forewarning."

"Who?" He asked.

Andrew was confused for a moment before remembering the whole 'Berserk' part of 'Berserker.' "Oh, right, forgot you were kind of…'focused on your objective' during that one. I've just taken to warning Servants of other summoned Servants from previous Grail Wars they've participated in that I know of as a precaution if you don't remember them it doesn't really matter."

"Appreciated nonetheless," Lancelot answered.

"Well, Mash if you would give Lancelot an armband so he can become acquainted with our facilities?" Andrew said after a moment of silence. "If that's okay with you, Sir Lancelot."

"Yes, here Sir Lancelot," Mash said as she brought them out the armband and gave it to the knight. Who before putting ii on transformed his armor into some more casual wear that being a suit and tie, looking classy as fuck.

Andrew took a moment before speaking. "So, that armband has a map and communications features so everyone can find their way around and talk if need be. Do you think you'll be okay on your own?" Andrew asked, worried about the regretful (and angry) knight on his own, mostly about the potential of bursting through the Command Seal order.

"Yes, I have a conversation most overdue that needs to be spoken."

Andrew decided that for once he wouldn't intrude on a personal matter since he trusted Lily to be able to handle emotions _far_ better than her elder counterpart did in life. "I'll let you get to it then, Sir Lancelot."

"Thank you, Master, call upon me then you have need of me," Lancelot said.

"That I will. Now, I think I need to have a conversation with My King as well…" Andrew said.

Xxx

Andrew walked through the lounge to the entertainment area, where Gilgamesh was present currently playing his seemingly favorite game. There were other Servants present, but they were a wide breath away from the king of heroes.

"Andrew have you finally come to speak to me once again, do you finally want to know about the truth behind Altera's existence or have you gotten it from her already or you wish to speak about something else."

"The latter, My King. Primarily I would like to know if allowing one of my Servants to temporarily use one of the gifts you've bestowed upon me in battle would be okay?" Andrew asked.

At that Gilgamesh put down his controller. "We don't have a very healthy relationship as Master and Servant do we, Andrew?"

Andrew was taken aback by the fact that _Gilgamesh_ was the one starting _this_ conversation. "N-no, I don't believe we do. Though I suppose it would be difficult for a 21st-century spellcaster to get along well with the original Hero."

"Do not lie to me Andrew, you continuously walk on eggshells around me, always careful in choosing your words and what to say to in the hopes of not offending me. And you make suggestions that to any other king would be sensible put that my pride would never accept. So as I am now, we would never get along, and that is a detriment to our current situation." Gilgamesh spoke.

"That's just how I talk with Servants, but...you are correct."

"So how about we fix that," Gilgamesh said as the gate opened and into his hand dropped a small bottle containing a golden colored liquid.

"What is that?" Andrew asked, worry and apprehension beginning to build.

"You shall see," Gilgamesh said as he popped the bottle open and drank its content. His body flashed and then...

Andrew looked down at the child-sized Gilgamesh. "Sorry Master, I hope my older-self wasn't to mean towards you, though you can just call me Gil," Gil said in an adorable voice. His clothes now oversized on his body. "Going to have to change."

Andrew literally couldn't comprehend what had just happened despite seeing it with his own two eyes and had basically frozen as he tried to process _what the hell_ just happened and the apparent _why_. Especially considering the who, whom had done it. Even as he began to put his thoughts in order, he was still rendered completely speechless.

"So, you wanted to know if Servants could use my weapons sure it's not like I ever get to use all of them, Master." He answered Andrew's first request.

That managed to get Andrew back to cognizance. "Uhm... thank, you? But, could you, maybe, explain why turning into a child helps anything? Very, very, _very_ confused here."

"I and my adult-self are basically two very different people Master, even I don't understand how I grew up to be such a bully, though glad Enkidu set him a bit straight," Gil answered.

"Oh, um, okay then. So you basically turned yourself into a Lily?" Andrew asked, checking with his Stat-o-Vision for confirmation.

And they had changed.

[spoiler=Child Gil]

 **True Name:** Gilgamesh

 **Class:** Archer

 **Master:** Andrew Murphy

 **Parameters:**

Strength: C

Endurance: C

Agility: C

Mana: C

Luck: A

Noble Phantasm: EX

 **Class Skills:**

Independent Action: A

Magic Resistance: E

 **Personal Skills:**

Divinity: B(A+)

Rosy-cheeked Adonis: C

Charisma: A+

Golden Rule: A

Collector: EX

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Gate of Babylon: The King's Treasure(Anti-Unit): B++

Sha Naqba Imuru (He who Saw the Deep): The Omniscient Omnipotent Star(Anti-Unit): EX

[/spoiler]

'Omniscient Omnipotent Star' sounded like one hell of a trade-off for Enuma Elish, considering it more or less couldn't be used without risking destroying everything by Andrew's understanding. Though he did find it odd that Gate of Babylon now had a fixed rank instead of its normal fluctuating one.

"Yes that would be the correct term for the youngest version of a Heroic Spirit, a few others here in Chaldea should have one too." He answered.

"Yeah, Saber Lily's proof of that part. But, so, you're basically a different person now?" Andrew asked, considering that he had transformed instead of being summoned separately like Saber Lily and her variations.

"I am, I don't even remember much of his life like he doesn't remember much of mine. There is big disconnect in the person that is Gilgamesh in terms of personality in those years of life." He answered.

"Ah. And, you said that my other Servants can borrow some of your weapons, so I take it you two hold almost completely separate opinions?"

"That we do, I only consider a few people mongrels not everybody." He answered.

"And I take it that I'm _not_ one of those people?"

"No, you're not why would I? You're my Master, so do you want to play a game with me, this one has Co-op?" Gil asked.

"Uhm, sure. Sounds like fun." Andrew said, still very much so trying to process all of this.

Xxx

September 2

Another week had passed since he had summoned Lancelot where he had his talk with Lily and one later with Alter which the aftermath had resulted in Andrew watching the knight get kicked through several walls by Alter as a form of punishment for in her words. "Being a goddamn stupid knight." And Gilgamesh turning into his Lily form, which had worked better as now Andrew didn't feel so stressed around him, for he was just so overly polite and a little bit clingy, it was truly hard to think that he grew into being the King of Heroes.

Now though Mash had finished the circle and he had a ticket in hand.

"Alright, new month, new chances. C'mon, pink-haired Rider!" Andrew said, hoping the pep in his words might be enough to summon said Rider, but he knew it was most likely someone else.

"Servant Rider, Saint Martha at your service, hello to you Master of Chaldea it is good to be on your side now."

Andrew smiled to hide his, at this point, only slight disappointment. "It is an honor to have you with us, Saint Martha. Thank you for answering the call to save Human History."

"Please call me Martha, I wasn't really that much of Saint in my life. And I'm happy to be here." She said while blushing.

"Well, Martha, I'm still happy to have you with us. Your abilities will no doubt be an incredible boon in our fight." Andrew said, before remembering one of those abilities. "Ah, and please don't summon Tarrasque anywhere but the training rooms while here in Chaldea, I don't think he'll be able to fit."

"Yes, that is a concern. Do you have a water area?" She asked.

"We have a swimming pool, though it may not be big enough to satisfy his need to move around much."

"He just in need of water, so being little tight isn't that much of a problem, he acts more like a turtle than a dragon, despite being the son of Leviathan." She spoke.

"Oh, that's good then," Andrew said before properly processing her statement. "Wait, as in _Leviathan_ -Leviathan, the primordial super being!?"

"Yes, hard to see the family resemblance isn't it."

"Uh, yeah," Andrew said, thinking back to the somewhat dopey yet not less _dragon_ (terrifying) look Tarrasque had back in France when they met. "But I guess I don't know what Leviathan looks like to compare properly…"

"A bit more whaleish I think. Anyway is there a place I can stay while here?"

"Oh, right, sorry. Mash here has an armband for you so you can maneuver Chaldea with the map and stay in contact with everyone, we have a lot of empty rooms you can just claim one then." Andrew said.

"Thank you, Master, I get going then and mingle a bit with the others," Martha said as she left the circle and took the armband from Mash.


	38. Dragonslayer Quest

September 8

Andrew sat at table in the Dining Hall eating his lunch together with Mash. As they ate their table was approached by the casually dressed form of Siegfried, looking rather embarrassed.

"Oh, hey Siegfried, what's up?" Andrew asked of the dragon-slayer.

"There is a slight problem that I'm the need of help fixing, that is going to cause bigger problems if it is not handled soon." He answered while fiddling with his fingers.

"What kind of problem?" Andrew said, all mirth gone from his tone.

"You see, Fafnir and I is connected on a very deep spiritual level where when one shows up the other is not far behind. Along with that, the Des Rheingold is soon to follow, and the both of them have appeared in Greater Singularity where we met for the first time. Fafnir reformed himself after you summoned me."

"Oh. That does sound like a problem…" Andrew said before having a thought. "But we might be able to turn that problem into an opportunity. Siegfried, when you originally 'bathed in Fafnir's blood,' was that just from the blood that spilled from its wounds onto you or did you actively _bathe_ in them?"

"Bathed and ate his heart, got my Dragon Core from that action." He answered. "Though that isn't possible any longer as he is now just a spiritual being like that of a Servant. So no Master, no immortal body for you."

"Damn," Andrew said with a snap. "But, if it is a spiritual being, couldn't you reenact your initial consumption of his spiritual core to empower yourself?"

"No, if I got more of the dragon in me I would just become him, the fig falling on my back was actually a blessing in disguise." He said.

"Oh. Sorry for suggesting that then."

"It is okay Master, it was in good nature."

"So, I assume you want to head out ASAP. Is this something you need to do yourself or do you think the other Dragon Slayers should accompany us?" Andrew asked. With Servants and spiritual resonance and all that stuff, it was hard to tell what could and couldn't be done with help.

"I talked to the good Director before I did you Master, and he has approved of the mission. Though I do not know if others want to join in slaying Fafnir once again and collect Das Rheingold."

"Oh, right, what does Das Rheingold _do_ , exactly?"

"It is cursed gold, that as Noble Phantasm will bring the country, it appears in to ruin, by making everyone crave it."

"H _m_ m. I assume you'll be able to contain it once we collect it then?"

"Yes, your Casters should be able to easily contain it, the magus family who currently has the real one is able to."

"Oh, ok, good. So we have to slay Fafnir (again) and collect murder-and-mayhem-inducing treasure from a family of Magi." Andrew nodded. "Sounds like a fun Friday evening."

Xxx

"The dragon is west of here Master." Said, Siegfried, as they all arrived in France, along with Martha and George who had joined them. George because he wanted to fight Fafnir and take pictures of the dragon, the man had apparently developed a taste for photography. And Martha as her blessings would be able to stop the Das Rheingold from working for a little bit.

"Alright, then let's head over there ASAP. Martha, how fast can Tarrasque move?" Andrew asked, not actually knowing the limits of the dragon due to it getting a taste of Och Deug Odin the first time around.

"He moves faster in water but, his flight abilities are acceptable." She answered.

"Flight?" Andrew asked, surprised something that...turtley, for lack of a better word, could fly. Especially given the apparent lack of wings. "Do you think he can get us there quickly?"

"He is one man setter only just watch." She answered. "Now which way?" Siegfried pointed his finger at the direction Fafnir was. "Thank you. Tarrasque!" She shouted, and the Dragon was summoned. And just like Andrew had predicted she hit him with his staff sending him flying, with Martha jumping onto his back, riding the 'flying' dragon like he was a surfboard.

"Well, didn't expect that." Was Siegfried's comment to what had just transpired.

"Yeah, nothing makes sense with Servants. You just gotta roll with it. Speaking of rolling with it, Ride, On." Andrew said, deploying Hurricane Ride and helping Mash onto it. "Now, let's roll out!"

George summoned his white steed, and they set off with Siegfried running beside them. "And it is here I wish I had Grani." He complained.

"Oh, sorry Siegfried," Andrew said. "Georgios, you think you can give him wings again?"

"That I can, ready partner?" The Saint asked.

"Yes." The German answered back.

At that, George activated his Noble Phantasm, and Siegfried gained further draconic features as he regained his wings and tail. Letting the dragonslayer achieve flight.

"Alright, let's pick up the pace a bit. I'm starting to lose sight of Martha and Tarrasque." Andrew said, more than a bit surprised the spinning dragon was somehow _still gaining height_.

They increased speed and soon on the field the black form of Fafnir appeared thankfully this time long away from civilization.

The evil dragon roared as he picked up on their presence, guess the beast was prepared this time.

"Alright! Siegfried, as soon as you get within range use Balmung to your heart's content. Georgios, providing some cover fire with Ascalon. Martha…" Andrew watched as Tarrasque somehow _changed direction in midair_ with a loud 'thunk' before rocketing directly into Fafnir. "Just make sure Siegfried lands the final blow."

Andrew could hear Tarrasque grind into Fafnir as scale met scale, though the collision of the dragon who had been turned into a Beyblade, ceased as Fafnir grabbed the turtle dragon throwing him to the side where he landed.

And that action was followed by George and Martha spamming their longed ranged attack at Fafnir. George's magical spears hit the dragon's stomach, and magical orbs were launched from Martha staff. Guess she forgot to mention she could do that.

Though it didn't really hurt the evil dragon much, but it was enough to distract him from the fact of Siegfried went for the spearing approach as he dropped from the sky impaling the dragon through the head with his blade, before unleashing his Noble Phantasm, the wave motion beam cleaving the dragon down the middle.

"Brutal." Came the backseat comment from Mash.

"But efficient," Andrew replied. "Just the way I like my fights."

"It is, but we still have a cursed treasure to deal with Senpai."

"Yeah, I know, I just wanted to enjoy the carnage for a moment," Andrew said, watching as the two halves of the dragon fade into nothingness.

Once it was entirely gone, he rode over to where his Servants had landed. "Alright, great job everyone, that was amazing. Next up is Das Rheingold; Siegfried, you said a Magus family had acquired it?"

"The real one were are looking for the Noble Phantasm, I think you misunderstood me before Master. The real one is still in Germany with I think the Einzbern they are called."

Andrew blue screened for a moment as he put the pieces together in his head. "MOTHER OF FUCK! That's why the Grail always fucks everything up! They made the Greater Grail from Das Rheingold! _THEY MADE AN OMNIPOTENT WISH GRANTING DEVICE_ _FROM CURSED DRAGON TREASURE!_ No wonder _everything_ involving the Grail always goes wrong, it was doomed from the start!" Andrew practically exploded. "I knew Magi were dumbasses but I didn't realize they were _that_ dumb, I honestly thought that Angry whatever was the reason it never worked, but it was doomed from before it was even made...urgh." Andrew groaned, very much so tired now at the idiocy of Magi.

"You okay Senpai?" Came the question of concern from Mash.

Andrew shook his head. "No. No, I am not. Because Magi is the dumbest form of humanity I've ever come across or heard of in anything, and I think I need to work out some aggression. Where is your Das Rheingold right now, Siegfried?" Andrew asked, hoping on several levels that it would be surrounded by weaker-than-servant enemies.

"We just need to travel a few kilometers forward." He answered.

"Alright then, lead the way," Andrew said, following behind the German dragon slayer as he flew off towards the dragon's hoard.

Xxx

"The treasure is inside this cave," Siegfried said as they stood at the mouth of a cave entrance, and it seemed that the getting treasure part would be the easiest as so far they had only met a few humans that had been turned somewhat crazy by the cursed gold. Though they had been quickly rendered unconscious by Mash, hitting them with the back of her Shield.

"Hmm. Deploy Claws." Andrew said, said weapon depositing into his hands. "Unless we run into something Servant Level or above, I think I'm going to use this as an opportunity to get some more real combat experience. Not like I need it much, mind, but I just want to see the results of my training with the Cu Chulainn's. If something Servant level shows up, I hold no compunctions about leaving the fighting to you all. Understood?"

"As you wish Master." Was the acknowledgment of the order.

As they headed into the cave, and they didn't have to head very far to see the giant pile of gold and treasure laying on the cave floor. Though in front of it stood a shadowy figure that was not clear to make out but it was see through. Andrew couldn't make out any great detail of the figure, but it seemed to be wearing a mask that looked like it didn't belong in this time period and in its hand was a straight red broadsword seemingly made out of crystal. And the hips were dagger like weapons.

"I knew you would come, Siegfried." Said what Andrew presumed to be some sort of Wraith or at least a ghost.

"That voice...? Gunther, is that you?" Asked Siegfried.

"Thank you for recognizing me, my best friend." Said the now named Gunther.

"What and how?" Asked Siegfried.

"The Das Rheingold of course, and I have come to claim it, my foolish friend." Said Gunther. "Tell me Master who dresses up like a Dragon how much do you know about your Servant here?"

"I know he sacrificed everything he had for anyone who asked for his help. And that he is downright one of the most selfless people I've ever met." Andrew said. "Why? Do you have some dark secret he has buried away that you're here to throw in his face to throw him off balance in a fight to the death like it seems every single one of these personal outings has been?" Andrew asked, starting to notice the rather obvious pattern.

"And that is the problem you Siegfried are to self-sacrificial, you're a man that will do anything no matter what, despite your own thoughts, a man with no wishes or dreams of his own. A tool that existed to be used by others. Even going so far as to a die foolish death at my hands, as I stabbed you in the back to prevent a war that happened because of your death. As your wife in grief tore the lands apart in vengeance even to align with the Huns and meeting my end at the hands of the Kings."

"I'm sorry that I've caused you so much grief, my friend."

"That right that there, you're so sorry that you fail to see what consequences your action have to those around you. Especially me," Gunther spoke with grief in his voice.

"That is true, but that isn't me anymore now I have a desire, a wish of my own. To be a hero of justice at my own choice, to save the world at my own desire." Siegfried declared. "So if you still wish to fight, then fight my Master. As seeks to prove his martial prowess."

"Wait, what?"

"Well, that's anti-climatic my friend I had this whole epic fight planned as I beat the stupid out you. Even choose this form for extra irony." Gunther said. "Still come at me Master of Chaldea."

"Ah, one moment please," Andrew said, before turning to Siegfried and smacking him upside the head, though he knew it did jack all. "DOn't sign me up for fights without my input! I mean I get it you're trying to be helpful but please don't do that."

"What you said you wanted to fight, and Gunther is nowhere near the level of a Servant as the wraith he currently is."

"Oh, really? I thought since he was going to fight you he would have been Servant level, this is fine then. But still, don't go saying I'll do things without asking me first." Andrew ordered.

"Of course Master." The Saber said with a stupid grin on his face.

"This should be fun to watch." Came the comment from the peanut gallery.

"Go, Senpai I believe in you." Mash cheered Andrew on.

Andrew gave his Servants a thumbs up. "Well, my time to shine." He then turned to Gunther, looked at him for a few seconds, and then said only one word. "Doomfist."

"Doom-What?" Gunther asked as Andrew rocketed at the ghostly figure with the massive golden gauntlet that had formed around his right arm, colliding with his torso spike-first.

And that sent the wraith flying as his form seemed to solidify in the punched area, and it sent Gunther flying as he had boosted himself further with a Mana Burst for even more damage.

The wraith collided with cave wall, the latter cracking like glass.

"Well, Siegfried that truly is your Master damn surprise attacks. You win kid. man didn't even get to have fun dressing up like him." Gunther said as he disappeared into smoke.

"Him?" Andrew wondered to himself before shaking his head and turning around to face his Servants, who he once again gave a thumbs up, this time with the 'Doomfist' gauntlet. "So, how was my first duel?"

"BOOORIIING!" Came Martha's voice. "I wanted fisticuffs, not "surprise it's a big fist.""

"Way to go Senpai," Mash said waving small flags.

And George was taking pictures with his camera.

And thumbs up from Siegfried.

Andrew smiled, forgetting they couldn't see it. "Now that that's wrapped up let's get this stuff gathered together. And Martha, I'm Human, from the 21st century, and barely a functioning adult, I literally do not think I could win in a straight fist fight with anything magical."

"Hmm, acceptable not like I would know anything about fighting I'm a virtuous woman of faith after all." She said in a voice that dripped with fakeness.

And the faces everybody had that moment spoke the word liar. The height of deadpan had been achieved here.

"...Y'know Jeanne is considered a 'virtuous woman of faith,' and she is _most definitely_ a fighter? The two aren't incompatible from my understanding." Andrew said. "Also, you're a Servant so bullshit about the 'not knowing anything about fighting' stuff."

The Saint just smiled a knowing smirk.

"You said you wanted fisticuffs right? So I'm guessing you _know_ how to fight hand to hand, and you definitely have the strength to use it." Andrew said, thinking back to how she had launched Tarrasque before on an impossibly long arc, and recalling how it had oddly changed direction mid-flight.

"I was taught the ways of the son, but that skill doesn't manifest properly when I'm a Rider." Oh, she was so coy in her tone about it.

"Wait, 'the ways of the son'? _Jesus taught you how to fight?_ " Andrew asked, floored.

"Yes, the arts used first used by Lord Jacob." She answered.

Andrew had to think for a moment before he remembered that Jacob had wrestled an angel early in the bible. "Oh okay, that makes sense… Wait, I'm sorry, w _hat_? I have, many, _many_ questions, first of which being-"

Andrew was suddenly right in front of Martha, kneeling to the ground. "- _Can you please teach me?_ "

"Sorry, the blessing of the Lord is needed to be even taught and use it." She answered.

"How much of a 'blessing' are we talking here, like 'canonized saint' kind of blessing or 'blessed by several saints' kind of blessing?" Andrew asked, considering how there were currently 3 saints in Chaldea.

"I mean blessed directly by The Lord in Heaven." She answered.

"So, nothing for the lowly modern human, then," Andrew said with a sigh, getting up and dusting himself off. "Figures. Can you teach it to other Saints?"

"If they wish to learn, however, I do not believe that such a thing is needed, right Georgios?"

"I don't really need it, we have our own skills, no need to go and grab Martha's thing." The dragonslayer said.

"So, you guys done? I have collected the treasure." Came Siegfried's voice. Andrew turned his head to see that all the gold was gone and the German was holding a big bag that shone with a seemingly holy aura, guess Martha had pre-blessed it.

"Yeah, yeah we're good," Andrew said, before having a thought. "...Unless, Martha, you want to take the Doomfist for a spin…?"

"I can punch harder than that toy you're holding so no thanks." She said.

Andrew shrugged an awkward motion given the massive gauntlet on his arm. "It's a strength booster, but suit yourself. Let's head back to Chaldea then."

" _Heard you Andrew Rayshifting you back now."_ Came Roman's voice.

Xxx

"Hopefully Medea and Da Vinci can seal it up probably at least the ring and de-curse the gold it could come in handy." Said, Siegfried, as he and Andrew walked down the hallway of Chaldea. George and Martha had returned to their rooms, and Mash was writing the physical report of their little trip.

Andrew, now helmetless, gave Siegfried a dead-eyed stare. "If that's a thing, the Einzberns are even stupider than I thought."

"Well, the source of the curse is the ring that turned Fafnir into a dragon it just spreads to nearby gold and valuables in its vicinity."

"Wait, the ring is a thing? I thought this Fafnir was just...always a dragon that came back if you killed it and weren't named 'Siegfried' by taking over their bodies and turning them into itself."

"Now that is just one of the differences between the Nibelungenlied and Volsunga Saga. My Fafnir used to be a giant, Sigurd's was a dwarf."

"Wait, what? Sigurd? I thought _you_ were the real version that the legends came from?" Andrew asked.

"No we both exist as Heroic Spirits. We are both equally real."

Andrew blinked owlishly for a moment. "Okay, not questioning it, moving right along. So would the ring turn things into dragons outright or just perpetuate Fafnir's curse?"

"It should only perpetuate the curse, as the ring just enhances the greed around others, and Fafnir was very greedy even before he got the ring."

"Shame, it would have been nice to…" Andrew had a thought. "How quickly does it transform things into Fafnir, do you know?"

"Master… Do you have a dragon fetish?"

Andrew punched the dragon slayer as hard as he could right in the face with zero hesitation; his fist practically bounced off, but the message still got across. "I was trying to say about turning small animals into tiny Fafnir's and killing them for materials, nothing more you stupid beefcake."

"Should I begin to fear my Master's lustful advances upon my person? Besides Master, you're rather obsessed with dragons."

Andrew once more punched the dragon slayer to little avail. "That's not what I meant! And dragons are really cool, I guess you're a little different with your history but in my time they invoke power and fire and fury and pure awesomeness, and I want to have some of that on _our_ side, y'know?" Most of the energy left him. "We're up against the end of the world. I just want to make sure we save it."

"I understand that Master, but don't mess with that ring to fall to it is to become a symbol and avatar of greed itself. To become such an avaricious being that nothing else matters besides one's hoard."

"Yeah, don't worry. I'm not going to pull a Sieg or anything." Andrew said, shaking his head. "I get a lot of ideas that would be great in theory if they worked, so I'm happy to have people like you to smack down the ones that won't."

"Who is Sieg?"

"Do you not...remember the Great Holy Grail War between the Yggdmillennia and the Clocktower?"

"Yes, somewhat I remember sacrificing myself to save a child."

"Oh. Well, that child was a freshly born Homunculus who ended up taking on part of your name and even your shape temporarily with a weird variant of Command Spells before turning into Fafnir to take the Greater Grail to the Reverse Side of the World after the Ruler from the previous grail war who had survived and become the master of the Red Servants made his wish in order to prevent it from completely doing so. I think he might have also taken on the lightning-based essence of Frankenstein's monster? I didn't quite understand that when I watched the War…" Andrew explained.

"Yes, were apprenticed for a short time to The Second. Good to see that my action resulted in something good happening."

"Yeah, if it weren't for you its likely the enemy Ruler would have turned earth into a freeze frame of the moment he made the wish for all eternity." Andrew let out a short laugh. "Actually, thinking about it, it's really appropriate now that I'm thinking about it. That Fafnir reclaimed his Horde in the end."

"Karma works in mysterious ways doesn't it." Siegfried laughed.

"Heh, guess it does."

Xxx

September 9

Once again it was summoning time.

Andrew stood with his ticket ready to immediately be used as Mash finished setting the ritual up.

"Alright, come on, today's the lucky day. Pink. Haired. Rider." Andrew said as he summoned the newest addition to Chaldea, knowing fully well it most likely was not the one he wanted.

"Rome has arrived, you have nothing to fear Master." Said the boisterous voice of best pillar man Romulus.

"Welcome to Chaldea, Romulus. I'm glad you've chosen to join us." Andrew said, going for a handshake.

"Rome is glad too." The man said as he reached out with his hand and grasped Andrew's forearm instead of his hand.

Andrew, for _once_ , understood something odd and didn't falter in the warrior's handshake. "You'll also be glad to know we have summoned one of your descendants, Nero Claudius."

"The Rose is here, that is good to hear it was so sad to watch her reign come to an end, cursed be her mother for destroying her mind," Romulus spoke.

"Indeed. Oh, if you want to find her, my cute Kouhai here has an armband for you with a map feature so you can navigate and stay in touch with everyone." Andrew said.

"Thank you, young Lady." Romulus took the armband and slapped it around his wrist. "Rome accepts it."


	39. Today's Color Is Pink

September 10

"So Andrew what can my genius do for you? Or are you here to partake in something else?" Came Da Vinci's flirtatious voice.

"Partake…?" Andrew said before realizing what she meant. "No, nonono I'm here for business. And a bit of fashion."

"Well business is going to be hard since I don't have one that can sell you stuff, but if you want fashion why not go to Medea she is Greek after all." She said in a joking tone, and taking a shot at her fellow member of the Caster Class. "I kid so what do you want me to make, I'm putting the finishing touches on the teleport upgrade for the armor so you can equip it like you're a Power Ranger."

"Oh, good. That actually leads into why I came here- with the new upgrade, would I still need to wear the plugsuit to use it or would that also auto-equip?" Andrew asked. "Cause if not I wanted to change the color."

"Still have to wear the Plugsuit, at least the upgraded version I made for the auto-equip as it works as the lock-on, so you don't become a real-life Bethesda Glitch."

Andrew shuddered as he imagined a person doing any of those. That's a lot of broken everything. "Understood. But, could you make most of it the same color as my skin? I kinda want to be able to wear normal clothes without looking like a freediver or something. Also, I don't look good in white."

"Well, one Ken doll bodysuit coming up if you want it." Da Vinci said as she twirled around a pencil.

"Maybe not that extreme? Just the parts people would see on a regular person wearing regular clothes?" Andrew said, a tad unsure himself if he wanted to do that, considering how weird it would look.

At that Da Vinci snapped her fingers. "Come back in two weeks, and I will have an undersuit that fixes both problems I just had a great idea."

Andrew nodded nervously. "Alright, will do." He knew better than to question her genius. "But there was also something else I wanted to talk to you about, or rather one big thing and one small thing."

"Okay, what is it?" She asked.

"Alright, starting with the small thing, do you have any sort of magical hair dye that won't take forever to settle, and or do we have any hair dye?"

"You thinking about coloring your hair, Andrew?"

"Yeah, I've done it a few times before and I'm getting sick of my natural brown again. I like to do it every so often to switch things up, y'know?"

"Go ask Medea about that she knows a lot of stuff about bodily transformations, she did study a bit of magic under Circe."

"Ah, gotcha, I'll head there next," Andrew said. "But before that, the Big Thing. It's about Mash."

"It's about the experiments and her body's deterioration right?" Her voice hit a somber tone at that.

"Yes and no, actually. I have a few questions about that, definitely, but I also want to make sure she can make it to _at the absolute least_ , 'that' point." Andrew said, not wanting to say the word. "And to ensure that, we need to fix her armor. She has a giant opening on her stomach, she has that stupid 'boob plate' which I'm pretty damn sure is more dangerous than no armor at all, and she's basically wearing a metal leotard. We need to fix that."

"Andrew you have to understand 8/10 times armor on Servants doesn't matter, so no Mash's isn't a detriment, and it is from what I can see incomplete."

"Well, yeah it's obviously incomplete, but do you mean there is actually supposed to be more that she isn't getting?"

"Yes, from my readings she isn't tapping properly into her power, as you can see by her not being able to unleash her true Noble Phantasm."

"Hmm. So if she can figure out how to properly, or I guess more efficiently, use her benefactor's power it'll fix itself and maybe even give her the 'true' Noble Phantasm?"

"Yes, know the true name would be a major step, but from what I've heard from the grapevine she wants to do her own Hero's Journey."

Andrew sighed. "Yeah, there's not much I can do on that front without making her hate me forever. So I guess there's not much I can do for that…" He sighed again. "Then, if Armor is Useless...is there anything we(you) can do to make her shield better? Like, offensively, since she likes to smack people around with it and I'm guessing making another weapon for her wouldn't work well with being a Shielder."

"I don't know what that shield is Andrew, but at this point in time, I see no way to improve upon. And do remember it is her job to protect you from any attack, so let her do her role."

Andrew let out a short groan of frustration. "I...I just don't like how everything here is based around _me_. The other Servants are weird enough, being called 'Master' by another human being is a fucking weird experience, but at least they're just copies of already dead people. Mash is _alive_ , and she deserves to live her life for _herself_ , y'know? She deserves to _live_ …"

"And she does by you being her Master, you're her only connection to the outside world, where she could not go. Roman and I might have raised her in a physical sense, but not in an emotional one. You're the only reason she has reason to live, before you, you who just broke through every single barrier that blocked us and everybody else, you came to know the true Mash Kyrielight and brought it out for all others to see. She is no longer the girl who dreamt of things she could never experience. Now she is the Kouhai who wants to support her Senpai in his every action." Da Vinci paused and breathed. "Sorry, I'm rambling now."

Andrew was reeling from having it spelled out for him. "I-I'm not sure how to process all that right now, like holy shit." He took a few deep breaths and tried to actually process what he was told to little avail. "Okay, cannot contextualize that right now, so question- would a Dragon Core help her? In the Great Holy Grail War, there was a Homunculus who had Siegfried's heart, and Dragon Core implanted into him, and he would have been able to live for way, way longer than his few months long planned lifespan. Could that help her? Not Siegfried's heart specifically, but could a Dragon Core let her survive?"

"No Mash is very much a human and not a homunculus, there would be a 99% chance of rejection even if we could get one."

"Wait, what? If she's human why the hell does she have a set expiration date?!" Andrew asked, more than a bit of anger leaking into his words at whoever actually designed the experiment.

"Under normal circumstance, she would not have one, but well the former Director was a Magus through and through, as a weapon can't last forever, were his words. Mash was not meant to survive beyond serving as confirmation for the fact the Demi-Servant project could be done when it was started sixteen years ago." Da Vinci. "He artificially introduced the death date, unlike actual homunculi that last to different ages depending on building materials and post modifications."

"And is that tied to her soul or her body?" Andrew asked while silently swearing that if they ever ran into the ghost or past version of Maris Billy he would personally rip his spine out through his spleen. Or whatever was the most painful thing he could think of doing at that moment.

"Both her body's cells have a date where they won't split anymore, and her Soul will undergo rapid entropy. Perhaps that is why he killed himself when he realized the sin and crime he had committed against the girl."

"So he did kill himself? The way Roman said it back when I joined the events were mysterious or something." Andrew said, his anger for the man not fading in the slightest since if that was true, he didn't bother trying to fix anything and just noped out of life so he wouldn't have to deal with his problems.

"For those without clearance."

"Oh. Fucking coward." Andrew practically spat out. Normally he'd refrain from speaking ill of the dead, but as of that moment Maris Billy was only a few steps below Lev in his mind, so he honestly did not care.

"In the end he was, but despite my own hatred for the man he did create Chaldea, so I can respect him for that at least. Now, are we going to talk about something else, or continue to talk about miserable things that can be discussed later when less emotional."

"The former. I had a few ideas about what we could do with Das Rheingold if you and the other Casters could remove the Curse from it and it wasn't just normal plain gold afterward. Would it just be normal gold afterward?" Andrew said, taking her cue to change the subject.

"It would, the ring is interesting but far too dangerous to be out in the open, so it has been sealed down in the vault along with the other unwanted stuff Chaldea has collected over the years."

"Oh. That's a shame. There isn't like, any leftover magical resonance or something that could be used to melt it all together and make something that's at least a good mystic code? I'm not sure about the uses of gold in the Moonlit World, so I'm not sure if that's nonsense or not."

"The so-called magical properties of gold is actually one of the few things that have no basis in reality, and has only worth as a monetary object, even in alchemy." She answered. "Iron has more worth to Magi as it can be turned into Cold Iron for its ability to halt the flow of magical energy."

"So can we even use it for anything?" Andrew asked a little upset they now had a massive pile of useless treasure just taking up space.

"Well, you've got a lot of cash after we save the world and it's payment for services rendered as a Chaldea employee."

Andrew considered that neutrally for a moment. "I suppose that's true, but once this is all over if it turns out this _isn't_ my version of Earth, which I'm pretty damn sure it isn't, I'm probably going to stick with you all anyway since I won't really have anywhere to _go_."

"It probably it isn't, though you can still order things online, Amazon has an amazing delivery service I tell you."

"Do they deliver to 'just unsynced with time and space'?" Andrew asked sarcastically.

"There is that sense of humor I like, anyway do you have a dye job with Medea or do you want to talk more?"

"Yeah, I think I need to do something completely unrelated to the existential threat of nonexistence, so I'm going to go find Medea now. Ciao, Da Vinci."

"Ciao to you too Andrew, now then I need to find my carbon fiber mesh." Da Vinci said as she turned around and headed towards one of her workbenches.

Andrew nodded and left Da Vinci's workshop and headed for Medea's once he confirmed she was within it.

"Ah, Master good to see you," said Medea as she in the middle of brushing Medusa's hair with a certain sheep as the audience.

"Good to see you two, too. I hope you don't mind me interrupting."

"No Master, we were just having a bit of girl time as it were, Medusa needed a bit of reprieve from her sister." The ancient magus said, and the Gorgon in front of her blushing a bit in response.

"Ah, I see. I actually came here to talk about hair, funnily enough, under Da Vinci's recommendation. She said you would know about changing one's hair color?"

"My is somebody wanting to come in touch with their more feminine side?" Was the teasing question.

Andrew honestly thought for a moment. "Maybe? I was actually thinking of doing pink again. And my hair is long enough now I could style it...what do you think?"

"What shade of pink would you want?" She asked.

"I was thinking either a hot pink again or something a little lighter. Do you have any recommendations?"

"I would go for something lighter more in the vein of a peach like Circe had most of the time." She suggested.

"Oh, sure that sounds fine. So do you use a physical dye or is it some kind of spell?"

"A spell, these ears aren't naturally this pointy you know. My transformative spells aren't as good as hers can't turn you into a pig or other animals, but limited shapes are within my power. chróma rodákino." She said as she snapped her fingers. "There done."

Andrew blinked a few times since he hadn't even seen anything beyond the snap. "Uh, do you have a mirror?"

"Over at the wall." She said pointing at a wall towards the side.

Andrew walked over to said wall to see himself in the mirror. Just like she said, his hair was now the same color as a peach. "Wow. That looks pretty good on me." He then turned around and practically ran back over to Medea. "Can you make it longer?"

"Sure." She said. "How long?"

"Uhh...how about mid-back? I've always wanted to see what I'd look like with hair that long but I was never allowed to grow it past my shoulders." Andrew said a tad miffed at being reminded of that.

She snapped her fingers again and spoke magic words and Andrew watched his hair grow down to his back.

He went back over to the mirror to see how he looked, and the cascade of peach curls actually looked good on him. "Oh, wow, this is, thank you, Medea." He said as he looked at himself from different angles in the mirror and then had an idea. "Wait."

Once more, he was by Medea's side. "You said you made your ears pointy, so you can also alter the physical structure of the human body, right?"

"Yes, did a few times while alive, especially to Jason he had such a tiny thing." She said. "There was a reason his second wife left him after my spell stopped working."

Andrew chuckled a bit at that. "I, uh, actually wanted to know if you can, kinda do the opposite? And… turn me into a… girl?" He asked, extremely nervously.

"My Master do you have some repressed desires, well if we turned your hair purple, we could pass you off as being a Gorgon. Or at least Medusa's son."

"O-oh, well, uhm...really?" Andrew asked. "Don't you have to, you know, actually be attractive to do that?" He motioned at the main Gorgon. "Like, I'm nowhere close to her."

"Thank you for the compliment Master, but I'm nowhere near as beautiful as my sisters," Medusa said her blush in full effect.

"What? Someone lied to you or something, you're definitely beautiful, and _they_ should be trying to catch up to _you_." Andrew said, Mom Friend™ mode activating.

"Yes do remember Medusa here in the modern age you're the standard not them," Medea added.

"Please, both of you."

"It's the truth. You are beautiful, I am 100% certain of it. And to top it off you're even a better fighter than at least one of your sisters so that just makes you awesome on top of it." Andrew said, recalling how she had managed to take out Stheno in one hit.

"Yes, I have been their protector since I was the only one that aged, so I had to protect them from those that sought to use them. That was why we lived on the Shapeless Isle away from civilization, and I fell to madness and bloodlust as men still sought them." She said.

"Oh." Was all Andrew could really say to that. "Well, I'm still happy to have you with us, Medusa."

"And I'm happy to be here too Master. Chaldea is a much more pleasant place to live than the Isle."

Andrew smiled at her, and there was a moment of contented silence.

"Wait, Medea, you never actually said if you could or couldn't do it!" Andrew said once he realized she had deflected the question.

"We got sidetracked there, didn't we. Yes, I can turn you into a woman if need be though that requires a potion to be made, then a simple spell."

"...If its a potion, does that mean Gil would have it? Not that I don't trust you it's just that I _really_ want to try this sooner rather than later." Andrew said.

"He would have some version, the now child king much better than he was before, should indeed have one. It would take a little more than a day to make, though that is just the hours it has to settle before being drunk. The actual making takes an hour."

"Hm. I'd say make one of each in case Gil doesn't have a reversal potion, but I think I need to go find him right now, talk to you later!" Andrew said, anxiously looking for Gil on his map as he began to leave Medea's workshop.

Xxx

"You want a what Master?" Gil asked in surprise as he heard Andrew's request after he had entered the now boys room.

"A potion, or whatever's in the Gate, that would let me turn into a woman," Andrew explained nervously but excitedly. "Medea said she can make them, so that means there has to be something like that in the Gate, right?"

"I heard, it just came as a bit of surprise to suddenly hear, and here." He said throwing a medium sized bottle at Andrew who caught it. "Drink once to turn into a girl, drink again to turn back." Were the simple instructions.

"Just one sip right?" Andrew said as he opened the bottle.

"Yep."

"Alright. Here goes...something." Andrew said before taking a sip from the bottle of pink liquid.

The changes were almost instant, and a few seconds later Andrew looked at his or should it be her new female attributes.

"Holy moly you're almost as big as my mom, and she was the goddess of cows." Was Gil's comment. If it had come from literally anyone but the child, Gilgamesh he-now-she would have been insulted.

And the boy was right, Andrew was still somewhat the same height, but it was like every ounce of fat had redistributed to his chest and ass. Which gave anybody who saw her now a nice view of newly formed cleavage.

Andrew went over to look at herself in the nearby mirror above the sink. And honestly, except for the oddly disproportionated attributes he was chalking up to 'anime' she looked...good. "Oh. Okay. I...hmm. I think if this was distributed like an actual human being…" She made a note of how her voice was somewhat higher, though thankfully not absurdly so. "Thanks for this, Gil. But whoever designed this potion originally...I don't think it was for the same reason I wanted it, so I'm heading back over to Medea to have her smooth this out. Thanks again!"

"Well, it was primarily used by Ishtar's priestesses and followers."

"Oh, I suppose that makes sense," Andrew said. She knew little of the ancient Babylonian deities, but she did know Ishtar was a Fertility and Sex goddess, so it made sense. "But thank you so much, Gil. Is it okay if I keep this for now?"

"Sure thing Master, I've never used it myself. It was just a gift I have more bottles of it if you need more."

"I'll keep that in mind. Again, thank you so much. You have no idea how much this means to me. If you ever need me to do anything, just ask." Andrew said. "Now, I think I need to fix these proportions. See you later, Gil."

"You too Master," The boy said back.

Andrew then proceeded to leave Gil's room and hurry on back to Medea's workshop, eager to get her new 'issue' 'fixed.' Thankfully, by using the map on her armband, she was able to avoid any other Servants or staff members while in the overly-sexualized state she found herself in before she got back to Medea's door and knocked.

"Come in." Was the response and she opened the door to see that Medusa was still present. "Hello… Master is that you?" Came the shocked response from both. "My? Now I know what breast envy feels like." Was the former princess' comment.

Andrew chuckled nervously. "Yeah, turns out the one Gil had was used by Ishtar's followers for… _special occasions_. Could you, maybe, help me get sorted out? I think my back is about to give out from these things."

"Of course, the moving of fat is much easier I just need my hand to touch bare skin, so I can move it correctly," Medea said.

Andrew's face reddened. "A-ah, would my face be okay or do you need to d-directly apply contact to each a-area?"

"Just face is needed."

Andrew let out a breath she didn't know she'd been holding. "Okay, then let's do this ASAP." She said as she moved over to Medea and noted that she had lost a few inches somehow.

The Greek Magus placed her hand on Andrew's blushing cheek. "My this really is one made by Ishtar, you've lost three inches and are now a flat six feet, now to redistribute that fat." Andrew felt a pleasant tingle through her body as she watched as breast shrunk to something actually in proportion to her body instead of something that belonged to that side of the internet along with her behind. "There done. No more back pain for you, though with the potion you should now default to this form."

Andrew nodded a small sigh of relief passing from her lips at no longer being a caricature. "Thank you _so much_ , Medea. I don't know how I could thank you-and Gil, though I guess I owe him one- for your help with this."

"How about we test drive it, and I teach you about being a woman." She said with a certain smirk.

"Really? Thank you! I know there's some stuff I don't know the intricacies of so thank you." Andrew said, missing Medea's smirk.

"Then let's start." And then Andrew felt Medea's lips on her for a few short moments, catching her off guard. "Want to go further just say no, and I stop."

She sputtered for a moment. "NO!" She yelled, falling backward in her hurry to put a bit of distance between them. "W-why would me being a girl m-mean something like that?" She asked, very confused.

"Sorry Master I thought you were reading my signals and wanted to have sex? Sorry if I misunderstood you, I apologize." Medea said as she bowed in apology.

Andrew was now beet red. "Th-th-that is definitely not w-what I thought you m-meant." She stammered out. She took a few deep breaths to calm herself. "I thought you were saying something completely different. And apology accepted, you're automatically better than the last person who tried that."

"Thank you, Master, how about we try again. Though are you going to stay a woman for the foreseeable future?"

"Y-yeah, I think I am going to for at least a bit. I've...wanted to try this for most of my life, y'know? And with the potion, I can just switch back whenever I want…" Andrew paused, tears of joy welling in her eyes. "I think I've had a wish granted."

"There, there Master it's okay," Medea said as she hugged Andrew, and so did Medusa. "Now do you want to try on a dress?"

Andrew perked up. "Oh, absolutely! Do you have anything in my size?"

"Girl I'm a Greek Magus and a Princess, fashion is my thing," Medea said proudly.

Andrew's eyes were practically sparkling at that, though it might have been the tears. "Hell yeah! After this, you're joining the Chaldea Fashion Squad for sure."

Xxx

A/N: Well I certainly did not see the chapter going this route. As Passive unlocked the secret FGO Protagonist power. Gender Bending. Though I expect you all to be mature and discuss the chapter like adults. And also any insults and bigoted remarks towards are to be reported, jokes are fine. Like getting him a Mega Milk T-shirt.


	40. Emotions and Cloth

After a few hours of modeling to find what did and didn't work with Andrew's style, the three had picked out a few dress designs Medea had magically fitted to Andrew's new body. Currently, she was wearing a simple white dress Andrew had joked made her look like Rose Quartz, to which the other two had expressed confusion.

During this time, Andrew deliberated to herself about her name, unsure how that was supposed to work for someone who could change in a snap.

Now, the three were approaching the Cafeteria, which was more-or-less full considering it was right around lunchtime. On their way, they passed by several of the staff who were milling about to and fro from the cafeteria with their different schedules; a few looks had been tossed her way, and a few asked who she was since none of them actually recognized her. She had answered honestly and just been given a shrug in response. "We have heard of people doing weirder things to their bodies." being the most common verbal response from, apparently doing the gender thing wasn't uncommon for some to do. And Andrew got told so long she didn't turn into a vampire they didn't care what she did to herself.

And so after having encountered the more "normal." people in Chaldea, Andrew came face to face with Mash.

"Hello, Medea and Medusa have you seen…" Her mouth hung open as her eyes landed on Andrew.

"Hi, Kouhai," Andrew said with a nervous smile. Of the Servants, Mash's opinion on this mattered the most to her, and she hoped the Shielder would be accepting of her new form. "I, uhm, kinda, turned myself into, a woman." She said, only just managing not to stutter.

"How did that come about?" Mash as she got her jaw to work again.

"Uhm, well, I've never..." She took a deep breath to calm herself before continuing. "Well, I've always wanted to at least _try_ being a woman, and with Gil's potion, I can just switch back and forth whenever I want to, so when I kinda...I _had_ to at least try it, y'know? And so far...I think I like being like this."

Mash looked down for a few seconds and then raised her head and held a thumb up. "A female Senpai and Master is fine too." She said while her face was beet red and a small trickle of blood running down her nose, with a certain glint in her eyes behind her glasses.

"Right we think so to, our Master is just gorgeous in this dress we made her isn't she?" Medea added, causing Andrew to go red as well. With Mash responding with nods. "Especially with such assets, men are going to be all over you." She laughed pervertedly. "Though, they know not to touch."

"L-lets just tell everyone e-else, yeah?" Andrew said, trying desperately to change the subject.

"Yes, let's go do that Senpai," Mash added.

"Y-yeah." She said, leading onwards to the cafeteria and stopping just before the door, heart racing, anxiety pounding in her skull. She took a few deep breaths to calm herself, but it was only doing so much.

Mash put her hand on Andrew's arm in a supportive gesture, causing her to look down at the smaller girl's supportive smile. She smiled back, still nervous, and entered the cafeteria.

The place was buzzing with activity as most of her Servants had arrived to eat, at the appointed time lunch was available.

Just after they had stepped inside, they came to the back side of both Cu's backs. And they turned around to face her while Lancer Cu talked. "Hello, Master where have you've been the last few… AAHHHHHHHHHH-" He began screaming in fright and so did Caster with Lancer jumping into Caster's arms.

"-AHHHHHH" They continued.

"By this Command Seal, I order Cu Chulainn to _shut up!_ " Andrew ordered, their screaming grating on her nerves. What, did she look Scathach or something?

At that, they both ceased.

"Geeze, I was expecting a few bad reactions but not outright _terror_ , what the hell dogs?" Andrew asked, most of her nervousness having been pushed away for now in light of the ear-piercing screams the two had emitted.

Lancer Cu left Caster's arms and let out a small cough. "Sorry, Master it's not that it's just with that hair color we thought you were Medb for a second there." He apologized.

"Yes. Sorry Master, that woman has left some deep scars." Said Caster Cu also apologizing. "Tone of voice is the same too, gods, but too large and too big breasts."

"Really? I really talk like that?" Andrew said, silently taking pride in being better endowed than the Queen in question, though she knew she should really be taking pride in Medea's handiwork in giving her proportional assets with what was already there. "And she really hurt you that much that the mere _glimpse_ of someone _slightly_ similar caused that reaction?"

"We don't like to talk about that, beyond embarrassing." Said the Lancer.

"How does Fergus do it?" Said the Caster.

"Alright, I'll let sleeping dogs lie, my apologies for bringing up bad memories," Andrew said. "But I am keeping this hair color, for now, so you might want to get used to that."

"You shouldn't apologize Master."

"Ahh, what happened Master? Did you summon Merlin? Is here did he do this to you? Do you still have it?" Came the questions from Lily as she ran up to her and hugged her form.

Andrew awkwardly returned the hug, trying to comfort the apparently very worried smaller girl. "No, Merlin's not here, I did this of my own choice." She said, trying to reassure the girl she was alright. "And no."

"Whoa, thank god," Lily said as she disengaged the hug and moved so Andrew could see the girl, no longer being blocked by her chest. "Anyway, you're really pretty looking now."

"Hmm, some of my knights were prettier, and they were men." Came the crash comment from Alter. Andrew saw the dark king munch down on a cheeseburger.

"Alter, don't be a Salt-er," Andrew said, having wanted to use that pun since they had decided on her nickname.

"That pun physically hurt me." Came the response.

"Umu, Umu, UMU." Came the familiar sound from Nero. "You're just perfect looking Master, like a young maiden that is about to be married. Let me get my dress, and we can do it right now." She said excitedly while running up to the small group that was forming in front of the doors.

Andrew reddened to a shade darker than Nero's outfit. "N-n-no n-need to get a-ahead o-of yourself t-there, N-Nero." She stuttered out.

"Ah, but I wanted to wear to wear my wedding dress." She complained.

"Ah, don't be like that little Golden rome, anyway Boss you look like my old Boss more than you did before." Said the walking beefcake that was Kintoki as he to joined. "Always go on dates first, before making such a decision it always comes back to bite you, trust me I have experience."

"Thank you, Kintoki, for your Golden words of wisdom," Andrew said, happy at the change of subject and that she had at least one Servant who thought like she did about romance.

"Thank you Boss, so could the both of you cover up a bit I can see your cleavage, and that is in-indecent." He said with a stutter and red-faced as his eyes tried to not look at them.

"Ah, does somebody have a problem with female flesh, Mr. Golden." Nero teased as she pushed up her chest.

"He's just truly a Golden boy, unable to resist looking yet respecting women. Though you should also keep in mind Kintoki that you're showing _far_ more chest than either of us." Andrew said, seizing the opportunity to point out his well-intentioned hypocrisy.

"T-that's different." He said while still flustered and now embarrassed.

"Oh? How so? Why are you allowed to show off the entirety of your chest while telling us to cover our slightly-exposed ones, hmm?" Andrew asked.

"Mine isn't, se-sexual in anyway." He stated.

"Like that is supposed to be true at all." Commented Nero as she looked at Kintoki's body, the pinnacle of the bodybuilder physique.

"And how are ours sexual, Golden Boy? They're lumps of flesh in no way related to intercourse. They're used for feeding infants. So if they're sexual, its because they are in _your_ mind, Golden Boy." Andrew said, channeling her one (1) Women's Studies class from back before this had started.

He just pouted in response, it seems that they had gotten him there.

"You've got me Goldenly good there Master. So, are you hungry?"

Andrew smirked victoriously. "Yes, yes I am. Thank you for reminding me." Her smirk turned into a genuine smile. "And thank all of you for being so accepting about this."

"Heh, not like it matters what you look like on the outside Master, you're still the same person on the inside. The same can not be said for others who go through a 'transformation.'" Came Vlad's voice from the side where he was sitting with the other royalty.

"Thanks, Vlad." She said, smiling at the Voivode. "Actually, there is a slight change other than the physical one I'm going to make." She said a bit louder as if making an announcement. "From this point on, its no Andrew, but 'Andy.' Just Andy. For both forms." She declared. "Though almost none of you call me by my name anyway…"

"Ha that is true Master, for that is what you're to us Master, a relationship between a Master and a Servant is something special, something that can be greater than any friendship and deeper than any marriage. So, how about you come to eat with us, Andy?" Said Mozart who held up a beer mug.

"For Andy, for our Master, the one we shall help save the world."

"For Andy/For Master!" They all shouted and cheered.

Tears of joy began to freely flow from Andy's eyes, a wide and genuine smile on her face. "You guys…"

"Come on Senpai let's go eat," Mash said the to the larger girl.

"Yeah, lets. All this crying is making me hungry." Andy said as she wiped away the tears.

"You're all weird." Said, Roman, as he walked past Andy now as it were, along with Da Vinci.

"Welcome to the Club." She said.

"Doc, you want a sip?" Andy asked, holding up the bottle.

"No thank you, I like my manhood where it is."

"Alright, suit yourself," Andy said with a shrug as she stored the potion away. "Ah, that reminds me, Da Vinci. This isn't going to interfere with Tenfold Shields, right?"

"No, but I might need to make room for all that extra flesh you're carrying now, it might be a bit tight." She answered.

"Eh, it's not really 'extra' so much as 'I lost three inches and no mass,' but yeah please do," Andy said. "Do you two want to join us for lunch?"

"Sure." They answered.

Xxx

September 14

Andy, now wearing a white t-shirt with the words 'Mega Milk' across the chest and sport shorts with several band-aids on her now otherwise smooth legs, sat in the room that had been recently turned into a bit of a sewing room, where along with Vlad and Medea they all had been making clothes for the Servants and Chaldea Staff to wear. And now with Medea on the team, they could make things a bit faster than before, especially with her Familiars able to fetch things without interrupting their work.

At the moment, Andy was making her pitch for the Team Scarf 2.0 project. "Alright, so hear me out on this. We already have pseudo-indestructible thread thanks to Gil, so I was thinking we can make a Team Scarf for everyone and then I'll sew into them the necessary Runes for temperature regulation for year-round use and some more to actually protect the neck from cutting attacks. More importantly, I wanted to know Medea if you'd be willing to sheer Chrysomallos a bit so we can put just a little bit of Golden Fleece in each one? If that's not possible that's okay too." Andy said, finishing her pitch.

"Ugh, should have asked earlier Master, I just sheared him at the beginning of the month and have used the wool to make a batch of healing potions. Going to have to wait for the beginning of the next month to include that. But the Runes are a good idea you have been taught the basics of it by the Cu Chulainn's have you not?"

"Oh, its okay I don't think we'll be able to finish them by then anyway. And yeah, they've been teaching me from the moment we summoned the Stabby one. I've been planning out how to do the Rune part of the Team Scarves from the moment I decided on making them, actually. I've just been waiting till my skill with Runes is good enough that I know it'll work before I do it." Andy explained. "And now with the Professor teaching me some of the other basics about Magecraft, in general, I've gotten closer to that."

"That is good, Runes is one of those easy to learn harder to Master Magecraft, especially when you get into longer sequences, and you have to keep track on the meanings," Medea said. "Now back to talking about clothes, besides the scarfs, we also need to proper bras for you Master if you're going to stay a woman for long periods of time."

"Yes, proper support is important wouldn't want you to be flapping about while you run around." The Count grinned as he spoke.

Andy glared at the former Voivode. "It wasn't a problem before when I was just fat." She said, silently taking pride at how much muscle she had built up in the short few months since she had started training with the Cu Chulainn's.

"It's good to have them in something soft, so you don't end up with sore nipples. That is beyond annoying." The greek woman complained.

"...Okay yeah, we probably should get to that, very good point." Andy said after a moment.

They spent the next few hours getting Andy measured and working on making her new bras, starting with some basic designs for now so she could have something sooner rather than later. It was rather weird for Andy the whole time, still getting used to everything even after a few days.

Once they had finished their now-daily meetups, she now had three new plain bras. Though Medea had tried to convince her to get something more frilly, Andy had insisted on having some now for the sake of having them and fashionable ones later.

As Vlad was about to leave for the day, however, Andy stopped him. "Vlad, there was something else I wanted to talk to you about if you don't mind?"

"Sure, what is it, Master?" The king asked.

"Well, I know you are really good at sewing and knitting and all the little variations and all, so I wanted to know if...if you know how to make plushies? And are willing to teach me how?" Andy asked, blushing just a tad at the man (Servant) who had just spent the better part of the last three hours staring at her chest professionally.

"Of course Master, let me guess you want little plush versions of your Servants?"

"...No, but that is an amazing idea, thank you for that." Andy said after picturing the potential plushies. "No, I wanted to learn because, well...I kinda want to...make a...familiar."

"A doll familiar? You Master are beyond adorable." He said as he patted her head. It was at this moment Andy realized the Lancer was now taller than her.

"W-well it was so I could j-just make them m-myself on my own," Andy said, face reddening. "I was planning on it before...this happened, but I forgot in the rush of things."

"I shall help you, Master, for it would certainly be cleaner than most familiars, though I believe Fou might get jealous if you have a fluffy companion beside him." The man laughed at the last part.

"Well, Fou's more of Mash's animal companion anyway, he'll be fine," Andy said dismissively, before having a small revelation. "Oh my god Mash is a Disney Princess."

Vlad raised an eyebrow.

"She has the special powers, she has the animal companion, she's going on a perilous hero's journey to save the world, she got saved by a big 'strong' man, she fits most of the criteria!" Andy explained excitedly.

"Yes, she does fit those movies we have been watching, though I do believe that movie destroyed any serious image Heracles had." He said.

"Yeah, I have a feeling you'd change your mind if you saw the real one. I've only seen him as a Berserker, and…" Andy shuddered at the thought of having to face Heracles in any way shape or form, especially considering he was apparently at his _weakest_ as a Berserker due to lack of fine motor skill. "I'm really hoping we summon him if we _ever_ see him at all, but I have a feeling that's not going to happen."

"Don't be so sure, we might gain the greatest hero as our ally someday," Vlad said.

"I mean, I'd hope so, but most of the strongest Servants get summoned by our enemies first. Like you or Alter. So I'm _really_ not looking forward to having to kill him 12 different ways when there'll probably be other enemies as well." Andy said.

"Well, luck might be in our favor if that were to happen."

Andy sighed. "Yeah, here's hoping Heracles gets to be a Hero."

"We'll see. Now I believe that it is dinner time. Shall we go, Master?"

"Ah, yeah, lets. But then you're teaching me how to make plushies." Andy said, 'subtly' reminding the not-vampire.

"I am Master, shall we go my Lady." He said bowing while holding the door open.

Andy held a hand to her face in faux-haughtiness. "Oh, but of course my good sir, let us join the common folk for their meal."

"Yes, let's go and stake out our food. Get it."

Andy gave Vlad a blank stare. "A for effort, D for the 'get it.' You really need to up your pun game, Vlad. The people around here are like cannibals with their words, they'll just eat~ you~ up~." She said, drawing out each word.

"Next time you will nazi it coming, Master."

Andy let out a short laugh. "Okay, that one was better. Let's get some food."

"Yes, I believe that it's various soups on the menu today."

"Soups? Hope they have potato dumpling, ooh or spinach and gnocchi…" Andy said, hunger growing.

"Let us see if there is then."

Xxx

September 16

It was once again time for summoning, and Andy was still female, once more wearing the white dress just because on some level hoping that maybe this recent change would allow for Astolfo to be summoned. Though if her summoning luck was anything to go by she would get another Servant that would have gender identification issues.

"Alright, let's meet the newest addition to the crew!" Andy said as she summoned the latest Servant.

"Servant Saber, Chevalier d'Eon at your service Master." Said the Saber.

Andy smiled at the French Saber. "Welcome to Chaldea, d'Eon. Marie and Mozart will be quite happy to know you're here."

"Thank you, though you look different from how I saw you in France."

"Ah, yeah, I kinda turned into a woman since then," Andy said a bit surprised that d'Eon was able to still recognize her from France despite looking like a totally different person.

"I see you're able to change gender like myself," d'Eon said.

"Woah, you can do that on your own?" Andy asked, surprised. From the Stat Sheet, she hadn't thought any of d'Eon's skills would allow that to occur.

"Yes, self-suggestion is a powerful skill, but what sex do you think I am Master."

"Uhm, right now, I'm gonna guess female? I mean no offense but you look kinda androgynous regardless." Andy said, hoping she wasn't being rude.

She just smiled at Andy. "So is there anything I need to know about this place."

"Oh, uhm, my wonderful Kouhai here has an armband for you with a map and communicator built in so you can navigate and talk with the other Servants. And... I think Marie and Mozart are in the kitchen again? Hard to tell where they are spatially with just the bond but do you want me to tell them you're here or did you want to maybe surprise them?" Andy asked.

"I shall surprise them." She said.

"Alrighty then, so you open the map like this…" Andy explained to d'Eon how to use the map before sending her on her way to surprise her old friends.

Xxx

September 22

Andy, still female, and now wearing a hoodie, short sport shorts, and pink thigh-highs (she'd waited so long to be able to, she was going to wear them damn it!) was currently waiting excitedly in what was now officially the Chaldea Fashion Squad Headquarters for Vlad and Waver to show up so they could oversee the creation of her first familiar. She was so excited she'd arrived about ten minutes earlier than they planned.

She had been instructed in the basics of how to make it over the week so that she could make the simple one Andy wanted to make it wasn't going to be a murder machine like those most Magi had. Just a fluffy automaton that could run around and do tricks; the proof of concept of her skill.

The two gentlemen entered the room. "So my student are you ready to create an abomination of fluffiness." Said Waver with no cigarette in his mouth as both Andy and Vlad didn't want an accidental fire in the Sewing Room.

"Oh, you bet I am!" Andy said excitedly. "I already have the fabric ready and prepared like we planned."

"Good, now then first let's start with the creation of the body before going onto the Magecraft. Do you have a final design for the creature?" Waver asked.

Andy nodded, holding up her hand-drawn 'blueprints' showing a relatively okay drawing of a hippogriff with some comparatively well drawn runic designs and arrows pointing to locations on the hippogriff. "Yup, I have everything you said to have, Professor."

"Good, then you can now begin." Waver said.

Andy nodded and set up the makings of her hippogriff. She spent hours making the fluffy body, with a little bit of help from Vlad, but assistance was minimal. Drawing the runes that allowed for movement and flight, and the runestone in the center, that held that served as an anchor for the karmic line that made it, so it had limited sentience, and so of her abilities. Though that was the lowest level of familiar creation. For with higher levels, one could transplant pieces of their Soul into the familiar for further sentience. Cause apparently in this Universe there were no consequences for splitting one's soul into pieces.

And after hours of grueling work, Andy had her stuffed hippogriff jumping around and doing tricks. It was like one of those voice commanded robot dogs if she had to make a comparison.

After her initial jubilation at having made it and proving that it worked and the Runes were all functioning properly, she decided she _had_ to show Mash, using this also as a test to see how long her new familiar could stay in the air.

Thus, she was now walking from the Fashion Center to where she could feel Mash, which seemed to be her room, her new Familiar floating along next to her. Soon, she reached Mash's room and ordered her new Familiar to float just behind her back (and therefore out of sight) before she knocked.

"C-come in." Came Mash's voice, guess she gave the girl a shock when she knocked. The door opened up, and Andy was met with Mash sitting on her bed with a tablet in hand and Fou on her left side sleeping. Andy didn't know what kind of creature he exactly was but, his behavior certainly reminded her of a cat's.

"Hello, Senpai what is it?"

"Well, Kouhai, you know I've been working with Vlad and the Professor a lot recently right?" Andy asked, making sure she faced Mash so her new familiar wouldn't reveal itself ahead of time.

"You have said so, are you finished with what you've been working on?" She asked with anticipation.

Andy smiled. "Yup. Griffsy, enter stage left!" At her words, her newly-made Familiar flew over to Andy's left and stayed there in the air. "Ta-da! My own familiar!"

"You made a stuffed animal into a familiar?" She asked in surprise.

"Yup!" Andy said proudly. "Griffsy here is basically the proof-of-concept that I _can_ make Familiars like this, he just does little tricks." At that, Griffsy flew over and landed gently on Mash's head and positioning itself like a hat. "Mostly just moving, he's not very articulate. That's one of the design features I'm working on for Griffsy Jr."

"It's still adorable looking." She commented.

"Oh, absolutely! That was half the point of this one since he can't really do much he might as well be cute, right?" Andy said, Griffsy floating off of Mash's head and doing a loop-de-loop in the air.

"It's just so fluffy."

"You wanna feel it yourself?" Andy asked, Griffsy spinning around in the air and floating into Mash's lap this time.

"It's so fluffy I'm going to die!" Mash squealed as she finally lost control and hugged the animal.

Andy let out a little laugh at that. "Oh, right, I almost forgot." She opened up the small bag she had been carrying with her for when she didn't want to wear Tenfold Shields, like that moment, and pulled out a small-ish box and held it out to Mash. "This is for you, Kouhai."

"What is it Senpai?" Mash asked as she took the box.

Andy did a half-smirk half-smile. "Well, you know what I've been working on lately."

Mash opened the box and pulled out the cartoonish looking plush of herself. And said girl let out a small laugh as she saw it. "You didn't Senpai."

Andy giggled a bit at her reaction. "Ah, but I did Kouhai. I'm gonna make one of those for all the Servants here in Chaldea, too. And Fou, though he probably won't appreciate it." Andy said, smile wide at seeing Mash happy.

"He probably won't be, but I think the others are going to like getting their own." She said.

"Yeah, hopefully," Andy said as Griffsy began to float around her head in a circle, upside down. Having a mentally controlled flying plush was an amazing toy to play with, in her opinion. "Oh, actually. Mash, do you want to help? Like, do you want to learn how to sew and stuff with us?" She asked, hoping to rope her Kouhai into another activity they could do together and expand her horizons.

"I think I would enjoy that Senpai," Mash said.

Andy's smile widened while Griffsy did a barrel roll past her head. "The Chaldea Fashion Squad meets daily at 4:00 p.m. now in the Sewing Room, so stop in any time you want to learn."

"I take you up on that Senpai."

Xxx

September 23

Andy, still female, and now wearing a sweater with a boob window with a black shirt underneath saying 'I have no tits' perfectly lined up with the window and a skirt, waited as Mash set up the Summoning Circle, the Ticket being held by Griffsy who was circling around her. It had taken some effort to get the inarticulate plush to hold onto the thin metal sheet with all four of its claws, and she was now testing how well the plush Familiar did when weighed down. It didn't seem to be slowed down too much, but she would definitely need a stronger Familiar if she wanted another hand with moving things.

Once Mash finished setting up the Circle, Andy walked up and took the Ticket from Griffsy. After a short moment, she then grabbed Griffsy with her other hand. She knew it wouldn't work, but it was worth a shot. "Alright Griffsy, be my good luck charm." She said quietly to the animate plush, which squawked (squeaked, really, like a dog toy, considering that's what its 'voice box' was) in response, before summoning the newest addition to Chaldea.

"Yahoo! Astolfo is here as Servant Rider. Uhm, please take good care of me."

Andy was dead still for a moment, a look of shock and awe on her face. "Oh. Oh my god. It. It...it worked? It worked! Oh my god, it actually worked! Yes! Yes! IT WORKED!" She whooped in jubilation at _finally_ summoning Astolfo.

"Hmm, Master are you alright?" Came Astolfo's concerned voice.

His comment caused her to refocus her attention back on the actual Servant she had summoned. "Alright? I'm more than alright! I just summoned one of the most versatile, knightly, honorable, awesome, never-gives-up-on-his-values, heroic, coolest Rider I've ever seen!" She practically exploded as she showered the pink haired Rider in praise, her face beginning to redden.

"Please you praise me too much, I'm nothing compared to my fellow paladins," Astolfo said dismissively as he scratched the back of his head.

"Then that makes you the bravest! I saw what you did in the Great Holy Grail War, you straight up resisted a Command Seal so you wouldn't hurt Sieg, and that was after you basically went through a mini-hell just to help some random Homunculus who needed help in a place where he was just a thing and not a person! And you survived the war! The only other Servant to survive a Holy Grail War was _Gilgamesh_ , and he's Gilgamesh! So don't sell yourself short there pretty boy!" Andy said, wildly gesturing as she spoke, Griffsy flying all over the place as Andy's thoughts went wild.

"Oh please Master you're so flattering, but you got a cute little hippogriff flying about."

"Oh, yeah, this is Griffsy!" Andy said, the plush in question floating over to between Astolfo and Andy before squawking proudly. "I based his design off of your Hippogriff, actually. I might have gotten a few details wrong, but this is only the first one I've made." Andy said, her blush intensifying somewhat as she realized all of the things she had been doing consciously and unconsciously to try and summon the man standing before her and he now was. She was also regretting somewhat wearing her current outfit; she really shouldn't have worn it for Summoning any Servant.

"It's fine if it's made from memory. So, Master what is to do around here?" He asked.

"Oh, well this is Chaldea, we're trying to stop the Incineration of Human History across time." She said, before realizing Astolfo had no idea who she was. "O-oh, right, how rude of me, I almost forgot, I'm the Master of Chaldea, Andy Murphy, and this is my Kouhai, Mash." She said with a small curtsy, a maneuver she had been practicing for a while.

"That sounds fun, I can't wait to work with you Master. So is there a place I stay in between missions or what." He asked.

"My room," Andy said automatically before her brain caught up with her mouth and she turned as red as a tomato. "Uh-I mean, uhm, uh." She sputtered, unable to find any words that could save her from the hole she'd just dug herself.

"My Master, so forward, while I might dress like this I am in fact a man."

"So shameless Senpai."

Andy turned to Mash and reddened some more. "C-C'mon! He's half the reason I figured out I'm bisexual, I never thought I'd actually _meet him!_ " Andy said rapidly in an attempt to placate her Kouhai.

"He, aren't you a woman Master?"

"Well you see Mr. Astolfo Senpai, has a potion that allows her to change gender, she was in fact born a man. She has just been living as a woman for almost two weeks." Mash explained.

"Ah, I see that's fine Master. It just makes you that more awesome to be my Master." He said with a thumbs up.

Andy was so overwhelmed with so many different emotions she felt like she would die of an emotional overdose if anything else happened. "T-t-th-thank, you, A-Astolfo." She said simply, not able to actually say much else at the moment. Griffsy was now repeatedly flying into the side her face trying to get her attention and help her calm down, but it just bounced off each time it tried. Its distraction was enough, however, to get Andy's mind a bit more together. "You can pick your own room from the map, Astolfo. U-u-unless…" She stopped herself as her mouth began to go before her brain could again.

"Thank you." Astolfo said as he took the armband Mash gave him and placed it around his wrist. "Well, I'm going to go exploring see you later Master." Andy watched as Astolfo skipped out of the room.

"You okay Senpai."

The Senpai in question had her face in her hands as she tried to both hide her embarrassment and calm herself. "No...yes...I don't know?" Andy said, unsure herself. "I just told Astolfo to stay in my room like a love-struck moron, so probably no."

"Would you like a massage to calm down Senpai, I can give you one if you want?" Mash suggested.

Andy, who had slowly been returning to 'not tomato red' was now fire hydrant red at that suggestion. So soon after she had gone on the short emotional rollercoaster that she got hit with another odd emotional cocktail. It was too much to handle in such a small time frame. So, Andy did the thing she always did in situations like this.

She fainted.

Xxx

A/N: Damn this was a large one. Also, the Mash plus was in the Riyo style.

[Spoiler=Next up]One Piece[/spoiler]


	41. The Third Singularity Okeanos

September 23

"Wakey, wakey Andy or I'm going to have set your hair on fire." Came the voice of a certain Dragon girl, which caused Andy's eyes to shoot open and she quickly oriented herself to see that she was in the sickbay with Kiyohime sitting at her side.

"Do not threaten the do, Kiyo!" Andy said, pointing at Kiyohime angrily, her face completely serious, before she couldn't keep up the act and laughed. "Ah, but good morning Princess. Would you mind telling me why I'm in the sick bay?"

"Don't you remember passing out after summoning that Trap of a Rider, you been out the entire day and night it's the twenty-third now," Kiyohime answered the question.

Andy's cheer evaporated and was replaced with embarrassment once more, her face very quickly matching her hair as she recalled the events of the previous day. "Ohmygod I'm such a _fool_ I can't be _liev_ e I said all that…" She said dejectedly, face in her hands.

"Oh, yes I heard from him when he was in earlier, so Master do you have a crush on the paladin?" The dragon said with eyebrows going up and down.

This only served to worsen Andy's embarrassment. "Ye _ah_ …" She said quietly.

"Ohh, to be under Master's romantic gaze, such jealousy is flowing through my body. And such a lucky Servant to be your first conquest and here we had thought it would be Mash or Lily you would bed first." Came the perverted laugh from Kiyohime.

"Woah Woah Woah Wo _ah_ , hold up, why _Lily_?" Andy asked her own disgust at the idea overriding her embarrassment. "She's like _14!_ "

"Oh haven't you seen the looks of affections she has been sending you it's quite easy to see her crushing on you, but the poor girl is too embarrassed to speak up," Kiyohime answered. "Oops probably shouldn't have said that, oh well the dragon is out of the bag."

"...I should probably have a talk with her about that then...and also, again, I'm sorry for the way I treated your crush before." Andy said, recalling her own actions and very much so not wanting to repeat them.

"It's fine so, I've got a message from the Doctor in case you woke up during my watch over you. That this crash was expected really in hindsight, you're unused to the amount of estrogen in your body, and that fact that you're a real woman. Congratulation Master you're on your period, want to be shown how to use a tampon or drink the potion to be a man for the time being and wait it out for the rest of the week."

Andy, recalling how for most of her family periods hurt like hell, decided to do the second option and silently pulled the potion from her bag. "It'll probably be good to compare after two weeks as a woman anyway…" She said, mostly to herself, before taking a sip of the potion.

Just like before the change was quick and Andy was a man once again back in his original body.

"Hehe, probably should have changed clothes before drinking Master, cause aren't you wearing women's underwear at the moment?" Asked Kiyohime.

"Oh, right, the bra," Andy said, remembering said article of clothing as it was now comparatively empty. "...I wonder if I can take it off without removing my shirt...no, no that's stupid." He said to himself, before recalling Kiyohime was still right there. "Ah, would you mind turning around? I know it almost literally doesn't matter, but I'd prefer to not have a teenager watch me undress in any way."

"Don't worry I leave and get Mash," Kiyohime said as she left Andy's bedside.

"Tell her to knock first!" Andy yelled after her as she left. Once the door closed, he then removed the sweater and t-shirt (which thankfully still basically fit) and took off the bra. Kiyohime had been right, he really should have done that before, even though he knew it was _his,_ it was still weird. Hell, it was strange being a man again at all after having gotten used to not being one.

He put the bra in his bag and put just the 'I have no tits' shirt back on, the sweater was a tad too short for his tastes now, and he was going to change into something else anyway so why bother putting it back on.

As he went to leave the sick bay, he remembered he was still wearing a skirt, but then decided he did not care and opened the door anyway.

"Ah, Senpai you're back to being a male?" Said, Mash, as Andy ran straight into her (thankfully not literally this time) as he left the infirmary.

"Ah, yeah, apparently that potion means periods are a lot more frequent, and so I figured I'd take the time to be male again to compare while I wait it out," Andy explained a bit nervously as he knew he sounded like a coward for avoiding something that happened every month for most women.

"That sounds like a good idea Senpai, I've heard from the other female staff that it is very annoying. Though you're in need of some male clothes now, unless you want to walk around in a skirt." Mash said.

"Eh, I've been doing it for the last two weeks, so the skirt things not really a bother. What is one though is that it doesn't really _fit_ , so I probably am going to change yeah." Andy said.

"Well, if you want it Da Vinci finished the new Plugsuit," Mash added.

"Oh, yeah that's right she did say it would take a few weeks, thanks for reminding me Kouhai," Andy said. "I should probably go do that now instead of later, so see you in a bit. Unless you want to be the first to see the new suit…?"

"I'm busy at the moment, some of the other female Servants invited me to a game of Just Dance, I just wanted to tell you that Da Vinci had the new uniform ready for you," Mash said.

"Oh, okay, well thanks Kouhai, see ya later," Andy said.

The two parted ways, and Andy headed down to Da Vinci's Workshop where the Caster was waiting for him.

"Hello Andy, well it seems you went back to being a boy, wanted to avoid the periods that should have occurred over this week?" She asked.

Andy scratched the back of his head. "Yeah. I know its kinda cowardly but I do need to at least compare both forms, y'know?"

"That's fine, now then I've got the new and improved plugsuit for you and ready to use." She announced.

Andy clapped politely. "Yay. So, what changes did you make?"

"Well, changed the colors to the ones you requested and incorporated the teleport function so that you can auto-equip Tenfold Shields. But the very newest edition is that I made it out of memory cloth so that it can change between two different outfits on the fly, so you don't have to walk around the plugsuit all the time. One for your female and one for your male form. Though for primary use within a singularity where you can't walk around in casual clothes. Nice shirt by the way." She exposited on her newest invention.

"Ooh, that all seems super useful. And thanks." Andy said as he looked over the new plugsuit. "But uh, how do you configure the other outfit forms you said about?"

"Uploaded an app to your armband that is connected to the suit that controls the memory cloth. The female one is a dress that I think you would like, the other is a form-fitting business suit, so that you look serious, though your female can use it if need be. Got the designs from Emiya while I talked to him."

"Ooh, I should probably get him to join the Fashion Squad, what's the dress look like?" Andy asked, excited at both not having to sacrifice fashion for safety and at the idea of getting some nice new threads.

"Put the suit on and see, I turn around, though I would have liked the strip show."

Andy blushed while he put on the suit while the zero modesty woman, had her back turned. After it was on Andy used his armband to change the outfit after finding the new app on it after he did, he recognized the outfit.

It was Saber's casual clothes from UBW.

His expression was completely deadpan as he triple checked in his head that he wasn't just imagining the similarities, before deciding that yes, it indeed was. He sighed before selecting the suit; he'd see how he looked in that outfit later, might as well check the other one now.

He pressed okay, and the plugsuit shuddered and, in a display, Andy would have preferred to _not_ happen on his body, morphed into the suit. Thankfully he didn't really feel anything as it moved. "Well, Da Vinci, it works. Do you have a mirror?" Andy asked as he checked himself to see that the suit actually fit properly at the shoulders and sleeves.

The woman smirked as she reached out and from the wall pulled out a mirror that was attached to an extendable arm.

Andy looked himself over in the mirror. "Oh, wow, I look good." He held his hair back with his hands for a moment. "Oh, ba _by_ I look g _oo_ d! Da Vinci, do you have a hair tie?"

"I do put take it easy Narcissus." Da Vinci said as she threw him one.

"Hey, I haven't worn a suit in like three years, I forgot how good I look in one aight?" He said as he caught it and tied his hair back into a ponytail and looked himself over again. "And anyway, Narcissus did nothing wrong he's like, the pinnacle of self-love, and honestly I need to channel that a bit."

"I get it, why do you think I look like my pinnacle of beauty and not my wrinkly old ass." She responded.

"True, true," Andy said, nodding, still looking himself over in the mirror. "Oh, right, so how do I put Tenfold Shields on, just a command like with the other stuff?"

"Yes, though I give you something if you pose and shout. "I wear this armor for justice!"."

Andy mulled it over for a few seconds. "Oh hell yeah. I wear this armor for justice!" He said bombastically, pointing directly upward as if to pierce the heavens.

He then realized nothing was happening. "I thought you meant that was the transformation command!" Andy said, face reddening.

"Sorry, you were meant to say equip Tenfold Shields afterward, that is the normal command. Though since you did what I asked here is your reward." At that, Andy got a small kiss on the cheek.

This caused him to redden further. "E-equip Tenfold Shields," Andy said much more sedately afterward, the armor bursting into existence around him. He took a look at himself in the mirror to find the Mystic Code still looked the same. "Oh, yeah, that reminds me. You made this out of the Wyvern parts we got from France, right? Are there any of the claws or teeth left over?"

"That is the only things that are left really, could use the best of the best of the beasts hide. Though the meat is in the freezer not sure if a human stomach can survive eating that though. Be they Servants or others wise."

"Oh, good. I recently started making familiars, and I was thinking if I want to make one even slightly combat capable it should probably have working claws instead of plush ones, and I actually have an idea for the teeth too...wait, can you make a familiar from stitched together formerly-living parts of a Phantasmal Species?" He asked, ideas racing through his head.

"Yes, that is how they were made back in the day, and we do have some files on a guy named Nero Chaos that have a lesser dragon and a bicorn as a part of his 666 familiars."

"Well, that doesn't just scream 'bad guy' now does it," Andy said sarcastically. "So do I just put the meat back together into the shape of a dragon? Or do we still have one or two that's relatively in its previous shape?" He asked, now very excited at the prospect of a Wyvern familiar, even if it would be rather Frankenstein-y.

"You're right on the money with Chaos as he is a Dead Apostle, and we don't have any intact Wyverns left. Though the meat can be used as most familiars are just Chimeras made from dead animals. Though work with that is a little above your current skill level your plush hippogriff is fine. Come back to this in maybe six months or so."

"Can I still take the claws and teeth for Griffsy Jr?"

"That you can. Those would be easier for you to work with, as the meat would require some biomancy skills you don't have or probably ever gain, you're better suited for things in the spiritual department, maybe ask Waver for some evocation lessons."

"Oh. Okay, that probably is a good idea. I should probably ask him what my Affinity is too…" Andy said, slightly disappointed at no dragons but brought back up at the idea of ghost familiars.

"Well, see you later Andy, I'm currently in the painting mood, so I don't want to be disturbed for the next few days."

"Gotcha. Oh, but before I go, where are those wyvern claws?"

"Storage room down the hall, its marked so you should be easily able to find it." She responded.

"Understood. Ciao, Da Vinci."

Xxx

September 28

"Ahh, Senpai wake up and get dressed. Dr. Roman has found the next Singularity!" Came Mash voice through Andy's door.

Andy, still male at the moment and previously already slightly awake, bolted out of bed and out of his pajamas into the plugsuit and opened the door all under 30 seconds. "Alright, let's get to the Command Deck. Do the other Servants know yet?" Andy said as they began quickly making their way to said Command Deck.

"Everybody has been, and breakfast shall be served down there while the Doctor briefs us about its nature," Mash said.

"Alright then, good," Andy said as he distractedly pulled his hair back into a ponytail using the hair tie dropped into his hand by Griffsy who he had had go back for it. The little plush wasn't quite articulate enough to be a proper extra hand, but it was close enough for now; that was one of the main things he was working on with Griffsy Jr after all. And making it an actual Hippogriff; he was still astounded at his own stupidity in giving Griffsy four bird claws instead of two and two hooves.

They soon arrived.

In the Command Room, they were met with Roman and Waver along with small breakfast table. Andy had been spending most of the last five days with the latter man after he had shown Andy which elements he was aligned towards. He had an alignment towards apparently two elements one of the standard one and a non-standard one. Those being Ether and Spirit, the latter of which played into his seemingly perfect Master cadency. The normal one was just that he was good with manipulating Magical Energy in its purest form. And so over the days, Waver had taught him about his capabilities and that he should focus on Spiritual Evocation which involved Soul Manipulation and creating Familiars. He had actually managed to hold the Soul of a rat in the living world a few seconds after it had died.

"Boss, Professor, what's the situation?" Andy asked, already fully in business mode.

"Late last night I finally got the coordinates for the third Singularity, the year is 1573, the golden age of world exploration. However, it's the physical location that is quite weird." Roman said.

"The physical location? How so?" Andy asked.

"It's a place that actually doesn't exist but was created by the Singularity, from the idea of it. Okeanos, the sea that is supposed to be the end of the world."

"Oh, so that's what Artemis meant about the 'sea with no borders,' I thought she just meant we would get dropped in the middle of the ocean." Andy realized aloud. "Mhm, but it's a shame we don't have any Riders with boats...mhm, actually, bringing a crew of mostly Riders and a ship lent by Gil, maybe Gil himself, would probably be for the best for the initial party, right?"

"Yes, the now young King of Heroes would have a vessel to use, and I would suggest bringing along Nero or Romulus so that they could use their Imperial Privilege to grant themselves helmsman capabilities. We hope to Rayshift you to one of the Islands in the ocean where you can call on your party and go look for the Grail." Waver said.

"Understood. Do we have any other pertinent information or any reason to not go in immediately?" Andy asked, wanting to know precisely what the hell Lev had been working for and if there were another agent like him they would need to beat down.

"At the current moment no, we have no additional information, but if the pattern holds true, you will encounter friendly and enemy Servants." Waver finished.

"Yeah, I'm expected to see Artemis and Orion again after their little stunt with the dumplings… you said its Okeanos, so its Greek right?"

"Not precisely the sea has many names from many nations, though Okeanos is the one it's most commonly known as that is what Iskander sought and thanks to the adventures of Sinbad." Dr. Roman answered.

"Mhm. So the Little Conqueror, Ushi, and Nero are confirmed so far for our landing party...then Astolfo and...Lancelot would probably be good to round out our initial team regardless of what we situation we land in. Yeah, that should work for the landing party." Andy decided. "But now I'm wracking my brain for any legendary boats and crews, and I'm only really coming up with Pirates from after that point in history, and Captain Nemo. Anyone else have any ideas?" Andy asked, on some level hoping he'd get to see Blackbeard, who must be insanely cool as a Servant what with the setting his beard on fire and all of the many legends revolving around him.

"Those we know from that Era are still alive, but due to the spatial abnormality of the Singularity them being there is a very low probability," Roman said. "So are you ready to Rayshift?"

"Ye-wait, just one moment." Andy said as he grabbed Griffsy out of the air and pulled out a sewing needle and thread from storage, 'quickly' sewing in a Rune into the plushy. "Didn't think before about salt water, just wanted to reinforce the little guy real quick. Now I'm ready."

"Okay into the Coffins, summon call upon our Servants after you arrive." Said Waver.

"Right," Andy said, queuing up the correct Servants on the switch-out screen but not pressing ok before getting in. "Ready."

"Ready, Senpai," Mash said now in her Servant outfit.

Xxx

"Okay, we surrender!" Shouted the downed _living_ human in front of Andy and Mash. As instead of appearing on one of the Islands in the ocean they had instead been Rayshifted on board a ship, a privateer ship filled with British men that had attacked as soon as they had appeared. But Andy and Mash had quickly beaten them into submission and now the man that was the acting Captain, while the real one was on an island close by.

They were apparently scouting the area as the entire ship had suddenly appeared in the Singularity and had found their charts and compasses no longer worked.

"That's everything I know, the Captain might know more we can take you to the boss if you want." The man explained.

"I would like to speak to your Captain, yes. Posthaste, gentlemen." Andy said, saying the last word extra sarcastically.

"You heard him, men, let's return to the Captain, or we get beaten up again." The privateer said, and at that, they all rose again, but they had learned their lesson.

"Well, Senpai looks like the doctor messed up the landing again, but we were in luck, we at least didn't land in the ocean," Mash said as she stood beside him.

"Yeah, that is true. Oh, wait, almost forgot." Andy said, before pressing the 'ok' button on the Grand Order Change menu, and soon Lancelot, Ushiwakamaru, Astolfo, Alexander, and Nero joined them on the boat. This time, the crew just 'ignored' the sudden new guests on their boat after a glare from Mash. "Welcome to Okeanos, everyone. Boss missed the nearest island by this much, so we're using this ship to get to it to make plans from there. Everyone stay on alert though, there could be any number of things in these waters." Andy filled in the landing team on the situation.

He got a confirmation in response, though more of gurgle from the now mad Lancelot, well at least he wasn't attacking Nero. Though he did have him shift into astral form for surprise Lancelot in your face attack.

"Hmm, this might be called Okeanos, but it is not the same one my older-self will seek so I can enjoy the sight of it and the sound of its waves." Said, Alexander, as he looked out on the ocean.

"Yeah, I figured you'd enjoy this, that's why I brought you with instead of one of the other Riders," Andy said, happy to make one of his Servants happy. Though his happiness was dampened somewhat at how he probably wouldn't get to see his little brother happy for a long time, if ever, along with the rest of his family.

"Though, Master why do we not try and commandeer this ship? I could easily sail such a mighty vessel that is this galleon." Nero said.

"Shush, Saber, why do you think we're going to the island?" Andy said to her in hushed tones, not using her True Name out of habit.

"Ah, shall we take it after they all leave?" She whispered. "To steal from what appears to be pirates, my always wanted to do that, they have always been a problem for Rome interfering with trading."

"I think they're technically privateers, which are like government-funded pirate-pirates, but yeah. I figured putting them on the island would be better than just pushing them overboard and sailing away." Andy explained quietly to Nero, forgetting if he really wanted to be stealthy he could just use telepathy.

They all accepted that explanation and so waited for an hour before the ship made landfall.

"Okay, the great Captain is further inland, and it would be great to do business with you Clocktower Magi once again, even in this weird place. Sorry for not recognizing your position earlier." The acting Captain said.

"Don't worry about it, none of my men came to harm, so it's fine," Andy said. "Ushi, stay on the ship for now. Everyone else is moving inland to talk to this Captain." He said, hoping to perhaps have the crew walk off the boat peacefully instead of having to force them off, and convincing the captain would be the easiest way to do so.

"Yes, my Lord I shall stay and watch the ship," Ushi answered back and sat down in a meditating position.

Andy nodded at the now sitting woman, and so he and the others followed the Privateers of the large ship and once Andy was down on the beach was then he saw its full size and the name that was on the side. It read "Golden Hind."

"Hope you ready to meet our Captain, Lord Magus, the greatest Pirate in the world, Francis Drake." The man announced.

"Holy crap Senpai, Francis Drake he is one of the greatest heroes in the world, having defeated the Spanish Armada, and is the first person to have sailed the world in its entirety and survived the trip. The El Draque, the man who set the sun of the Spanish Empire and made Britain the most dominant force in the world." Mash said going on a history tangent.

"Oh sounds like a most interesting person, one that would have been great among the paladins," Astolfo said.

"Yeah, that is our Captain. Come we need to go into the jungle our camp is there." Acting Captain said.

"Hm, yes, lead on," Andy said suspicions confirmed about at least one of the big names in pirates (and privateers) showing up and now very excited. He was also happy his helmet hid the fact he kept looking at Astolfo, who he hadn't really interacted with much since his summoning due to spending so much time with Waver.

They followed the sailors into the jungle, and soon after they could hear the distinct sound of partying with music and shouting. And a second later they all appeared in the camp that was full of dancing, singing, drunken privateers.

"Hey, who do you got there Bombe?" Asked a voice over the crowd.

"Guests that want to talk to you, Captain." Said the acting Captain now named Bombe.

"Hello there my name is Francis Drake what can I do for you?" Said the female pink haired Francis Drake.

"Oh, should really have seen that coming." Said Mash with a sigh.

" _Once again written history is incorrect again,"_ Roman said soon after in the helmet.

Andy took it in stride, now more-or-less used to famous figures randomly being the 'wrong' gender. "Greetings, Captain Drake. We happened to have...landed on your ship earlier, and I was hoping to have a talk with you about your ship." He said to the Pink-haired Privateer.

" _I want to add Andy if you haven't figured it out that is the living Drake, just like with Nero in Rome, though with Nero I can detect some form of magical energy inside of her, but it's muddled,"_ Roman informed him.

"Yeah, I figured based on how she wasn't triggering my fight-or-flight response," Andy said through just the comms back to base. He was very happy Da Vinci installed that feature.

"First of if you want to talk, of with that stupid helmet and look at me with your face." She said.

"Just so you know, if you try anything my squad will not hesitate to end you," Andy said before removing just his helmet, not wanting to lower his defenses too much while in a Singularity. "Now then, are you willing to talk?" He asked, looking her directly in the eyes.

"Well, at least you showed you have balls and not an aristocratic Magus brat like I thought you were, second if you to talk to me about anything that involves my ship you have to fight me. And I choose that pink haired girl with the shield, if she beats me, I let you sail anywhere on my ship, as long as I'm behind the helm. I can tell that you are in need of it to traverse these dangerous waters." Drake spoke cutting straight to the chase.

"Mhm. And what's to stop us from just killing you and taking your ship anyway?" Andy asked, curious to if she had some special power or connection to the ship. He had no intention of killing her or the crew unless they attacked but he wanted to try something new-intimidation.

"One you lose valuable knowledge I have about the sea, and two nobody can sail the Golden Hind like I can."

"Hmm, she believes herself better than Rome?"

"Saber, shush please," Andy said to the Emperor before turning back to Drake and staring her in the eyes for a moment before speaking again. "Your terms are acceptable. Mash, don't beat her up too bad."

"I won't Senpai," Mash said as stepped forward, and the others walked over to the side, so they could get a good look at the beatdown that was surely about to commence.

"Kick her ass, Kouhai!" Andy said enthusiastically, hoping to provide the same kind of motivation she had provided him in his last fight, though like there he honestly doubted she needed it.

"Let's fight then girl," Drake said, and immediately Andy's smile disappeared as Drake suddenly appeared in front of Mash and sent her flying with a single kick.

"You're one of those superhumans aren't you girl, so don't lose that quickly!" Drake shouted as she brandished two Flintlock pistols and then proceeded to rapid fire them, and they hit the surrounding trees with such force the trunks seemingly exploded into nothingness as Mash dodged them.

xxx

A/N: For everyone complaining about the gender bend I want you to remember that this is a Friend Insert. Which mean there are to writes writing this. The Insert being Passive_Soul who is Andrew and me myself as basically the GM writing the unknown world he is interacting with. He saw no need to bring it up as it wasn't relevant to previous situations, but then Medea mentioned that she modified her eyes to look elven, passive took the chance and asked. This whole story is basically a DnD session between me and Passive.


	42. Grand Blue Sea

Mash bobbed and weaved in between the flying projectiles as she tried to reduce the distance between her and Drake.

Mash moved her shield to the left as parried a bullet back at Drake who had to dodge her own attack. But it seemed that Mash had planned for that as she followed the parry up with slamming the face of her shield into the side of Drake causing the woman to get knocked down. But before she could recover with an apparent dodge roll Mash had jumped up and landed on top of Drake causing her to lose leverage so that she couldn't get Mash off her.

"Surrender Drake, you have lost." Mash stated as she sat upon her shield that was on Drake.

"Ay, I surrender girl." Drake acknowledged, and Mash took the initiative to move so that Drake could stand up. "Well, that definitely made me sober, now then seeing as I lost, and your the Captain of the girl you can do whatever you want me, boil me, take my ship or bed me," Drake said with a massive grin.

"Hmm, well I've never tried using my Magecraft on a human soul…" Andy said, mostly jokingly, used to well-endowed strangers propositioning themselves at this point.

"Bloody, Magi I wonder why Elizabeth let you lot do what you do, now then as proposed before my crew and I is now part of your crew, so I can take you anywhere you want on the seas and give you all the information you need. Though who are you exactly?"

"We're something like your lot, deposited here into this weird place, except we're here on purpose to try and fix it," Andy explained without actually getting into detail. "Also, the soul thing was a joke, I value human life more than that."

"Ah, one with morality, though I ain't to speak I am a pirate no matter, what Elizabeth says we are. Now come and sit down and drink with us, so that we can discuss the future on this sea." Drake said as she went over to what looked like a hastily constructed table. Though Andy took note that after the fight had finished the other seamen had returned to partying.

Andy decidedly did not drink from the tankard he was given. "So, Drake, what do you know about the current situation?"

"Well, this place no longer operates on the normal rules of the world, the current and winds change direction on a whim, the weather is sporadic with sudden storms and hail where there had sun. And the few islands we have been to have different climates on one it was winter on another it was a desert." She took a swig of probably ale from her cup. "Star charts, no longer match the skies, and compasses spin around constantly. Basically, navigation is close to impossible here. And to make it worse, there are other invulnerable bastards, sailing around out there. They take cannonballs straight to the face and don't get budged."

"Can you describe any of these 'invulnerable bastards'?" Andy said, hoping to guess at the identity of the enemy Servants before ever meeting them.

"We fought during the night in the middle of a storm, so I didn't get a good look, but the man I guessed to be the captain was even taller than you and had some sort of hook on his right hand. Plus an excellent gunner with a large musket, couldn't tell if they were a woman or man from their place in the Crowsnest."

"This may be an odd question, but the one you thought was the captain, was his beard on fire?" Andy asked, hoping to narrow it down between Blackbeard, or just some random pirate with a hook hand like Captain Hook.

"Nah, no such ridiculous thing like that, what kind of idiot would do something like that," Drake said while drinking some more.

"Well, Edward Teach would, but that's good to know. Did you and your crew encounter any other oddities since arriving?" Andy asked, both disappointed and happy to (potentially) not having to face Blackbeard.

"Hmm Senpai?"

"Yes, Kouhai?" Andy said, turning his head to look at Mash.

"It's the Holy Grail."

"Like its close by or you realized something about it?" Andy asked, now on alert.

" _Speaking of that my instruments are saying its right in front of you, probably a bug."_ Came Romans voice.

"It's The Grail, the cup Drake is holding is the Grail," Mash said.

"Ah," Andy said the picture of calm. "In that case…" He turned back to Drake and telepathically told his Servants to be prepared for a tussle. "Ah, Drake, would you mind handing over that cup?" He asked, deciding to do this the polite way to start.

"Wait, you need this little trinket, it just gives the best booze, and if you place it on a table, it makes food." She said and placed it on the table, and soon food spawned. "Sure you can have," Drake said.

"Thank you," Andy said as he took the Grail from her. "This looks nothing like the other...oh my god," Andy said as he realized the other possibility for what he was holding. "Roman, get Martha on the line, I need her to confirm this."

" _Sure just a moment, rerouting the call… Hello Master what can I help with."_ Came Martha's voice taking over Roman's.

"Hey, Martha, you'd be able to recognize the Actual Holy Grail, right?" Andy asked, cutting straight to the point. "Because we may or may not have found the Actual Holy Grail."

" _I do, and that is not it your holding. But it is a Grail one that has occurred naturally not one of the implanted one meant to cause Chaos in the Human Order. Where did you find it? I think this one is actually counteracting the influence of the one in this Era. That the one called Lev used in the other Eras."_ Martha explained.

"Ah. I see." Andy said simply as he tried to comprehend the implications of that statement. Really, with all the chaos in the Singularities, it made some kind of sense that something like this would happen, but he really hadn't been expecting it. "We're definitely taking this back with us, then. Mash, can you hold on to it for now?"

"Miss, Drake where did you get the Grail from?" She said instead.

"We were out on a voyage, and I took it of an asshole."

"Come now Captain don't sell yourself short, it was an epic fight with that giant guy calling himself Poseidon, while he was trying to raise Atlantis and drown the World, you just went in a stole the cup, and kicked his ass and sunk the city." Said Bombe coming up towards the group.

"You defeated Lord Neptune?" Came the exclamation of shock from Nero.

"No, Saber, she said Poseidon. Conceptually their different entities." Andy said, confused how in the hell that situation came to be but at the same time no longer caring enough to ask with how crazy this world could sometimes be. "But that is still quite impressive, punching out someone with a Grail regardless of Divine status as just a human. But was that from before or after you arrived here?"

"It was before, we were in the middle of jungle looking for treasure then we were suddenly in this ocean on our ship, and we soon after got attacked by those superhumans," Drake said.

"Wow, Miss Drake saved the world, now then Senpai give her back the Grail it's rightfully hers, and it allows her to fight Servant so with it she isn't useless. No offense."

"Some taken, little girl."

" _We are taking it back once this is over,"_ Andy said telepathically while handing the Grail back to Drake. _"It's not like she'll need it afterward anyway."_

" _That's very scummy Senpai."_

" _It's the end of the world, a little kleptomania is okay if it means saving the world, in my opinion."_

"Well, seems that you need a different one," Drake said as placed the Grail on her chest and Andy saw it sink into her body. "Oh that gives me chills everytime, but at least I get superpowers out of it."

Andy eyed his untouched ale, heavily considering drinking it at that sight. "Yeah, yeah, we need the other one. I'm willing to bet that the other crew you ran into before has it, though I don't know what they plan to do with it. You didn't happen to get a sense of where they were heading, did you?"

"No we ran away from them in the storm haven't seen them since, though let's party and drink, for now, we head out to seas tomorrow, we have a few islands we know the locations of maybe there are things on them that could help. You've probably got magic detection stuff." Drake said.

"Yeah, we got something like that," Andy said. "I guess we're heading out tomorrow for the next nearest island then. I think I'm going to go see if I can find anything useful here...Astolfo, you come with."

"Yahoo Master, the best adventurer shall assist you." The Rider said.

Xxx

Andy, once more helmeted, and Astolfo had been walking along for a bit at a nice pace through the jungle to look for anything useful. Andy had been mostly quiet while Astolfo had been humming to himself the whole time, occasionally speaking up when seeing an animal.

Finally, Andy decided to face the music. "So, Astolfo, about...what I said before." He started, unsure both how to approach the topic and how to speak to the enthusiastic Paladin.

"About what Master?" Astolfo asked while coming to a stop and looking at Andy.

"B-back when I summoned you, I kinda...my mouth went faster than my head, and I said some really... _forward_ things," Andy said. "And, uhm, I just...wanted to tell you more coherently…" he said, trailing off as his heart beat faster at putting himself in this situation, but it was better to let these things be known than to let them go unsaid. Despite thinking this, he was still having trouble saying it aloud.

"Ah, it's fine Master I've gotten lots of confessions." His voice was still peppy.

Andy was rather happy his face was hidden at the moment. "Y-you have?"

"Yep, from both boys and Girls, I was crowned as a prince of Britain you know? Got a lot requests for marriage."

"I didn't actually know that," Andy said, deciding to read up on Astolfo's legend a bit later. "But...did you ever accept any of those requests?"

"Nah, I had my duty to my King didn't have time for it, but now my duty is to you Master. So I accept." He said.

"W-w-what!?" Andy asked in surprise, completely thrown off guard. "Y-you d-do?"

"I do, so let's get to know each other better Master, though to seduce me in the middle of the woods is kinda naughty." Astolfo grinned.

Andy sputtered as he tried to get his mind back in line, which was rather hard with how his heart was pounding against his skull. "U-uhm, i-isn't t-that a li _ttle_ too f-fast? I k-know you b-but you've only k-known me a few days."

"Okay, let's go on a date after we are done with the Singularity," Astolfo said.

Andy nodded rapidly. "Yeah, th-that sounds like a g-good idea. It's a d-date then."

"Okay, how about we go back to the others and party, you've done what you came here to say to me."

"Y-yeah, that's a good idea, lets."

Xxx

September 29

Andy felt the air of the sea against his face, as they were all back on the now sailing Golden Hind after they had cleaned up the camp after last night's party. And they were all heading towards one of the Islands that Drake knew the location of to check if there were clues to further their quest for the other Grail and those that held it.

During their voyage, Andy had swapped out Alexander for Emiya after realizing they had basically no ranged support that wasn't a Berserker and said Archer was now atop the crow's nest keeping watch over the seas.

Andy was eager to find anything useful, especially after finding out there could be extra Grails in existence, and that these islands could very well contain just about anything based on Drake's description.

At the moment, he was unarmored to enjoy as much of the sea breeze as he could. With Emiya on the lookout and the new instant-equip feature on Tenfold Shields, he felt at ease enough to do so. Griffsy, who seemed to be more-or-less fine in these conditions, was floating lazily around in circles as he leaned against the cabin. With the background noise of the ocean and the crew, it was...relaxing. Which meant to Andy something was about to happen for sure, but he was going to enjoy the 'peace' for as long as he could first.

"Want something to drink Senpai?" Mash asked as she held a bottle of water in each hand.

"Sure, thanks," Andy said, taking the offered bottle and taking a sip. "So, how do you like being on a boat so far, Kouhai?"

"It's more fun than I imagined, the feeling of it going up and down on the waves is calming in a way I can't describe."

"Yeah, it is really nice. Though, I think this is the slowest boat I've ever been in on the ocean. We should see if Gil has a super-jet ski or something later."

"That sounds like fun, though what did you and Astolfo, talk about yesterday it must have been something good cause you constantly beaming, so I didn't want to say anything to make you stop," Mash said.

"U-uhm, nothing, we didn't talk about anything," Andy said, totally convincingly.

"Yes you did, you were all happy looking." Mash inquired.

"I-I have no idea what you're talking about," Andy said, Griffsy floating in between the two to block her line of sight to his rapidly reddening face.

"Fine, I just go and ask Astolfo then."

Andy sighed. "I...kinda...sorta...confessed? And...we're going on a d-date after we've cleared this Singularity." He said, preferring she hear it from him than Astolfo.

"Oh, you didn't Senpai. What betrayal of my love towards you, didn't we become a couple in Rome." Mash said with the same melodramatic voice he used.

"Alas, fair Kouhai, when thou didst reject in jest I took it to heart! Now, resigned to being your Senpai, my heart belongs to another." Andy said, not missing the opportunity for melodramatics.

"My Senpai, thou thought it was jest, but ack now thy heart belongs to the man who looks like a woman. I shall plunge a dagger into my heart of despair."

"COULD YOU TWO NOT SOUND LIKE ONE OF SHAKESPEARE'S SHITTY PLAYS!" Came the loud roar of Drake's voice from the helm.

"HIS PLAYS AREN'T SHITTY JUST A BIT TOO POPULAR!" Andy shouted back.

"YOU DAMN RIGHT, HE FUCKING ACTS LIKE HE IS THE GODDAMN SAVIOR OF THEATER."

"GOOD TO HEAR WE AGREE!"

"Bwahaha." Came the laughter from Mash. "Now, Senpai to be honest. I hope you and Astolfo have a nice date then."

Andy smiled at her. "Thanks for the support, Mash. You're still the best Kouhai regardless of anything else."

"That I am." She completely agreed.

Andy then placed his hand on her shoulder. "Also, no matter the context, please don't joke about suicide like that. I literally do not think I'd be able to do all this without you here."

Mash just smiled a big smile.

"LAND IN SIGHT!" Shouted Emiya from his position.

"Armor up," Andy said, Tenfold Shields, deploying around him. He was rather happy Da Vinci's programming allowed for not just changing the voice commands but allowing for multiple different commands for the same thing so he could choose one based on the situation. "Alright everyone, no idea what could be on this island, so be prepared for anything."

"Right Master." Came a response from his Servants.

It was a few minutes later that they made anchor on the island's beach and they deployed with some of the crew and Drake.

"My men are going to scout the Beach, to see if there have been other ships here recently. So I am going with you." Drake said.

"Alright then. Archer, you stay here on the ship on lookout. Everyone else, we're going inland." Andy ordered, figuring it best to leave Emiya in the highest position for the best view of the area for now.

The Archer obeyed and stayed behind as the group of seven made their way further inland, going through the tropical jungle.

They were all alert as they walked as they looked around the place and it paid off as Andy barely dodged a surprise ax swing that probably would have taken off his head.

He heard the clash of steel as the attack was pushed away from the group and he got a good look at the attacking Servant, for what else could it have been.

"Master I can not detect any magical energy from this Servant, something must be concealing or suppressing it." Announced Ushi.

"Well, he's attacking, so I'm gonna go ahead and say he's an enemy, so…" Andy quickly contemplated how best to take on the horned servant with both a veiny ax and shield. "Surprise, Berserker!"

"Uargh!" Shouted Lancelot as he appeared and swung a large tree branch at the enemy.

"BUAH!" Roared the enemy Servant in kind, guess he was a Berserker too.

The two maddened Servants swung their weapons at each clashing over and over again, it seemed that the enemy Berserker had something like Herc going on that. He had still some techniques that had been ingrained into his body, but not like Lancelot as the black knight struck with precise swings, while the horned man's were too wide and clumsy.

However as Andy watched the fight going on as Lancelot was soloing the Servant, he watched as the Axe in the enemy Berserker's hand was starting to light up in a menacing red glow.

Andy, of course, did not like the looks of that. "Berserker, Noble Phantasm, now!" He ordered, not particularly caring whether he pulled out Arondight or the Chaingun, only caring that the enemy Berserker does not unleash whatever it was about to do. "Everyone else, get behind Mash!"

"ARRRTHUR!" Shouted Lancelot as the Chaingun was manifested and unleashed on the enemy Servant, but as the bullets were about to land, the enemy vanished with a blink.

"What, in the?" Came the exclaimed shock from Drake and the others gave their own in response.

"Everyone, stay alert, if he can disappear instantly then he can probably come back just as quick!" Andy said. "And since we can't detect it, we need to keep our eyes open."

"To chime in, I actually managed to detect a showing of magical energy then he disappeared, and it's the same kind as when you use a Command Seal Andy." Said the holographic form of Roman.

"Neat." Andy heard Drake say as Roman appeared.

"Oh, okay. So, different problem, that means it was actually summoned or contracted and didn't just spontaneously start existing, which means we've got an enemy Master on our hands again. I'm willing to bet its a Servant again like in France, or someone from this Singularity. I don't think Lev had a brother or anything, so it's probably not another modern human turned abomination." Andy deduced.

"Probably not though not that you're in the center of Island I can fine comb and it and I am detecting a slight signature from where a few of your men currently are on the beach, just go left." Said, Roman, as he disappeared.

"Well, you heard the boss, guess we're going left," Andy said. "But...hmm...Deploy Claws," he said as they began to go to the beach. "Berserker, do you think you'll be able to use this as you are? Long growl yes, short growl no."

"Aarrgggghhhhh!"

"Alright then. Just make sure not to lose this." Andy said as he tossed the box to Lancelot, who caught it deftly. The red lines spread over it and the box shuddered for a second. "Alright, posthaste to the beach, don't want Drake's men dead!" He said, hoping he didn't just make a mistake.

They quickly arrived at the beach and saw that thankfully the men were okay, but what they were standing by was much more interesting.

"Look, Captain, we found a Viking longship, and it had a map on board with coordinates to various islands, and one of them were marked. Though from what we were able to see with skill far less superior to yours it's a week-long travel. But since its marked, it must be important." One of the men said as he handed Drake the large wooden tablet.

"Great work we can use this."

"Hmm. It's obvious this was that Servant's ship, but...why would a lone Servant stop here instead of its apparent destination?" Andy wondered aloud. "I feel we should finish scouting out the Island to see if there's anything here, probably have Astolfo get an aerial view for anything we'd miss on the ground like the island being shaped like a skull or something."

"You go do that, I'm going to be investigating this map, cause this thing is excellently made, man that Viking knew his stars," Drake said in wonder as she looked at the wooden tablet.

"Alright, we'll meet back up at the Hind by dusk," Andy told the pink pirate.

"See, you then," Drake said as she left the group and returned to the ship.

"Astolfo, take to the skies on Hippogriff and see if you can spot anything. Berserker, stay close I doubt you'll be able to relay any useful information. Nero, Ushi, you'll be splitting off from the main group so we can cover more ground. I, along with Mash, am going to be investigating the area we found that Berserker in to see if we can figure out why he was there. Any objections?" Andy ordered while staying open for input.

"I don't."

"Not here my Lord."

"Whoo flying time!"

"Arh!"

"Alright, then, if you encounter anything tell me immediately. Let's move out." Andy said, and the group divided, Andy heading back to where they had just been with Mash and Lancelot, Astolfo summoning Hippogriff and flying up into the air, and Ushi and Nero going off in their own directions.

The only thing of note that they found was an odd flat stick covered in Runes back where they had fought the Berserker. Upon finding it, Andy had called in Roman. "Boss, do you know what this is? And if you don't, could you patch one of the Casters through?"

" _That's a stick with Runes on Andy, I thought you would know what it spells."_

"I can r _ea_ d, Boss, I don't know what it means. It just spells out Gunnhild, which I don't recognize." Andy said a tad upset at Roman calling him illiterate.

" _Huh? That sounds like a name, just a moment I'm running it through TRIGEMESTUS Database, and see if there is a result and… Bingo. So it's definitely a name it belongs to a Scandinavian Witch, who get this was married to an old Norwegian King by the name of Eric Haraldson, who had the nickname Bloodaxe. You see where I'm heading."_

"Mhm. So I'm guessing Gunnhild summoned her husband then, or was summoned with him. May or may not be the Grail holder though, there could very well be multiple cases here. I'm definitely not ruling it out as a possibility." Andy said, wary of jumping to conclusions but also having many findings at once.

" _Probably one thing is for certain, I guess the stick is what kept his magical signature concealed, and that's why I was able to pick up the teleport because he accidentally dropped it."_

"Mhm. Interesting how it's just a name yet it can hide a Servant so well...Store Found Object Designation O1." Andy said, storing the stick in Tenfold Shield's hammerspace to study it later. "Thanks for the input, Boss, now we know that Servant's True Name."

" _You're welcome Andy, now I talk to you later, Roman out."_

"Roger," Andy said as the feed cut out. He then looked up into the sky. "We got a good hour till dusk yet, you wanna help me find some small animals Mash?"

"Ah, sure thing Senpai."

They managed to find and catch a few brightly colored birds, but there was a surprising lack of animals on the ground. Or perhaps they were just better hiders.

Andy brought the birds back as they met up with the other Servants, who reported finding nothing as well. They made their way back to the Hind, and the Servants asked why Andy was carrying several live birds to which he simply said "Practise."

When they arrived back at the Hind it was to another party, Drake still looking over the map, her Grail in hand. "Hey, Captain, find anything useful on that map?" Andy asked as they approached, the captured birds finally having stopped squawking after basically giving up.

"I have a clear image of the Viking was doing, he was basically scout and mapping the sea, the marked place wasn't a designation he had been there, and deemed it the most important one. More so than any of the others. So I suggest we go there. Though like my men said it's going to take at least of a week of sailing." Drake said.

"Hmm. You wouldn't happen to be able to tell the actual distance would you?" Andy asked, a plan beginning in his head.

"I can't it's measured in moon passings between marking that island and here." She answered. "Though since the Golden Hind is my ship, we should be able to cut off a day or two of travel unless we run into a storm."

"I see," Andy said, before turning to Lancelot. "Hey, Berserker, is a boat a weapon? Long growl yes, short growl no."

"Arh."

"Damn… is a fan a weapon?"

"Arrrghhh."

The grin on Andy's face threatened to split it in half. "Well then. I think we'll be able to make our voyage go even quicker since we'll have the winds on our side."

"Oh, I'm all ears?" Drake said with a similar smile.


	43. No David Bowie Here

October 4

"Man this was a great idea, Andy, we cut the distance down by two days," Drake said as the ship speed along sea fueled by the extra boost provided by Lancelot who was literally fanning the sails to boost their speed by a few knots.

Andy, now female once more, was still smiling like a lunatic at the sight, though the intensity had died down somewhat. "Yeah, I love it when my ideas actually work." The few days at sea had passed quickly and calmly, though the sound of tropical birds dying rather loudly occupied the ship for the first few days.

"Well, our destination is in sight, but is your magi friend able to detect any supernatural stuff on the Island?" Drake asked as their destination was in clear view this island didn't seem to have any plantation on it and was just a hilled field.

"Boss, you picking anything up?" Andy asked, using the direct line to Roman to make sure he heard.

"Well, the only thing I'm currently picking up is a powerful Leyline for you to use and summon a Servant, nothing else at the moment," Roman said to the both of them as he appeared. "Though I can't discount for things being hidden."

"Yeah, with Eric whatever being able to hide from us with just a stick with a name on it, we really have to look out for hidden enemies now…" Andy said, hoping Emiya would be a good enough watchman for now, but she was considering swapping out another Servant for another Archer.

"That was exactly my concern, though for now explore the island." Roman finished and vanished.

"Alright then, let's see why Eric whatever thought this was the most important island," Andy said, eager to find potential new resources or to otherwise learn what was actually happening in this Singularity.

The ship approached the island, and they docked at the beach like they had done the previous one.

"Alright, I feel like we should have someone watching the ship but we also need someone with keen eyes with the group. Nero, I think I'm going to swap you out for another Archer after we see who joins us at the Leyline. Emiya, stay with the ship like before." Andy said as they approached the beach.

"I understand Master, a balanced team is important, and I offer little in the way of range." Nero acknowledged.

"Of course Master, I shall protect the ship," Emiya responded.

"Alright, let's head towards the Leyline, and keep an eye out for anything interesting or any hidden enemies," Andy said before equipping Tenfold Shields and leaving the boat with the other Servants the superhero way-jumping off.

"I see you later then!" Drake shouted as they jumped off.

They landed on the ground and headed straight for Leyline Terminal to set up the circle as fast a possible before they got attacked and interrupted.

Thankfully, in the time it took Mash to set up there were no interruptions. Soon, the Summoning Room was brought into existence and Andy, now helmetless to greet the new Servant, approached the circle. "Alright, hopefully, we get someone nautical. Or with keen eyes." She said as she summoned the latest addition to the team.

"Archer-class Servant, Chiron, has answered your summons. I hope my knowledge can be of some help to you... In any case, nice to meet you. I'll use all of my strength for your sake." Said the summoned Archer.

"Hey, it's Archer good to see you again." Said Astolfo.

"It seems we shall be working together again Rider, and of course you too Master," Chiron responded back.

"It's an honor to have you working with us, Chiron. I am Andy Murphy, the Master of Chaldea. Right now we're in an impossible space in a fragment of time, trying to prevent the Incineration of Human History." Andy explained to the newly summoned Archer. As she did, she also used her Stat-o-Vision on said, Archer.

[spoiler=Chiron's Stat Sheet]

True Name: Chiron

Class: Archer

Master: Andy Murphy

 **Parameters:**

Strength: B

Endurance: B

Agility: A+

Mana: B

Luck: C

Noble Phantasm: A

 **Class Skills:**

Independent Action: A

Magic Resistance: B

 **Personal Skills:**

Clairvoyance: B+

Eye of The Mind(True): A

Divinity: C

Wisdom of Divine Gift: A+

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Antares Snipe: Heavenly Scorpion Single-Shot(Anti-Unit): A

[/spoiler]

"Oh, and would you mind explaining what 'Wisdom of Divine Gift' and your Noble Phantasm do?" She asked, not actually sure of the specifics on his Noble Phantasm, merely that the shot was fired after his battle with Achilles.

"Well, that Skill is the representation as a Teacher of Heroes, and a sage of knowledge allowing to use a myriad of Skills at a certain level." He answered. "And my Noble Phantasm can only be used once during the night, but if I die it's used automatically, hopefully, that doesn't happen."

"Once during each night or once total, only at night?" Andy asked, not wanting to waste a Noble Phantasm.

"Once during each night, only when my constellation is in the sky. And it's not very powerful, just the same as my bow pulled fully back."

"Mhm. I'll keep that in mind. But going back to your skill, you said it represents you being a Teacher of Heroes, yes?" Andy asked, trying to prevent the eagerness from spilling into her voice too much, and failing.

"Yes, with your permission I can teach another Servant a new skill." He said. "Though it is temporary as it's not really a part of them. More like imparting the knowledge."

"How temporary is the granted skill?"

"Lasts a day."

"And there isn't any limitation to how many times you can do that daily? As in, how many different Servants you can use it on?" Andy asked, giddiness rising.

"On one Servant each day, for the telepathic backlash after it gives me to a severe headache, to be able to use it again."

"Aww, that's a shame. Are you able to teach living humans in the same way you did in life though, the 'normal' way? Not like skill granting necessarily just teaching in the same way?"

"Well, I can do normal teaching, but that will take way longer, years in fact. One does not become a trained Hero in the span of a day you know Master."

"Oh, that's fine then. With how long it takes to find each Singularity it's looking like we're in this for the long haul anyway, so I'm willing to take any help we can get even if the full effects won't be seen for a while. And you can help someone who's already a Hero on her journey along her way!" Andy said, motioning towards Mash.

"Ah, I see a budding Hero, that is rare in this current age. I give her some Pankration lessons." Chiron said. "Now shall we leave this box?"

"Ah, right, lets. We still have to figure out if this island was important just because of the Leyline or not...oh, and Nero, I'm sending you back now, okay?"

"It's fine I got to meet the Teacher of Hercules, so I'm satisfied, but we're doing something together after this Master," Nero said pointing a finger at Andy.

"Ah, sure Nero. As long as it doesn't interfere with my date." She said somewhat distractedly as she deselected Nero and pressed okay.

"Ahhh, I wanted one first." She said as she disappeared back to Chaldea.

"...I r _eally_ need to have a talk with my Sabers, don't I?" Andy asked rhetorically as Mash picked up her shield, the Summoning Room disappearing and being replaced by the hilly island. "Problem for later. For now, let's search this Island to see if there's anything else here. Astolfo, take to the skies again, everyone else spread out and look for anything on the ground." Andy ordered, putting her helmet back on.

Though it the moment she finished speaking that the ground beneath their feet quaked.

"Earthquake! Run for your lives!" Astolfo shouted as he began to run around in panic. But the shaking quickly ceased, and he stopped. "And it's over well, that was a disappointing event, I expected the ground to split open, and the forces of hell would attack us." He said disappointedly.

"Astolfo, please, do _not_ say things like that, with our luck that'll actually happen," Andy said, worried about how much narrative conventions still applied to the world. "But does anyone know why that just happened?"

"I do not know Master but, I felt a wave of energy flow through the Earth, and it felt familiar," Chiron said hesitantly.

"I _really_ don't like the sound of that, Chiron. _How_ familiar?" Andy asked, able to think of two known summonable Servants that would both be familiar and able to _fuck them up royally_ and not liking it one bit.

"There were two signatures in the wave, one was small and almost drowned out by the larger, one, but it was Divine in nature. The second was more beastly in nature like those of Typhon's and Echidna's children." Chiron answered, though as he finished, Andy got a telepathic message from Emiya.

" _Master we have a bit of problem, the ship is quite literally stuck in place and unable to move a single inch, due to the Bounded Field that just appeared after the earthquake. So, you need to get to the source and remove it if we're to leave the island and Drake is heading your way, and she is beyond pissed. Just head backward, and you should meet up with her."_ Was the extensive message from the Counter Guardian.

" _Better to hear its frozen then destroyed. Stay at your current location, for now, we're going to grab Drake and make sure she doesn't get herself killed and then get to the bottom of this._ " Andy replied, before speaking aloud. "Drake is heading our way, we're going to meet up with her and then get to the bottom of this. Everyone stay on alert though, we still don't know what we're up against." Andy ordered, silently praying that whatever they were up against it wasn't Archer Hercules and instead something much more manageable, like Zeus or Cronus or something.

They rushed back, and they quickly came upon Drake though the area she was standing in was now different from when they had passed through. There was now a large marble staircase that led underground, and several Lamia corpses surrounded Drake who stood tall and covered in blood her guns smoking.

"Sup so did you switch out the rack for man meat," Drake said with a smirk.

"Something like that," Andy said, more occupied with the Lamia corpses. "Hey, let's pile these up real quick and send them back to base, I feel like they could be useful to us later for materials."

Though as she tried to contact Roman and Da Vinci, Andy only heard static.

"O _h_. Well, that's not good at all." Andy said calmly to hide her worry. "Looks like we'll have to deal with whatever this is first. Let's get this over with."

"Do not worry Master, I shall deliver the head of the one who did this to you," Ushi stated, her hand on her katana.

"Don't be so quick with the decapitations, Ushi, there's always the chance they could be allies. At least wait till we confirm who's in control." Andy said to the underclad Rider. "But if they are enemies, you can decapitate with impunity."

"Understood." She said back as they went down the marble staircase, that as the got to the end of, it led to a large marble room that had several tunnels in the walls that probably led to other places.

"Man this place is fancy." Commented Drake.

"But this place it gives of an ominous feeling there is something dangerous down here." Mash stated.

"Yeah, I feel it too," Astolfo added as he took out his lance.

"Yes, this is most definitely Greek architecture," Chiron said.

"I feel like I should be able to figure out what this is but for some reason, it just isn't clicking…" Andy said, a tad confused but much more worried at what it could possibly be. "We should stay on alert, and head down one of these corridors. But I feel like we should stick together, this place looks kinda like a maze- _fuckthisistheLabaryinthhowthefuckdidInotputittogethersooner!"_ Andy very rapidly and now very fearfully said. "This is the Labyrinth, fuck, fuck, that means the Minotaur is probably the big one and how this place just showed up with that tremor, but does that mean we're in a Reality Marble or just a really strong Bounded Field? FUck, Chiron, please tell me the Labyrinth isn't a Reality Marble." Andy rapidly said, very worried about the possibilities of the Minotaur as a Servant, accompanied by a divine presence, while _being in its domain_.

"You're right Master, this is the Labyrinth of Minotaur, and now that I realize that I can clearly see that this Marble work is the same that Daedalus uses. It's not a Reality Marble, but it might as well be, more like this more an overlay. And this probably what is making the ship unable to leave the area that cannot be escaped. We need to find the monster and defeat it for it to vanish." Chiron stated.

"O _h_. G _reat_." Andy said, on some level happy it wasn't a Reality Marble just marble-marble but on every other level freaking out at being in such a disadvantageous position. She took a deep breath and attempted to calm herself, which helped, marginally. "Then let's go fight the Minotaur. In its Labyrinth. Which can only be navigated by said Minotaur? Yay." She said, faux-cheer dripping from her voice.

"Come now Andy, let's get to some bull-slaying," Drake said with confidence.

Andy took another deep breath. "Yeah. Let's go find the Minotaur. Everyone absolutely needs to stick together from here on out, this is basically the prototype, inescapable maze, if we get separated I don't think we'll be able to regroup till we defeat the Minotaur." She ordered. "Chiron, can you tell which direction the Minotaur is from its presence or was that only when it arrived?"

"Where he should always be, the center of the labyrinth, at that should be easy, it's the getting out part that is hard," Chiron said.

"Oh, okay, that should make this a little easier then. Onwards we go." Andy said, slightly more calm at that fact.

At that, they all went further into the labyrinth as the headed for the center of it and on the way Chiron informed them all on the Minotaur.

"While he is a monster he was born of a human and so should be a Servant instead of Phantasmal Beast with this very labyrinth as his Noble Phantasm and his Class should be Berserker."

Andy had managed to calm down a tad during his explanation. "So if he isn't contracted, we can get him on our side then, right? Does he have the level of reasoning necessary to resolve something peacefully?"

"Well, he probably could speak properly in the first years of his imprisonment, but the years of solitude drove him mad, so I do not know what we can expect of his Mad Enhancement, which level it shall be at," Chiron answered.

"Mhm. Then I guess we'll try a bit of diplomacy, but stay on guard in case things go south then." Andy decided. Now with a plan, she was able to think a bit more clearly and began to formulate just what she would say, or could say to convince a potentially-enemy Berserker to not instantly murderize them. "That means don't shoot first, Drake." She added.

"I get it, Captain, but if he comes swinging, I will shoot."

"ARGH!" Came the loud roar from the other end of the corridor they were walking through.

"I think that is our Minotaur, my Lord." Said Ushi.

"Okay, everyone is name isn't Chiron, don't say anything once we get close, but be prepared for an attack," Andy ordered before they continued down the corridor.

They walked to end, and they entered another large chamber, like the one before. And they were meet by the Minotaur roaring and charging right at them his two massive halberds ready to be swung. "Argh!"

"Mash, Shield!" Andy ordered hastily upon seeing the 10-foot wall of minotaur charging at them.

Mash brought up her shield and as the two weapons hit the ground shattered beneath with a shockwave that made Mash sink into the ground.

In response, Lancelot launched himself at the wall of flesh with The Claws in the form of a claymore.

"Ushi, wait till you have a clear opening to get in there and attack. Drake, Chiron, lay down some covering fire. Mash, hold the line while Lancelot fights the Minotaur." Andy ordered as she attempted to use her Stat-o-Vision on the Minotaur currently fighting her own Berserker.

[spoiler=Minotaur's Stat Sheet]

True Name: Minotaur/Asterios

Class: Berserker

Master: -

 **Parameters:**

Strength: A++

Endurance: A++

Agility: C

Mana: D

Luck: E

Noble Phantasm: EX

 **Class Skills:**

Mad Enhancement: B

 **Personal Skills:**

Monstrous Strength: A

Natural Monster: A++

Avyssos of Labrys: C

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Chaos Labyrinthos: Eternally Unchanging Labyrinth(Labyrinth): EX

[/spoiler]

After seeing the massive, fuck-off levels of Strength, the Minotaur possessed, Andy, changed her mind somewhat. "Change of plans, don't get hit no matter what! This guy has huge Strength if one swing connects that's it!" She ordered, not wanting her Servants to die.

And that was when Lancelot was grabbed by the waist and thrown through the wall, and another wall and another and another. And Andy was sure she heard the sound of few more breaking.

"Take this big guy!" Shouted Drake as she proceeds to pummel his face with bullets, and all it did was break the metal mask on his face which revealed a grumpy looking face underneath.

"YOU! WON'T! HAVE! HER!" Came the growled out words from Asterios.

"WE DON'T WANT HER, WE JUST WANT TO LEAVE!" Andy shouted back, not actually knowing who he was talking about, but hoping that would be enough to convince him of their intentions.

"Stop fighting Asterios they aren't part of that bastard's crew!" Shouted a female voice that sounded very familiar to Andy's ears. Which caused the big bull and from one of the corridors Andy saw Stheno?

"Euryale?" Came the response from Asterios.

"Stop, fighting Asterios they aren't here to take me are you." She said in a voice filled with various emotions.

"The only reason we came down here was so that we could leave," Andy said, hoping to further the point of the now-found third Gorgon Sister to Asterios. "We didn't even know either of you were here till just moments ago."

"You didn't but why are you on our hideout island then?" The Gorgon sister said as Asterios placed her on his shoulder.

"Gosh, that is adorable," Astolfo whispered into her ear.

"Yeah, I know, but shush for now sweetie I'm diplomancing," Andy whispered back, not really thinking about what she was saying before speaking at full volume. "We were attacked by another Berserker a weeks journey from here who had a map of the local islands. This was the only one circled, so we came here to look for anything interesting." She explained to the odd duo.

"Wait? A big guy, with a bloody ax? We saw him sail around, he is part of that Bastard's crew." She spat the last part.

"Yeah, that guy, his name's Eric something, and I think Drake here ran into that same crew before too," Andy said. "Also, you wouldn't happen to know the name of that 'Bastard' or his ship, would you? It's most likely he's a Servant too so that info would be pretty useful."

"Don't know his name they always referred to him as Captain, but he is a perverted creep that wants me to be part of his crew, and I almost would have if Asterios hadn't saved me." At that, the big man had a big smile on his face. "Though did get a good look at his face he had a black goatee. And he had four additional Servants with him if you don't count the ax guy." Euryale answered.

"Did one of them have a massive gun?" Andy said, cross-referencing the information she already had, while internally her suspicion that the enemy was Blackbeard was 99%, the remaining 1% left for the off chance it was someone completely unrelated who just happened to have a black goatee.

"Yeah, and big fat tits to go with it, who would want such a disgusting body. And there was a much smaller woman next to her. They seemed to be lovers, and I should know that kind of thing."

"Oy." Came Drake's voice in response to Euryale's first statement.

"Drake, it's okay, she's just jealous cause she's part of the itty-bitty titty committee," Andy said to the pink-haired pirate quietly.

"No I'm proud, who would want useless sags of flesh on their chest, like my dear sister. That so un-sexy. My body is better than these two women isn't that right Asterios?"

"Yes."

Andy stared at the two in silence for a moment. "Relationship goals." She said resolutely after a moment, nodding her head as if she had just made a life-changing discovery.

"So, are you two going to make it so that we can leave?" Drake asked.

"Asterios is, though only on the condition that we go with you our hideout is pretty much compromised. And you along with Asterios can easily defend my Divine-self. Especially with Lord Chiron on your side." She said.

"Accepted. You'll be with our crew till we get the Grail." Andy said after only a little thought. "Oh, right, actually, Euryale, once we're out of this Bounded Field, you can talk to your Sisters, I'm not switching them in, but we can communicate pretty easily, we have both of them back at Chaldea."

"Wait? My sisters? Are Stheno and Medusa with you?"

"Well, I am their Master, but neither of them are here in Okeanos. I might be able to swap in Medusa for some aerial support, but Stheno wasn't very adamant about helping our cause." Andy explained. "If you come back with us after we've got the Grail the three of you can have a proper reunion, even."

"Along with Asterios of course." She said.

"Of course, if he wants to come with. I didn't want to assume." Andy said placatingly.

"Of course he comes along, wouldn't you like to meet my sisters?"

"I would very much like to meet Euryale's pretty sisters like her." The bull-man spoke in slow, broken English like he was a toddler that had just learned to speak.

"Then it's settled, you'll both be coming with us back to Chaldea once this is over. Are either of you lacking in mana?" She asked, worried about keeping her new allies alive.

"No we aren't something unseen is providing for Asterios upkeep. And as I am an Archer and a Goddess, I can generate my own due to my high level of Independent Action." She said.

"Ah, that's good," Andy said as she realized she should probably use her Stat-o-Vision on Euryale considering she knew a bit less than she thought she did about the third Gorgon.

[spoiler=Euryale's Stat Sheet]

True Name: Euryale

Class: Archer

Master:-

 **Parameters:**

Strength: E

Endurance: E

Agility: C

Mana: EX

Luck: EX

Noble Phantasm: B

 **Class Skills:**

Independent Action: A+

Magic Resistance: A

 **Personal Skills:**

Goddess' Divine Core: EX

Blood-Sucking: C

Alluring Nightingale: A

Goddess' Whim: A

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Eye of the Euryale: Goddess's Gaze(Anti-Unit): B

[/spoiler]

"But, you two are then okay with contracting with a human Master once we're through here? I know Stheno had some objections, and that's the only way to be able to leave the Singularity that we know of." Andy asked for confirmation, noting how Euryale's stats and skills were rather close to Stheno's.

"It is fine, we both want to leave this wretched sea."

"Yes, Asterios doesn't like being here, Chaldea sounds much better."

"Alright, good, so it's settled. Let's get back to the ship and figure out where to go next from there." Andy said.

They all left the labyrinth after having the retrieved the knocked out Lancelot from the rubble after being owned by Asterios. The bull and goddess leading them out of place and taking down after they made their way outside and returned to the ship where they set to depart. Andy had tried to retrieve the Lamia corpses, but they disappeared when Asterios took down the Labyrinth as they had been an extension of it. But then that had happened they had regained contact with Chaldea, and telling them that they were okay and had gained Asterios and Euryale as allies.

And now they were back out on the sea, as they tried to figure out what to do next.

"Andy I hope you can pull out some good ideas here, cause the map isn't giving me much," Drake said as they were down in her cabin and eating dinner together while strategizing plus a few others.

"Honestly, right now I've got three ideas, and I don't think you'll like any of them," Andy said, holding up three fingers. "The first plan is to head off towards the next closest island and keep moving as far away from where we started as possible and hope we run into something." She put down the finger. "Second plan is to bring in My Little King, who is a child, and see if he has some kind of map that'll help us, but it's doubtful considering the enemy can already evade our scans." Only one finger was now held up. "Third plan is to stay here and shoot up the biggest fireworks we can to draw the enemies attention and bring them here." She put her hand down. "That's all I got right now, I can't think of any other ways to find an enemy that can hide itself so well on such a wide open area as this sea."

As Drake was about to answer, Bombe rushed into the cabin. "Captain, the enemy ship, the one that carries a flag of skull and bones."

"Well, Andy that is definitely Blackbeard and the Queen Anne's Revenge. Cause contrary to pop culture, not every pirate used what has been come to known as the Jolly Roger. Only Blackbeard did because others were too afraid to imitate him. And if you want, you should bring in Sanson to deal with him, as he probably of the Evil Alignment and having been executed by decapitation. Though that is Lord El-Melloi recommendation, not mine." Roman said via his hologram.

As he was speaking, Andy had equipped Tenfold Shields and had already run onto the deck, and had swapped out the still unconscious Lancelot for Sanson as soon as he had pointed it out. Now, she was standing on deck with her other Servants, staring across at the other ship. "Alright, everyone! This is for sure the enemy, so until they get close bombard them Archers that means you! Everyone else, avoid enemy fire and wait till their close enough to attack." She ordered, aiming her fist at them but as Tenfold Shields helpfully told her they were still too far away to hit with a Runestone.

"Cannonball fire incoming!" Was the shout and suddenly the horizon was filled with balls of death.

Xxx

Passive's reaction to Asterios: Oh, my god. He is the best boy!


	44. Mash's Decision

"Archers, counter snipe please!" Andy shouted upon seeing the veritable wall of iron hurtling at them from the Queen Anne's Revenge. "Mash, if they can't you'll need to use your Noble Phantasm, we can't have this ship going down! Everyone else, take cover!"

As soon as Andy gave the order the volley of iron balls were countered by a volley of arrows fired by her two Archers. As soon as the projectiles collided it resulted in a quite literally explosive curtain as the view was temporarily blocked by fire.

"Hmm, as expected of Chiron." Came the comment from Emiya as the two of them walked up beside Andy bows ready to be fired.

"You're not a novice either, your firing technique is excellent," Chiron responded as the two praised each other.

"Save the small talk for later, the enemy is right in front of us. Emiya, can you use any of your sword-arrows from this distance?" Andy asked the red-clad Archer.

Though after she did, Andy heard a booming male voice shout. "Parley! Parley." As the fire disappeared and the two ships were suddenly in spitting distance, and they got a good look at the Servants on board the enemy ship plus.

"This is bad." Came the comment from Chiron, and Andy had to agree for among the Servants stood Achilles.

"Yes, Blackbeard, Anne Bonny and Mary Read, Hector of Troy, and Eric Bloodaxe, and lastly Achilles as a Lancer." Said Emiya as he confirmed each of the Servants identities.

"I ask once again Parley, to the Captain of Golden Hind, I wish to negotiate Miss Francis Drake," Blackbeard said once more.

Andy was doing her level best to not freak out at the moment, considering it was fucking _Blackbeard_ (who didn't have a tricorner hat for some reason but had a nasty looking hook thingy) while at sea who also had Achilles on his side in some badass looking gold armor. She decided to ignore that for now though. _"Mash, get between the Captain and the enemy in case they pull anything."_ She ordered telepathically, inactive Claws in hand, figuring even if she took the back seat to the more experienced Drake that by no means meant she had to do nothing.

" _Understood Senpai."_

"Why, should I negotiate with a scoundrel like yourself?" Drake asked.

"It's not really a negotiation, you give me little Miss Euryale, I won't feed you to the sharks." He stated.

That was followed by a growl from Asterios, who stood protectively in front of the small goddess.

Andy quickly used her Stat-o-Vision on the enemy Servants before deciding on her next course of action.

[spoiler=Blackbeards' Stat Sheet]

True Name: Edward Teach

Class: Rider

Master:-

 **Parameters:**

Strength: B+

Endurance: A

Agility: E

Mana: D

Luck: C

Noble Phantasm: C++

 **Class Skills:**

Magic Resistance: E

Riding: -

 **Personal Skills:**

Voyager of the Storm: A

Pirate's Glory: B

Gentleman's Love: C

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Queen Anne's Revenge: Revenge of the Queen Anne(Anti-Army): C++

[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Anne and Mary]

True Name: Anne Bonny and Mary Read

Class: Rider

Master: Blackbeard

 **Parameters:**

Strength: C

Endurance: C

Agility: A

Mana: E

Luck: B

Noble Phantasm: C++

 **Class Skills:**

Magic Resistance: D

Riding: -

 **Personal Skills:**

Voyage: A

Marksmanship: B

Combination: C

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Caribbean Free Bird: Wings Abreast as if Trees with Entwined Branches(Anti-Unit): C++

[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Hector's Stat Sheet}

True Name: Hector

Class: Lancer

Master: ?

 **Parameters:**

Strength: B

Endurance: B

Agility: A

Mana: B

Luck: B

Noble Phantasm: A

 **Class Skills:**

Magic Resistance: B

Riding: B

 **Personal Skills:**

Military Tactics: C+

Proof of Friendship: C

Disengage: B

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Durindana Pilum: Ultimate Unbroken Spear(Anti-Army): A

Durindana Spada: Ultimate Unbroken Sword(Anti-Unit): A

[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Achilles' Stat Sheet]

True Name: Achilles

Class: Lancer

Master: Blackbeard

 **Parameters:**

Strength: B+

Endurance: A

Agility: A+

Mana: C

Luck: D

Noble Phantasm: A+

 **Class Skills:**

Magic Resistance: C

Riding: A

 **Personal Skills:**

Battle Continuation: A

Bravery: A+

Affections of the Goddess: B

Divinity: C

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Dromeus Komētēs (Runner Comet): Comet Form(Anti-Unit(Self): A+

Andreias Amarantos (Heroism's Eternal Man): Amaranth of the Brave(Anti-Unit(Self): B

Diatrekhōn Astēr Lonkhē (Meteor Spear): Spear-tip of the Star Traversing the Skies(Anti-Unit): B+

Akhilleus Kosmos: The Miniature World Enclosed by the Azure Sky(Barrier): A+

[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Eric Bloodaxe's Stat Sheet]

True Name: Eric Bloodaxe

Class: Berserker

Master: Blackbeard

 **Parameters:**

Strength: B+

Endurance: B+

Agility: D

Mana: D

Luck: C

Noble Phantasm: B

 **Class Skills:**

Mad Enhancement: B

 **Personal Skills:**

Suport Spells: C+

Battle Continuation: B

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Bloodbath Crown: Bloodstained Coronation(Anti-Unit(Self): B

Half-dead Blood Axe: Blood-sipping Bestial Axe(Anti-Unit): C

[/spoiler]

"Here's a counter-offer. You become my Servant, _Edward_ , and we won't brutally murder you." Andy responded.

"Zehahahahaha!" Blackbeard just laughed in response. "You've got a mouth on you girl, but I'm not talking to you, you normie DnD Character reject." He said. "I'm here for my little Loli, to lick her under her sweet armpits like. Reroreroreroero." Motioned with his tongue.

Andy physically recoiled at the insult before anger and disgust welled up inside of her at the rest of his statement. "I see. Then. In that case. _BURN!"_ She said, ordering her Servants to attack while launching a Fire runestone directly at the pirate and using her other hand's flamethrower. She knew against the Servants it would do little, but the wooden ship they were standing on…

"My ship is a fucking Noble Phantasm you stupid bitch, you think you can burn it with fire. Mr. Bloodaxe and men go and get miss Euryale for me." He ordered.

What followed was the Berserker and a crew jumping onto the Golden Hind.

"Okay, we're getting boarded, everybody fight," Drake announced.

"Everyone who isn't an Archer, go for Bloodaxe! Archers, make sure nothing else gets on the ship!" Andy ordered. "Rip Van Winkle." She intoned, and The Claws turned back into the large musket, and she started to deal with the mooks who had boarded the ship, trusting her Servants to be able to handle the Berserker.

Andy fired at the mooks, but when the bullet collided and bodies dropped, they didn't stay around but quickly disappeared from the ship.

She continued to fire and saw that few were hit by heart-shaped arrows and the mooks turned on another.

"Need some help?" Euryale asked as she now stood beside Andy, her small bow in hand.

"Sure, but be careful, Blackbeard said he's here for you after all." She replied while continuing to shoot. "Stick with me for now, if something goes really bad I can Command Seal someone over."

"You idiots don't get hit by her arrows. The next one that does get their head blown off." Andy heard Blackbeard curse.

Which was followed by one of the mooks getting hit by one of Euryales' arrows and then the sound of a gunshot was heard as the hit mook's head disappeared. Though not by the current gun in Andy's hand but the flintlock pistol in Blackbeard's.

"Well, if you gotta get something done you gotta do it yourself." And that was when Andy in the blink of an eye found herself with Blackbeard's hook, and fist, inside her stomach, piercing through Tenfold Shields like it wasn't even there. She didn't even have the time to scream in pain. "Let me tell you a secret girl, me and my ship get stronger the more Servants are on it." His now terrifying voice said. "You're no longer dealing with an ordinary Servant, but a super one."

"One who is dead. **La Mort Espoir!** " Andy watched as Blackbeard, and his hook was removed from her stomach as was pulled into the Gate looking Guillotine by black hands, causing her to promptly fall onto the ground, head swimming.

"Stay, still Master I shall heal your wound." Andy heard Sanson say, her vision was darkening, and her whole stomach was in pain.

And in a moment it was gone, and her vision was clear to see not a single wound on her stomach. Though there was still a rather sizable hole in her armor now.

She shakily got up with Sanson's assistance. "Th-thanks, Charles. Remind me to thank you properly later." She said, more than a bit woozy. "But, did you get the bastard?"

"That should definitely have… Oh, how the fuck are you still alive?" Sanson cursed.

"Never thought that would happen again," Blackbeard said as he shakily stood up on both legs, though Andy could see a line that circled his neck.

"Third time's the charm then, you sick fuck. Ushi, decapitation time!" Andy yelled, a Command Seal shining before disappearing.

The samurai appeared in a blur and drew her sword only to hear a cling as it collided with Achilles' neck instead of Blackbeard's. "Gotta watch out Captain." The hero said as he kicked Ushi over to them.

But she landed gracefully. "I'm starting to feel like I'm being denied, my heads here." Were her complaint as she took a stance.

"Achilles we're going back, you too Bloodaxe. Oh?" Was all the pirate said as they heard a loud rip, and Eric split in half came flying past them. "Well, Anne sink the ship!" He shouted as Achilles jumped back to the Revenge with Blackbeard.

Followed by a rain of arrows at the two as the sound of wood breaking was heard.

"Enjoy the bottom of the ocean!" Yelled Blackbeard at them as Andy saw Hector jump from their ship, to the Revenge, he must have jumped when she hadn't noticed. Which explained her lack of ranged support.

"GO HOOK YOURSELF, YOU SLIMY MOTHERFUCKER!" She yelled back at the pirate. "Mash, whatever they're about to do, Noble Phantasm, _please_." She then said to said Shielder, not wanting to deal with a sinking ship and having to get away from the pirate ship.

"To late we're taking in water!" Came the shout from Drake. "We are sinking. Hey big guy what are you doing?" Andy turned her head to see Asterios as he jumped into the ocean, and then ship began to move.

"Holy Shit he is swimming with the ship on his back!" Came the shout of disbelief from Bombe, as they quickly left Blackbeard in the dust.

"Senpai/Master are you wounded?" Asked the concerned voices of her Servants as they all rushed over to her.

She shook her head. "Sanson managed to patch me up, though I think I lost some...a lot of blood," Andy said as she noticed how the spot where she'd been standing before was covered in blood, not to mention her armor. "But, right now, Euryale, how long do you think Asterios can keep this up?" She asked the little goddess, worried both about sinking and about the Berserker in question.

"You speak like he is weak? Of course, my Asterios can do anything, carrying this ship is a simple feat of strength." The Archer of love stated.

"Oh, okay, that's good. I was just thinking if he couldn't do it to the next closest Island I could swap in Martha and have Tarrasque help out." Andy said, relieved to hear Asterios had it covered.

"There is no need for that Master, I can see an Island up ahead, there we can rest, plan, and repair," Chiron stated.

"That's good," Andy said, her vision getting blurrier. "I think I need to sit down, everything's getting shaky."

Xxx

October 5

Andy's eyes opened up, and she found herself laying on Drake's bed in her dress, her armor off.

"Good Morning Senpai," Mash said as she sat beside her, with Fou on her lap, the little critter having finally left his safe space after having retreated into it the day before they had arrived on Asterios' and Euryales island.

"Morning Kouhai," Andy said as she sat up and looked around. "Did we make it?" She asked, the events of the previous day having assaulted her mind the moment she awoke.

"Yes, we made it to land, after you passed out from blood loss, Asterios dragged the ship ashore, and we've been assessing the damage to it. But thanks to Dr. Roman we have found a material to fix it and reinforce it. Though we don't have the means to currently retrieve it without your help Senpai."

Andy blinked owlishly. "¿Por que? Why do you need me to get it?"

"More like we need you to summon Siegfried or George to kill the Great Dragons that are living here so we can use their scales to patch the ship up. Emiya tried, but he got swarmed before he got a chance to kill them." Mash answered.

"Great Dragons? Like are we talking Fafnir-size or just big/strong?" Andy asked.

"Not the same level as Fafnir, but there is like twenty of them inland, that have made a nest plus a hundred or so Wyverns too."

"That's...that's a lot of dragons," Andy said, awestruck and happy at the idea of so many dragons, and _so much material to be harvested!_ "Where's my armor?" She asked excitedly, noting she didn't actually remember taking it off at any point. Nor did she remember going to sleep.

"Took it off while you slept and turned the plugsuit into the dress. It's over there." Mash said as pointed over to Tenfold Shield, which had a fist-sized hole in the front.

"...Well, good thing there's a ton of dragons waiting to be harvested to fix that." Andy said after a moment as she vividly recalled the experience of having the hook jabbed through her abdomen and up into her body. If she hadn't been so tall, she'd have been worried about it hitting her heart. "But hey, now our armor's match," Andy said, trying to distract herself from the phantom pain and the urge to make Blackbeard suffer.

"Please don't joke about that Senpai, you almost died, and if, if it hadn't been for Sanson you would have. And then I would be all alone again." Mash cried. "I'm sorry that I'm such a bad Servant that can't protect you."

Andy pulled the smaller girl into a hug. "It's okay Mash, I'm okay, you're okay. I'm the one who ordered you to stick to Drake, remember? Don't blame yourself for following orders." She said, attempting to sooth Mash, the gravity of what had happened yesterday fully setting in. She really had been on the edge of death. If it hadn't been for Sanson saving her, twice, she'd most likely be dead right now; a sobering thought, but at the moment she was focused on comforting Mash, so she pushed those thoughts aside for now.

"Senpai, could you call up Lily or Alter before you summon Siegfried?" Mash asked, her tone serious now. As she disengaged the hug after a moment.

"Sure, but why...oh," Andy said as she realized the most likely reason why Mash would want to talk to the Once and Future King. "Are you sure you want to do that?"

"Yes, I've been contemplating it during the night, and I realized my wish was selfish, and definitely not worth it. If it means, your life will be less at risk if I do so, I happily give up my desires." She stated.

Andy felt rather conflicted since this was exactly what she had wanted Mash to do, but not like this. She was silent for a moment. "Are you absolutely certain, beyond any shadow of a doubt, that you _want_ to do this, and not that you feel _obligated_ to do it?" Andy said.

"I am certain, you're one of the most important people to me, Senpai I wouldn't be able to go on without you."

Andy nodded after a moment as she processed that. "Alright. I can't say no after that. Let's ask Lily." Andy said, dialing up said Servant on the armband built into the plugsuit.

"Ah, hello Master, do you need me for anything?" Lily asked from the projected screen, that the armband had made.

Andy nodded gravely. "Lily, Mash has a very important question for you, and it is a direct order for you to answer her to the best of your abilities, understood?" She said, hating to have to do it like this but not wanting to have to beat around the bush about it.

"Ah, I see she finally wishes to know which of my knights have imparted their power to her?" Lily asked for clarification.

"Yes, I do. Senpai's life was almost brought to an end. And if our enemies keep getting stronger, I need more power to protect Senpai."

"Very well then. First, of the Shield, you carry is not really a shield it is the very core of the Round Table itself. A symbol of Camelot and its walls. The knight that gave you his power is Galahad, the son of Lancelot and the Grail Knight. The purest of our all." She answered.

Andy facepalmed. "No wonder I couldn't find any similar shields in your Myth, it wasn't a shield at all!" She gripped, before realizing this was a groundbreaking moment for Mash and promptly turning towards the still-silent Shielder. "Mash…?"

"... Thank you, Galahad for allowing me to be with Senpai." Mash said as she stood up and in a flash, she was in her Servant outfit. "This…" Mash said as she held up her Round Table shield. "This is Lord Camelot: Castle of the Distant Utopia." Speaking like a revelation had come upon her.

"...What does it do?" Andy asked quietly after a moment, happy to see Mash at what was likely full strength, and better clothed.

"A wall that shall never falter as long as my heart does not waver."

"Oh, _wow_ , a literally unbreakable wall then? That's incredible." Andy said in awe.

"Thank you for the compliment Senpai, and thank you for telling me Lily, now shall we go outside to the others and harvest some reptiles." Mash stated.

"It's the truth, and yeah, lets," Andy responded, newly invigorated at Mash's resolve. "We've got some materials to harvest."

Xxx

The two of them left the ship, and Andy switched out Astolfo for the dragonslayer in the need of doing his job.

The others gave a few more apologies for not assisting then she had been hurt as they walked through the forest that blocked the ship from the dragons.

Though this one was not a tropical one more like, one that would be found in more temperate climates, in the north of the world. Oak and birch surrounded them an all sides, but it was during the walk a sudden squeak was heard from Mash's position or rather her feet.

Mash stepped off of whatever she had stepped on, and Andy saw…

The bear ass of Orion.

"Thought we'd run into you two eventually," Andy said as she picked the bear up and dusted him off. "Sorry about her stepping on you, we weren't expecting to run into you here. Where's your other half?"

"Well, hello to you too, sweetcheeks you're looking rather different than before, pulling a Zeus or what. Whatever can I motorboat you?" The tiny bear asked.

"I can punt you directly into the dragon's nest you perverted plush." Andy said 'calmly.' "Ooh, or better yet, I can take you apart and use you for my next familiar. I'm sure using part of a Saint Graph would make it my best one yet!" She said, faux-cheerily.

"Woah, chill there sister. I've got my Artemis I wouldn't touch you, you're mosquito bites in comparison to her."

"Wrong answer," Andy said, pulling a sewing needle out of her skirt pocket. "One more comment like that and I will very literally, and this I am being 100% sincere about, _sew your lips shut_."

"..."

"Th _an_ k you. I've had enough of creepy perverted Servants lately, I don't need another." Andy said with a slight shudder as the memory of being impaled once more played in her head, unwanted. "Now, where's Artemis? I'd assume you two wouldn't be far apart."

"There you are Darling, thank you for finding him Andrew, or is it something else now with you being a woman. Would you like to join my hunters?" Artemis said as she plucked Orion out of her hands. "Oh, Chiron good to see you, so tragic what happened."

"Lady Artemis." Was all the response the centaur gave.

"Its Andy now, in both forms, and what's this about joining your hunters?" Andy asked interest piqued, as she pocketed the sewing needle.

"Well, with all the femme fatale power you have right now you would have fit right in, but in the current state of the World right, we aren't open to new recruits. But I put in an application for after you die."

"T..thanks?" Andy said, more than a tad confused at whether that was a good thing.

"Anyway, what are you doing on this Island, would have expected you to be fighting that pirate that tried to take me from my Darling." She said as she was choking the bear in her bosom.

"Yeah, we uh, we kinda did. But the ship got wrecked. And I got impaled." Andy said morosely. "Wait, he went after you too? What, is that bastard trying to make a harem of goddesses or something?" She said, her anger at Blackbeard doubling.

"Pfft, if that is true. He is an idiot for trying that, those are demanding as all hell." Said Orion now perched on Artemis' shoulder. "One partner is more than enough for me."

"Thank you, Darling."

"He's definitely some kind of idiot, but there's a reason he was the devil of the seas during his reign," Andy said. It seemed that she was going to have to keep reliving that moment since he kept being brought up. Hopefully, she would be numbed to it soon. "Which means there's probably a reason he wants goddesses. He doesn't have a Master, so he probably has the Grail, so that also means he has some kind of goal in mind."

"That is a good theory Master." Commented Emiya. "From what I can tell he is one of those that plays the fool, so people aren't quite sure what he is going to do next, which makes him dangerous as he has proven himself to be."

"Yeah," Andy said simply. "Is that why you're here, Artemis? Trying to get away from the bastard?"

"We did much earlier and got kinda stranded here, we've been living here since. Just wandering the forest and killing random monsters that have shown up."

"Hmm. Then, would you like to help us kill the dragons here so we can fix our ship, and then kill the bastard?" Andy asked, eager for more allies.

"Sure thing, and as promised we will join you in Chaldea after you retrieve the Grail," Artemis answered, Orion, keeping quiet.

Andy smiled. "Alright then, welcome aboard Artemis, Orion. We're happy to have you with us. But now, I believe it's Harvest Time."

They all made their way into the center of the island where the Dragon nest was, and now thanks to Siegfried, being there and acting as a tank. Andy was happy to watch the massacre that took place while eating some snacks Da Vinci had sent through with Mash.

It didn't take very long for the nest to be exterminated and the corpses dragged back with the help of Asterios back to the ship. Where they spent the entire day fixing up the ship, with the help of Medea after having sent Siegfried back, thanking Andy for the exercise.

And so thanks to the Greek Magus, Drake had learned how to channel the energy of the Grail into her ship to further strengthen the Ship, so that it was about equal to Queen Anne's Revenge.

Though after, she too had finished her job, Medea had been switched back out with Astolfo the paladin happy to be back already. And the leftovers sent back with her, though Andy had kept a bit for something she wanted to test, along with Tenfold Shield for Da Vinci to immediately get it repaired as fast as possible. Hopefully, it would be back as soon as possible.

"So, Captain ready for revenge and round two?" Drake asked as she approached Andy.

"Oh, you bet I am," Andy said from her spot at her temporary workshop, the freshly cleaned bones of the forearms off one of the Great Dragons on the table in front of her, along with some other bits and her sewing machine. "That bastard isn't gonna know what hit him."

"Good, to hear. So do you have a plan for dealing with him and those other bastards you've already dealt with one of them. Well, the big guy did. Tore him in half."

"If all goes well, he'll be able to do that to the bastard too," Andy said. "We're gonna drop some divine retribution on his ass. Literally."

"Again glad to hear. Though the one in gold is going to be a problem, I took a shot at him, and my bullets just bounced off him." Drake said.

"Yeah, that's Achilles. Chiron and Artemis will be dealing with him if we can't sink the Revenge in one go with what I have planned." Andy said. "And we might be able to get Hector to betray the Bastard. He's the only one of the crew who wasn't contracted to him, so I'm willing to bet he's just waiting for the right moment to strike. Especially considering Achilles is there."

"True, thankfully I know my Greek enough to know that is an explosion waiting to happen."

"Yeah, same. The other Servant(s) though, Anne Bonny and Mary Read. I have no idea how to deal with them beyond 'brute force' since I have no idea who they are, so hopefully, they go down with the Buster Call I'm planning." Andy said.

"Sounds, destructive. Well, I'm hitting the hay, it's good to be well rested for the morrow. So sadly no booze for me tonight." Drake said.

"Don't worry, you'll be able to make it to your morning ale," Andy said jokingly. "Oh, right, before I forget, take this." She said, holding out a folded pink scarf.

"What is this?" She asked as she took it.

"Team Scarf. They build morale. And that one is also the test run for actually protecting the neck as well, that's what the runes on it are for. Though I hope you don't mind, I didn't make that one specifically for you, but I figured you'd get more use out of it right now than its intended wearer." Andy explained, a tad embarrassed.

"Hmm, you're beyond adorable you know that? Well thanks for the scarf, at least I know I'm part of the team." She laughed.

Andy's face reddened at the compliment. "W-well, yeah, can't have the Captain dying on us." She said, looking back down at her work to hide her embarrassment.

"Too true. Well like I said before goodnight Andy." Drake said again as she began to walk away.

"Night, Captain," Andy said with a mock salute before turning back to the bones and cloth in front of her. She could stay up a few more hours working on it.

She also didn't want to face sleep without being dead tired, lest she sees herself being impaled again.


	45. Greek League of Extraordinary Gentlemen

October 6

Andy felt the sea on her face again as they had set out for sail earlier that morning with the repairs finished and The Golden Hind stronger than ever.

And now it was time to take down Blackbeard and get the Grail he probably had, and leave this sea.

Then they managed to find him of course.

Andy was grinning maniacally. She had, after all, devised the perfect Buster Call for the situation.

As soon as the Queen Anne's Revenge was within range, she let loose the command to the swapped in Sabers. "BUSTER CALL!"

Altera pointed her hilt to the sky. Lily pointed her sword directly at the ship. Alter and Siegfried, each on opposite ends of the Hind, activated Excalibur Morgan and Balmung respectively, and swung them from opposite sides. Accompanying the swords were all three divine archers firing their most powerful barrages at the ship.

For a moment, just before everything hit all at once, Andy could see the look on Blackbeard's face as he realized what was about to happen. And she _loved_ it even as she felt her circuits strain.

And then the ship disappeared from sight, engulfed in Teardrop while buffeted by everything else.

Andy watched in eager anticipation as the 'smoke' cleared. Even if Achilles had his Shield, there was no way he could have defended from every angle from so many powerful Noble Phantasms in the way.

Andy saw the smoke disappear and the wreckage that was now Queen Anne's Revenge, not even good enough to be timber.

Though unfortunately, two Servants were still alive, Blackbeard and Hector, who stood on a small rowboat. And in the Pirate's hand was the golden Grail, one that looked exactly like the two others they had retrieved.

"Well gotta say I bit off more than I could chew, I knew you would come back for revenge Miss DnD, but this?" He pointed to his destroyed ship. "Was beyond my expectation, you're a true pirate, and this is my loss. I would have wanted this adventure to last longer, but such is fate. Well, the Grail is your-." His prolonged speech was suddenly stopped as they all watched Hector impale Blackbeard from behind, his heart skewered.

"And I'll be taking the Grail back thank you very much," Hector said as he pulled his spear out and threw Blackbeard's body into the water where it sank. "Gotta thank you for distraction, that always had his guard up, and hand close to his pistol. A genius playing fool is more dangerous than a fool playing genius." He sighed. "Well, the mission to capture a Goddess failed, so this old man better get back-"

"Teardrop." Andy interrupted/ordered, a command seal fading away, Altera once more grabbing the attention of the War God, Andy watched as the divine laser headed down towards Hector, but from the sea a sudden wall of white shoot up.

The beam hit the white and seemingly did superficial damage to the giant whale that now swam away from them.

"Was that a giant whale?" Came the shocked voice from Lily as ran over to the edge of the ship, where Andy was standing in shocked awe.

"...Did Hector of Troy just get saved by _Moby Dick_ of all things?" Andy asked, not incredulously but to make sure she wasn't hallucinating. "That is what just happened right?"

"I believe so Senpai. That is the only legendary white whale that I know of." Mash said.

"Ok. Just. Just making sure that's what happened there." Andy said, shaking her head before refocusing. "We should probably try to follow it so we can get to whoever Hector is working for that's trying to capture a goddess for some reason."

"I hear you, Andy, let's chase that whale," Drake shouted as the ship turned and began sailing in the direction of the whale.

"Hmm, this ship is great, it has nothing on Prydwen." Alter said as she stood to the side of her counterparts younger-self.

"I thought that was your shield?" Andy asked the alternate Arturia.

"It is both, a ship that can become a shield, though it is more Mordred's as in my timeline I gifted it to her, to patrol, the sea of my Kingdom it and the coasts being her domain." Alter stated.

"Oh, so I'm guessing that Mordred never took Clarent then?" Andy asked.

"No, she was gifted Arondight after Lancelot's execution, after the relationship between him and Gwynevere became public." She answered.

"Ooh. I really wanna see your Mordred now. And the 'actual' Mordred too, honestly. Really, I should be trying to reunite the Knights of the Round Table. We already have three members by one metric." Andy rambled, still high off the _utter destruction_ the Buster Call had wrought followed by Blackbeard getting a taste of his own medicine and thus not caring what she was saying.

"Yes, that would be a sight to see," Lily said.

"Actually, that's got me thinking. Do Servants bleed?" Andy asked the Sabers. "Because that might be physical enough to use as a Catalyst, right?"

"We don't actually our Saint Graph just simulates it when we're physical, it has little bearing on our performance. It's head and heart wounds that are bad, as that is where our Spiritual core is most connected!" Chiron provided the information as he shouted it from the other end of the ship.

"What the horse said." Responded Alter.

"I suppose that makes sense," Andy said, before remembering something. "Oh, right. Sabers! I'm swapping most of you back out for right now. I might call you in again later, but for now, I need some Casters." She announced to her Servants. "Any objections?"

"Understand Master Bad Civilization has been destroyed," Altera responded.

"I wish to go back to my burger."

"I'm painting." Said Lily.

"Call me when there are more Dragons."

"Alright, see you all soon," Andy said, picking her new selection before swapping them out. The Sabers all disappeared, and in their place were Medea, Waver, Caster Cu, and Vlad. "Sorry for the sudden summoning in, but I figured it would be a good idea to have you all here for this. And for Cu to fortify the ship, it is mostly wood still." Andy greeted the dropped in Casters plus Vlad. "Oh, right, Vlad, can you establish a Ship as your Territory?"

"Yes, I just need to create an anchor. Though I guess with the call back of the Saber's the enemy ship has been destroyed and what is the current status on the location of the Grail?"

"I wish to know that too." Waver added.

"Ah, right. We destroyed all of the known enemies except for Hector with the Buster Call, but then Moby Dick, as in the _actual_ Moby Dick it seems, came up and swallowed him with the Grail. We're in pursuit of said white whale right now." Andy brought them all up to speed on the situation. "So, while we're in pursuit, I was hoping you could help me prepare some things."

"I see, never gone whale hunting, but a first time for everything, I shall set up my territory now," Vlad said.

"Then I shall help you, Andy."

"And shall I assist Cu Chulainn in the meantime?" Medea asked.

"For now, but did you bring the sheared Fleece with you? It would make what I want to do a lot easier." Andy asked, not remembering if she had asked the Caster to do so earlier or not due to the exhaustion starting to settle in at that moment.

"I did," Medea said while holding up a box.

"Oh, good. Thank you Medea, I hope this doesn't interfere with your potion making too much." Andy said as she took the box.

"It won't Master. Now then you two go an make plans." She said as she went over to Caster Cu.

Andy turned to Waver. "Alright, Waver, come with me. I think it would be best to show you first what I plan on doing so that I can know if its stupid or not." She said to the Pseudo-Servant.

"Well, it's only stupid if it doesn't work, trust me on that one."

"Oh, okay. I still want you there so I can know if this could kill me or not." Andy said as she led the Caster to her temporary 'workshop,' though she felt odd calling it that. It was a tad too Magus-y for her tastes. Once inside, she placed the box containing the fleece down on an empty corner of a table. "Alright, so let's start from the least likely to kill me and move up from there. These-" she motioned towards the cleaned arm and hand bones of one of the great dragons they had slain, now wrapped in basic looking cloth to keep it together. "-are more time consuming than life-threatening, since I have been designing the 'muscle culture' from the ground up, but they aren't really supposed to be done soon."

She passed over the bird carcasses. "Those are just exploding familiars I've been working on, not important."

She then pointed to a series of diagrams hanging on one of the walls. " _This_ , on the other hand, is much more likely to kill me. Artificial Magic Circuits, the idea stolen from Zouken Matou. He's practically immortal and has a large supply of Circuits, so I thought stealing it would be a good idea considering me dying would mean the end of the world, more or less." She explained. "I also have no idea how to actually do the 'Artificial Magic Circuit' part, but the rest of it, a familiar that can easily move into and repair the body, can likely be achieved with the help of this." She pointed at the box containing the Fleece. "If each one of them has a piece of the Fleece, they'll be able to accelerate natural healing, and if I can divvy up myself among them all so that I don't die when I am killed, then it would be worth it, right?"

"I see you plan to create something similar to Crest Worms. Though with your body as the central part of it instead of consuming others for new ones. Yes, you have to be careful while separating your Soul from mind and body or else you would meet oblivion." Waver said.

"Yeah, that's why I wanted you to be here for the design process. And why I wanted the Fleece to play a central part since it can heal physical injuries pretty well in the meantime." Andy said. "But, do you know how to make Artificial Magic Circuits? I know they are some kind of pseudo-physical thing where its part of your soul, right? I was thinking of removing one and replicating it, but then I realized that'd probably kill me too."

"Well, you can remove Circuits that's how Crests are made and then infused with Spell Knowledge. But you can't really create Artificial Magic Circuits in that way you're probably thinking they are made." Waver paused for a second as it seemed he was looking the correct words to say next. "Honestly this isn't my field of expertise, you need to talk to an Einzbern to know more, or maybe talk to Medea about it, she would be able to help you more with this project. But I will say it is a good idea if it's successful, eliminating ways for you to be taken out."

"I do have good ideas every now and then y'know," Andy said proudly at her idea not being stupid. "And thanks for the advice. Oh, but since I highly doubt I'll be able to finish even the first of them during this Singularity, can we continue our Evocation lessons while I have you down here?"

"We can it probably take some time to catch up to the whale. Let's talk about the summoning of Wraith to gain information." Waver began.

Xxx

"Didn't expect a storm this bad," Drake said as she tried to keep the ship straight as rain, and lighting fell from the sky, and the waves tried to eat them.

And Andy had to agree though thankfully Medea had created a Bounded Field that kept the rain from hitting them, so they were dry.

"...Say, Drake, you wouldn't happen to know if there is anyone on this ship named Ishmael?" Andy asked, worried due to the circumstances of what may or may not be about to happen.

"Nope, we're all British here." Exaggerating her accent to obnoxious levels. "Though…" Drake paused and paled as suddenly _flying_ beside was a green rotten looking ship.

"Oh that is so much worse, did the flying dutchman decide to swoop in?" Andy asked, half-jokingly, knowing it could very well be the actual Flying Dutchman. "Also, everyone, get ready for a fight, but don't attack yet." She ordered.

Though that wouldn't be necessary as Andy watched the undead looking crew on the ghost ship, jumped and just bounced off the Bounded Field that surrounded the ship.

"Bwahaha!" Drake laughed. "And here I was scared for a second, I ain't scared you fucking clowns, you can just suck my dick!" She shouted as she fired her guns into the ship, creating large holes as she laughed while doing so.

"Calm down Drake, no need to incite them," Andy said, before turning to her Servants. "Though feel free to join in, I'm sure they'd love some good old-fashioned Magecraft right around now. And Stakes."

And they all took those words to heart as the ghost ship was blasted apart, and Andy got to the name of the ship as it crashed and started to disappear. The words Flying Dutchman written on the back of it.

"I almost feel bad," Andy said as she watched the ship disappear behind them. "Almost." She said, before walking over to Medea. "Hey, Medea, I need your input on something important."

"Sure what is you need Master." She asked from her position.

"Firstly, how long does the Fleece stay effective for?" Andy asked, deciding to build up to the actual tough question.

"Well they work as long, Prana is cycled through the fur, and it is touching the body. Though, that forming of healing is slow with it being disconnected from him, that's why I turn it into potions for more immediate and acute effect." She answered.

"Mhm. That's good to know. Secondly, would there be any adverse effects of having it in constant contact with one's body? Like, say, I dunno, sewing it into oneself?" Andy asked.

"No there wouldn't, but that is kinda nasty Master." She responded.

"I'm well aware, but that brings me to my third question," Andy said. "Do you know of any methods to create Artificial Magic Circuits?" She said, deciding to just cut to the chase.

"Well, the fastest way to get magic Circuits would be to create Homunculi and extract them from them. Or convert your physical nerves into them, though that would hurt."

"I am _not_ pulling a Shirou, thank you very much," Andy said. "But Magic Circuits can be harvested? Would it be possible to extract the Magical Core's from the Wyverns we've slain in the same way to use or are those too incompatible do you think?" Andy asked, recalling they had _quite a few_ wyvern corpses, at least one of them had to still have a relatively intact core.

"For what exactly do you need them, Master, my response depends on what they are needed for." She said.

Andy sighed before switching to telepathy. It wouldn't do to go announcing her plans to the world, that would defeat half the point. _"I intend to replicate the Crest Worms of Zouken Matou using my own body and my Stitchcraft in order to ensure my survival. To that end, I need to know how to make or harvest Magic Circuits, or Cores if that's possible, in order to do so._ " She explained before switching back to speech. "That is why I need to know."

"Ah, you intend to implant them into familiars instead of your own and then create a karmic link between them and your own, so that they work as an extension of your own. Quite clever, Circe did something similar making wings out the ones she harvested from her _victims._ " She stopped speaking and switched to mental. _"Though regarding the moving of your Soul if you plan to emulate the worm, I'm concerned in how it will react with Rayshifting. So, let's put it on hold until you return to Chaldea."_

" _Oh, yeah we're definitely still in the planning phase, don't worry about that part,_ " Andy responded before switching to speech. "Oh, but for right now, do you have anything that numbs pain? Like a potion or something?"

"Not right now, though I'm getting rather concerned here Master."

"What about in particular?" Andy asked, knowing full well there were several things she could be concerned about at the moment.

"It sounds like you're about to engage in some self-mutilation." She answered bluntly, and now all eyes were on Andy.

"Not...not really self-mutilation, I'd say. More of a...precautionary measure." Andy said slowly. Uncertainly. "You remember what I told you happened when I called you in before? I really, really, _really_ don't want to have to worry about that again and have a healer next to me at all times. So...so if I can have a way of healing myself, more Servants can be focused on the important things."

"Alright, then but I'm coming with and doing it," Medea said. "That should be handled by a professional."

"Alright, but in that case, Cu, you should probably help too, you'll be able to help with the Runic part of this," Andy said to the Druidic Celt.

"Alright, but this was your idea Master." Cu said as they all went into her Workshop.

Xxx

October 7

"Urgh," Andy groaned as she leaned forward over the ship, the morning sun shining on her after she had awoken from the last day's impromptu surgery. The Golden Fleece now sowed into Runes in the form of the Resurrection Sequence by Cu onto her back being her 1-up. And the passive healing the threads themselves granted. Though it was after waking up that and accidentally drinking her gender potion, she realized as long as that was active she couldn't change back. She really hadn't thought this through. After asking Medea about it, they had realized that it because of the thread being sewn into her, changing back would physically harm her. Due to the foreign object in it.

At least she got a kickass magical tattoo. And the motivation to get her Crest Familiars (name in progress) closer to the initial production stages. Though, for right now, she was just happy to have had her idea work.

" _Master I'm seeing a ship up ahead."_ Came Chiron's mental voice.

" _Any signs of Moby Dick?"_ Andy asked, quickly getting up and away from the edge of the boat.

" _No, but I can see Hector on it, and it's… Oh, this is bad."_

"NONONONONO! He can't be here, he can't why? Why does he haunt me!" Came the shout of grief and rage from Medea, as they quickly approached the ship and Andy could see it was a Greek ship.

And an arrogant voice came from it. "You were right Hector, they brought Euryale right to us." Said a smug golden-haired man. Who stood on the front of the ship.

"Jason!" Shouted Medea.

"Fucking game over man, game over." Came the panicked shout from Orion. "We're all dead."

"If it isn't the Witch, I would ask for you to join but, I already have a better version of you at my side." At that, a much smaller Medea appeared at his side.

"Hello there I'm Medea Lily, Princess of Colchis, now I ask would you all to die for Lord Jason." She said with a deceptively cute smile.

"Yes, these worms shall be torn apart like, you did your brother." Jason gleefully smiled.

"Apollo." Came the chant from her Medea as she fired a massive ball of fire at Jason, it was like a second sun had appeared. But before it struck it him, it hit a barrier, and the fire was qualed.

Andy used her Stat-o-Vision on the enemy Servants, a lot of the anger she still had against Blackbeard starting to latch onto a new target.

"My, my what a naughty Master we got here looking at Lord Jason, and I like that." Came the chill voice from Medea Lily.

"Oh, she tried to see our stat, well now please die like the trash you are. We need Euryale and the Ark for me to become king of this world. So Heracles retrieve her would you." Jason said.

"DON'T LET HIM GET ON THE BOAT!" Andy yelled as soon as Jason said 'Heracles.' "FULL SPEED AWAY FROM THEM, NOW!" She continued, desperately not wanting to have to deal with Jason and what was likely anywhere from 1 to _god knows how many_ Argonauts and a Grail. She saw another figure now standing by Jason.

That was then Andy heard a boom, and Asterios was suddenly in front of her his body pierced with over a dozen arrows, that dripped a liquid that etched away at the ship's floor.

Andy, who had fallen back in that motion, backed up further. "Asterios?" She asked before seeing the dripping arrows and connecting the dots. "Oh _fuck_ , MASH, CAMELOT!" Andy yelled, deciding defending against further attacks from what was no doubt Archer Heracles was most important right now.

"YOU CALLED ME ASTERIOS NOT MINOTAUR, I LOVE YOU EURYALE!" He shouted as he roared a jumped at the Argo as his body began to grow in size and became more white. "CHAOS LABYRINTH!" At that, the Argo was consumed by the massive structure with the Hind being just outside its wall. And they looked at labyrinth that now stood on the sea.

"F _uck_ ," Andy swore at what had just occurred, only beginning to process that Asterios had just saved her life before no doubt losing his own. "We...we should probably leave, or nuke this place, but I don't think I have any nukes left."

"We need to leave, now we can not stand up against my brother on the sea, and we need to find this Arc, Jason spoke about," Artemis said her tone now completely serious.

"Yeah, we probably should. We need to...to make sure that wasn't a senseless sacrifice as soon as we can." Andy said, shaking at what had just occurred. She had been _this_ close to one of the most agonizing deaths in Greek myth, and Asterios had just taken the bullet for her. She looked over to Euryale, who was standing completely still, tears leaking from her eyes.

"Why, why do the people I care about sacrifice themselves for me. First my sister, now Asterios."

Andy considered only for a moment before pulling up Grand Order Change and swapping out Waver and Cu for Stheno and Medusa, the two Casters disappearing with understanding nods and the two Gorgons materializing.

"Master... Sister?" Said the two of them simultaneously as their eyes shifted from Andy to Euryale.

"Asterios just sacrificed himself to stop Jason and the Argonauts, she needs some help right now," Andy said quietly to the two; she'd kept them more-or-less updated on the fact Euryale was there.

"Understood," Medusa said, and Stheno just gave a silent nod as they walked over to their sister, pulled her to the side as she cried in their embrace of her.

Andy, trusting the sisters would do their best, then went over to the other one affected by this personally. Medea, who was sitting over by where the front mast was.

"Um. I know you're not okay but…" Andy had very little idea how to deal with this. It was one thing talking to someone whose abuser suddenly showed up; it was another when they showed up with a younger brainwashed version of yourself. She had no real idea how to actually deal with this. At all. But she decided she had to try something. "If...you need to talk, I'm here."

"I thought, I was free of him that I would never see him again even as a Servant, the one the gods had made me fall in love with and betrayed my nation for his gain and quest. But why, _why_ would she ever work with him? Even she is my younger-self she should have all of our lives memories and know of his betrayal of us."

"Brainwashing, for sure," Andy said with zero hesitation. "Jason's an utter scumbag like you said there's no way any version of you would willingly work with him after what he did. So he probably used the Grail to make a 'you' the same way Caster Gilles did with Jeanne in Orleans; a modified copy fit to suit his own twisted desires." Andy said, hoping what she was saying would help. "Maybe...I'm not actually advising you get close to her, lackeys won't be far behind, but if she ever gets close to you can use Rule Breaker and set her free?"

"Yeah, he probably used the Grail to mess with her mind, and making sure she can't reverse it. For the only thing, he could do while alive was, punch things, sail and make good speeches. Though our greatest problem is Heracles cause, he is following Jason of his own free will."

"How can you tell?" Andy asked, curious, though relieved to hear Jason was likely a pushover who would go down easily in the off-chance they managed to kill Heracles.

"Despite what you may believe those two are best friends, as Jason was one the few who saw the human and not the powerful Demigod son of Zeus."

"Oh." Was all Andy could say to that. "Well, um. There goes my only plan so far of killing Jason and running like hell." Andy said, now certain Heracles would somehow persist after Jason's death and hunt them to the ends of the earth if he needed to.

"Well, hopefully, you can come up with another one, you're good at making those Master."

"Yeah, hopefully," Andy said, staring back at the fading white labyrinth off in the distance. "Hopefully."


	46. Surprise Ark

October 14

A week had passed since the encounter with the Argo, and they had been on a blind run from them ever since as they checked each and every island as fast as possible to find the Ark that Jason had been shouting about. But they had no luck so far in finding anything, not even a random Servant walking about.

Though a tiny bit of good had happened with Da Vinci sending back the now repaired Tenfold Shield to Andy.

Now they were all sailing for around hoping to find another island, as a depressive cloud still hung over the Golden Hind after Asterios had sacrificed himself, to allow them to get away, from the monster of a Servant that was the Archer Class Heracles.

And Andy had tried to take her mind off it, by doing research in regards to her 'Silkies' (name pending) but progress was slow. Though in the intermediate time she had a few more plush familiars these in the shape of snakes with Wyvern fangs in their mouths.

Though now she was outside getting some fresh air in her lungs, as her Workshop didn't really have the best ventilation and the air got stale in there quickly.

"Do you have a Dracma for your thoughts?" Asked the voice of Artemis as the Moon Goddess approached Andy from behind.

"Hey, Artemis," Andy said, before sighing. "I'm...first I almost die being gutted like a fish. Then fucking _Archer Heracles_ shows up, alongside a Servant duo that's causing distress for one of mine. And _then_ Asterios takes a bullet (arrow) for me when he had no reason to before sacrificing himself so we could escape. That's...that's a lot to process, y'know?" Andy said tiredly. This was the first time she'd actually addressed the entirety of what had happened since then out loud; even she could see she'd been focusing on the Silkies and her other familiars way more than what was healthy.

"I don't really I'm a Goddess I don't experience things like you humans do, we are limited in that capacity, and so we don't react the way you do. What you experienced is traumatizing, but for me, that is just another day."

"She speaks the truth, Gods are very extreme in their behavior and slightly crazy." Said Orion from his position on Artemis' head.

"Did you call me crazy Darling?"

"No, but the rest of your family is."

"Too true," She answered.

"Ah. I guess that would have to be considering how long you all exist for and what not." Andy said. "Wait, didn't you say something before during the Festival about knowing this was going to happen? Does that mean you know what happens after this too?"

"I just knew that I would be summoned to here nothing more, or rather Darling would be summoned. So I guess we go with you after this." Artemis said with Orion nodding.

"Oh, well I suppose that's an upside at least," Andy said, not saying how it could also mean they all were destined to die horrible, horrible deaths here in Okeanos. A moment passed in silence. "Hey, Artemis, I know magic is more Hecate's thing but is it possible for you to pass down any Divine Words?" Andy asked, more curious to semantics than expecting a 'yes.'

"Pfft, no I've got zilch in the form of Magic, the only thing I've got right now is a mix of my Darlings and my Skills, though mostly Darlings."

"Yeah, I figured," Andy said, only slightly disappointed, having expected this.

That was then an arrow struck Orion in the head, and the small bear writhed on the ground in pain.

"Sh _it_ , we're under attack!" Andy said, instantly in 'panic' mode, deploying the newly-repaired Tenfold Shields and looking towards the direction the arrow came from.

"Hey, there is a message tied to it," Artemis said. "Hmm, ah it's her."

Andy turned to Artemis, who seemed fine with the fact Orion just got shot in the face. "What's it say? And who's the 'her' your referring to?"

"One of my followers and its directions to a nearby island." She answered.

"That follower wasn't an Argonaut, right?" Andy asked, wary of a potential trap.

"Yeah, Atalanta was on the ship for a little bit wasn't she?" Artemis asked out loud. "But I think she was there more for Medea's sake, though if I'm reading this right, they threw her overboard after she refused to cooperate. My, Jason needs a good spanking doesn't he."

"I think a good shanking would do him better," Andy muttered before speaking normally. "But, since Atalanta got kicked off she's probably on our side, right? And she might know what specifically the 'Ark' we're looking for is. We should bring the instructions to Drake and follow them if you're certain it's from Atalanta." Andy said. She wasn't sure if they were looking for the Ark of the Covenant or Noah's Ark, the latter seeming more plausible given the watery nature of the Singularity. But the former making sense to be part of some ploy to get power for Jason, so both were still on the table; narrowing it down to one or the other (or some other 'Ark' Andy didn't know about.) would make looking for it first easier.

The both of them headed up to Drake and gave her the letter so that she could read the instructions and quickly they found themselves docked on another island.

So Andy along with all her Servants, Stheno and Medusa walking side by side with Euryale, who was still wrought with grief over the loss of Asterios, despite putting up a strong front. Plus Drake who was leading them to the meeting place specified in the letter, that being the tallest tree in the forest.

It took them very little time to find it along with Atalanta the cat not in her Berserker form but as Archer, and right next to her was an unknown male Servant.

"See Miss Atalanta, I told you they would get the message." The male Servant said.

In response, Atalanta threw him a gold coin that he caught.

"Atalanta!" Artemis shouted as she smashed the cat into her bosom in a very painful looking hug.

Though it didn't last long as Atalanta disengaged from Artemis. "I'm sorry Lady Artemis please not in front of others," She said with an embarrassed blush on her face. "And to you Master of Chaldea, I apologize for my behavior in France."

"Oh, yeah that. Don't worry about it, I get you, and the others were being forced to do those things, it's fine." Andy reassured Atalanta while using her Stat-o-Vision on her.

[spoiler=Atalanta's Stat Sheet]

True Name: Atalanta

Class: Archer

Master: -

 **Parameters:**

Strength: D

Endurance: E

Agility: A

Mana: B

Luck: C

Noble Phantasm: B+

 **Class Skills:**

Independent Action: A

Magic Resistance: D

 **Personal Skills:**

Crossing Arcadia: A

Aesthetic of The Last Spurt: C

Calydonian Hunt: A

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Phoebus Catastrophe: Complaint Message on the Arrow(Anti-Army): B+

Agrius Metamorphosis: Boar of Divine Punishment(Anti-Unit(Self)): B+

[/spoiler]

"Thank you."

"Don't worry about it," Andy said. "But, ah, who's your friend here?" She asked, curious about the identity of the new green haired servant. He had a staff, so he was most likely a Caster. And she much preferred to know the abilities of her allies sooner rather than later.

"Finally, I'm noticed. As for who I am? I am the great David King of Israel. Now would you like to marry me?"

"Wha-no, no!" Andy said, of put first by the fact that it was King David (apparently in his younger days based on his appearance), and then by being proposed to just like that. "What kind of greeting is that anyway?"

"Ah! Rejected once again, that makes for number 547. Anyway, you gonna help us take down the Argonauts and stop them from killing everyone with their idiocy." He said.

"Well, yeah, obviously. It's just going to be kinda difficult considering they have Heracles as an Archer on their side." Andy said, taking the time to use her Stat-o-Vision on King David as well.

[spoiler=David's Stat Sheet]

True Name: David

Class: Archer

Master: -

 **Parameters:**

Strength: C

Endurance: D

Agility: B

Mana: C

Luck: A

Noble Phantasm: EX

 **Class Skills:**

Independent Action: A

Magic Resistance: A

 **Personal Skills:**

Divinity: D

Charisma: B

Divine Protection: A

Harp of Healing: B

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Hamesh Avanim: The Five Stones(Anti-Unit/Anti-Giant): C

Sacrifice: Flames Upon the Altar(Anti-Army): A

Ark: The Ark of the Covenant(Covenant): EX

[/spoiler]

"Well, we just gotta kill him harder, and as you probably know, they are looking for the Ark. My Ark to be specific, as you now know by reading my parameters." David said.

"So, you have the Ark? Why would Jason need the Ark of the Covenant?" Andy asked, confused and worried.

"Do you know what he will do with it?"

"The only thing I know is that he wants it and a goddess to become king of this world?" Andy said, not actually having thought about it much since then considering what had immediately followed his boast.

"Atalanta said the same thing to me, so I gotta ask who put that idiotic idea in his head that it would do that. Cause the only thing it brings is Death." He said.

"Yeah, I know even less about it than you do, but I'm guessing it was whoever handed him the Grail," Andy said. "But, if he needs the Ark to do...whatever it is he is trying to do, and it's your Noble Phantasm, we might be able to just outlast him and keep you away from him right?"

"No I quite literally mean what I'm saying the only thing that box can do is kill things, anybody who is not blessed by the almighty touches it they die. No exception, skin, and bones melt right of there is only a puddle left. It can't make anybody King."

"Why the fuck do you ancient kings have shit like that?" Drake asked.

"Hey, I didn't make the thing Moses did, to hold the Commandments. I just inherited the thing. Also, it's a physical thing, so even if I die, it will stay around." He said. "That is why we can't let Jason do his little plan and probably sacrifice any of you goddesses here to it. Normally that would only cause an explosion large enough to destroy a country, but with how unstable this space is?" He left the question hang in the air.

"Everything dies?" Andy asked somberly.

"Yep, so we gotta kill Heracles before he kills all of us. So, up for making a plan?"

"...What about using the Ark on Heracles?" Andy said after a moment. "You said it kills everyone who touches it, right? That would probably burn through most, if not all, of his lives pretty damn quickly, and then we'd be able to deal with the much more manageable Jason and M-Lily and whatever other Argonauts are on the ship."

"Okay that might be insane enough to work, so how do we go about making him touch the Ark itself?" David asked Andy.

"Hmm...I'm assuming you can touch it without dying, are you physically strong enough to pick it up on your own and, for lack of a better idea, use it as a club?" Andy said, feeling horrible suggesting using a literally holy relic as a barbaric bashing weapon but there was little choice in the matter.

"Yes, and yes. But how do we go about me being able to hit him before I look like a porcupine."

"Distract him with other Servants that are able to handle him?" Came the suggestion from Mash.

"Good idea Kouhai, but who would work to do that?" Andy wondered aloud. "The Cu Chulainn's, obviously, with Protection from Arrows, but I don't think they'll be able to distract him by themselves. I highly doubt he's any less of a monster from up close even as an Archer, and Chiron needs to not get hit even more than the rest of us, but he's an Archer…" Andy trailed off in thought, a million and one plans running through her head. "Wait, David, would a Saint be able to hold the Ark with you?"

"Do they have the Divine Protection Skill? Cause that is what is keeping me from turning into a pile of gak."

"Ah, no. No, they do not. Hm." Andy said. "Oh, but more immediately importantly, where is the Ark? Cause, where we throw down with the Argonauts, could change the plan significantly."

"Hid it down in some ruins further inland."

"Hmm. Since they have to come to the Ark then, we can draw them inland, have Mash and the Cu Chulainns force them to get in close by denying Heracles' arrows...and have two Berserkers and everyone else here waiting for them to stall until you can get a clean hit. Does that sound doable, David?" Andy plotted aloud.

"It does, and we gotta get to it quick as they are about to arrive." He stated.

"Fuck, really? How do you know?" Andy said, already getting ready to swap out the current line-up for the new one.

"It's a natural ability I have for sensing Divine power, that's how I knew you were here," David answered.

"Oh, then, in that case, we need to book it. Drake, hide the Hind if you can, they might still come after you. Everyone else, we're moving inland to get to the Ark. Medea, are you okay with me swapping you out for now?" Andy ordered and then asked. She figured it would be better to ask than to just suddenly woosh her away considering.

"I hear you, nobody is sinking my ship again." At that, she headed back to the ship.

"I am, I don't think I be able to fight right now," Medea answered.

"Understandable, considering the circumstances," Andy said solemnly, before turning to the Gorgons. "Euryale, are you okay with me sending your sisters back for a bit? If all goes well, you'll be reunited very soon." Andy said, not knowing the current emotional state of the Gorgon, having trusted the other two to handle it.

"Yes, I am okay now. I wanna go shoot Herakles and Jason in the dick." She stated her pompous attitude back once again.

"Alright, just stay behind the defenses with the others. Also, no offense by I don't think Heracles would actually get hurt from that, though I have a feeling Jason isn't so lucky." Andy said, before swapping out the current line up for both Cu Chulainn's, Darius III, and Kintoki. "Alright, sorry for the sudden summoning but we've got Archer Heracles inbound. Cu Chulainns, you two need to deal with those arrows. Darius, Kintoki, you're going to be fighting him once he gets close to stall for our main tactic. Understood?"

"Yes, Master."

"Alright. Darius, deploy Athanaton awhile, they'll be great for holding him off since they'll probably be able to hurt him. Everyone, make absolutely certain you don't get hit by him, he's got Hydra poison, that shit's practically insta-kill." Andy ordered further as they moved inland.

"Hhm." The Berserker grunted in agreement.

As they were moving, Andy threw out Hissy Fit 1 to act as an early warning sign, the 7 different colored plush snakes slithering off to hide. They wouldn't do much on their own against Servants, but the 7 Runestones in each that would explode when they saw an enemy would at least tell them the Argonauts were inbound. They soon arrived at the ruins David had been leading them to, the skeletal soldiers of Athanaton spreading out to surround it.

The man himself quickly ran down into them, and as he did, Andy felt one of his snakes go the connection to it cut as it exploded.

And as soon as number four exploded David came out holding the Ark on his shoulder.

"Make sure the only thing that touches is Argonauts," Andy said to David worriedly upon seeing the glowing golden box with what appeared to be two angels on it. "And they're almost here, so get ready everyone!" She said, Deploying her Claws for the off chance she would need them as Hissy 5 went off.

Six.

Seven.

At that Herakles came rushing into the clearing, and was met face first by a wall of skeletons dogpiled him.

" **NINE LIVE!"** Came the deep voice from the pile as it was exploded by what looked like hydra heads shooting out it in the form of pure energy. That plowed through a good chunk of the undead army. As the Demigod freed himself from the pile, Andy could see wounds on his body that were healing themselves. So at least one life had been taken.

That was when Darius crashed into him with the massive elephant, who just proceed to grip its tusks and flipped it over, and continuing towards them leaving the Persian King trapped under his own elephant at least temporarily.

"Kintoki!" Andy yelled, and the Golden Berserker practically pounced at the incoming Herakles ax first, Instant Reinforcement working its wonders.

Thanks to the extra boost in power and working his monstrous strength, Kintoki was fast and definitely strong enough to take a life. And he definitely did as the golden ax sunk into Herakles' shoulder and further into his shoulder, where he let out a charge of lightning.

"Do you like my golden lightning?"

"Weaker than my father's and you should have gone for the head!" Herakles shouted as his left hook collided with Kintoki's face. Sending the Berserker flying away from him. "Would have taken longer to regenerate."

"What about your heart! **Ath nGabla.** " Came the shout from Cu as there Herakles now stood a Runic Circle appeared. "You're now looked in one way duel Herakles, and you can't escape until you defeated your opponent."

"Cu you s _tupid fucking mutt what the fuck are you doing!_ " Andy shouted at the Lancer. He was supposed toblock arrows, not duel one-on-one!

"Then I kill you right now," Herakles said as he fired his arrows at Cu who then blocked them effortlessly.

"Ah, who said the opponent was me?"

"What?"

That was when David appeared from behind like he had come from nowhere and attacked Herakles with the Ark.

Wait, if that was David, why was he also standing beside her. At that, the image of David disappeared.

"Runes are bullshit." Said Caster Cu.

As Herakles on instinct grabbed the Ark.

"Hmm, sorry Illya guess I'm not the strongest." He said as his body turned to dust.

"...Would you mind _telling me ahead of time_ when you're going to do something like that you mutts!" Andy yelled at the Cu Chulainns. "I mean, yeah, it worked, and honestly good job absolutely superb you funky blue Irishmen, but _please_ tell me _before_ you do something stupid like invoking Ath nGabla on _fucking Heracles_?" She said, anger at the feeling of almost having lost her Servants being broken by the fact that they _fucking did it_ and killed Heracles, as an Archer. "Also, good job Darius, Kintoki! Are you guys alright?" She yelled to the Berserkers.

"Golden!"

"Argh!"

"Sorry Master we just came up with it on the spot. And…" Caster picked up a rock and threw it in the air, and a second later a bird fell down. "We were being spied on."

" _We have telepathy, you dumb dog,"_ Andy said through said ability. "Also, it did not occur to me to look for non-Dragon Tooth Warrior familiars." She then took a deep breath. "But, actually, good job everyone. We just fucking _killed Archer Herakles!"_ She shouted in joy.

"... We completely forgot we could do that. Though Master, I have to say we didn't get any Saint Quartz from this Singularity, and I think the Ark also vaporized the one Herakles was supposed to drop."

"Yeah, I noticed that. At the current rate, we'll get like three total barring extraneous circumstances, but we also got all these Archers for 'free,' so I guess it kinda balances out?" Andy said. "Oh, right, speaking of Saint Quartz, we should probably go get those three right now, yeah?" She said, her voice dripping with malice.

"I call shotgun for the Lancer." Came Lancer Cu's voice. "I wanna actually use Gae Bolg and kill somebody with it."

"Sure, that's fine, just keep in mind his Spear can cut through basically anything that isn't Rho Aias...actually, Darius, are you okay if I swap you out? I'd prefer to have a fake Rho Aias around in case Hector decides to say 'fuck it.'" Andy said to the Lancer and then Berserker. "Long growl yes, short growl no."

"Arrrrgh." Came the drawn-out growl from the Berserker that was standing back up again. His Noble Phantasm deactivated.

"Alright then," Andy said, before swapping him out for Emiya. "Archer, we've gotten the enemy down to Hector of Troy, M-Lily, and Jason. There may or may not be other Argonauts on board, but I wanted you around in case Hector decides to toss his spear."

"Sure thing Master."

"Alrighty then, let's move out, kill Jason and the remaining Argonauts, and retrieve the Holy Grail!" Andy said, pumped from the adrenaline of being as close to Herakles (and thus, death) as she had been earlier and his subsequent death. "I really want to get out of here."

Xxx

[spoiler=for readers]You know should I include proto-Gil cause I kinda want to add him[/spoiler]


	47. The End of The Sea

" **DURINDANA PILUM!** " Came the shout from one of the mightiest spear-throwers of the Trojan War, with only a few things being able to stop the thrown Noble Phantasm.

And thankfully ANdy had a Servant with the exact shield that had stopped the original in his arsenal of infinite weapons on her side.

"Archer, Rho Aias, NOW!" Andy quickly ordered the moment she heard the 'Dur.'

" **I am the Bone of My Sword! Rho Aias: Seven Rings That Cover The Fiery Heaven!** " Emiya declared as the pink flower formed shield appeared in front of them all and stopped the spear dead as it once again failed to pierce its seventh layer.

"Wow," Andy said at the display, before refocusing on the problem at hand. "Right, so, all Archers once we're in range just bombard the ship. Emiya, be prepared to Rho Aias again. Mash, get ready for anything else they might throw at us. Golden Boy, once you can just go nuts on them. Lancer, you got Hector, and Caster lay on the Rune buffs whenever possible and fire when you can't." Andy ordered as they approached the Argo.

Though what meet them was an army of Dragon Tooth warriors of the Saber and Archer variety that flooded the beach with the Argo out on the water with a pissed of Jason and calm looking Medea Lily at his side.

"Why won't you die, you should have died, and I should have won!" Jason shouted.

"This may be a tough pill to swallow you glory-hog _dumbass revenant_ , but when you're trying to kill all of humanity _you're not the fucking good guy!_ " Andy spat out at the pompous asshole.

"Liar! I should become king obtain the birthright which had been denied to me, to erase the shame of having to live with that fucking equine, fuck you Chiron I hate you. I'm supposed to become the king of this world and have my kingdom of eternal peace, you're the villains for denying me. Give me that Ark and Goddess!" He shouted.

"All the Ark does is kill anything it touches! _How do you think we killed Heracles?"_ Andy yelled back. "If you succeed, all that'll be left is whoever gave you the Grail, and _they'll_ be ruling over your empire of _no one_!"

"Lies, it's supposed to make me invincible isn't that right Medea?" He asked turning to the Magus.

"She speaks the truth Lord Jason, with all your enemies dead you would be invincible, and no one would be able to hurt you." She answered.

"But you told."

"That is why I have to with the Plan B that the King gave me, and protect you this way." That was then Medea shoved the Grail into Jason's chest.

"Damn you, you witch?" Jason growled as he fell overboard and into the sea.

"Now Incarnate into this body. Demon God Forneus!"

At that another pillar of meat and bodies shoot out of the sea and into the air, eyes looking at them. " **I am Forneus of The Seventy-Two Demon Gods! Fused with the flesh of the Divine Beast Moby Dick! I bring you the death of this world!"**

"Wait! Demon God? You mean Solomon's Demon Gods?" Came the question from David as he looked at the Pillar.

"You would know better than me!" Andy said, frantically trying to think of _something_ that could manage to kill another Demon Pillar without having to sacrifice a Servant. "Oh, wait, duh. David, Kintoki, you think you can manage to be thrown and be accurate enough to hit that with the Ark?" Andy asked, a wave of relief washing over her at the _stupidly simple_ solution available to her.

"I don't know if that work Andy, if those are my son's familiars, don't know, never actually seen them. They are part of his skills, and so a part of him, and he can touch the Ark, he has the authority granted to him." David stated.

" _OH._ Uhm. Never mind then." Andy said, picturing what would happen if it was immune and got a hold of the Ark to use as it pleased. "In that case, uhm... _fuck_ how the hell are we supposed to kill this?" She asked, very open to suggestions. "Wait, Emiya, did you get a good look at Hector's spear? Cause it's also a sword, so…?"

He was about to answer but was interrupted as Andy felt herself being grabbed by Kintoki who moved her just before a laser hit her.

Though they also heard the sound of cannon fire. "Holy Shit Guys what is going on here men fire on that monster we're taking it down!" Drake ordered as her ship appeared from around the corner and fired more cannon rounds at the Demon Pillar.

And to Andy's surprise, it screamed in pain as flesh was blown away. "I'm getting much better at using this Grail. Come now Andy lets this thing it can be hurt!" The Demon Pillar fired a laser in response but it just missed and did so several more times, and Andy could hear it's anger rising.

"You heard her, everyone let loose!" Andy yelled, now happy that it proved to be hurtable despite having Moby Dick's resilience. Probably had something to do with the 'demon' and 'divine' canceling each other somewhat or something.

"If it is made from Moby Dick's flesh this should be able to harm him. Trace On." Emiya said, and Andy saw a harpoon in his hand. "Pierce the whale with vengeance. Ahab!" He shouted as he fired the harpoon as an arrow from his bow. That pierced and exploded causing a large chunk of it to be taken out.

"You're inferring! Rain of Light." Andy quickly dodged the beams fired by Medea Lily as she joined the battlefield. And Andy took notice that her Dragon Tooth warriors had been eliminated.

"Shield, Magic Shield, Reflect Shield," Andy said rapidly to help defend herself. She hadn't really been using them, and she was going to make up for that. "Horse Saber." She said, the Claws taking the shape of a strange horse figurine before she pressed the button on it and a massive energy beam came out of it before coiling around Andy in a wide arc, the energy dragon forming. Nowhere near as massive as its inspiration, but it would be more than enough to deal with Medea Lily while the Servants focused on Forneus. Mostly for deflecting her lasers, since it was made of the same ether stuff the other 'energy' weapons the Claws made were. She attempted to deflect some of the incoming lasers, and to her surprise, they actually went back in her direction, though they missed the Caster by a wide margin. Which was good, cause now she had Medea Lily distracted while her Servants and Drake dealt with Forneus. "Hey! Why are working for Jason anyway?" She yelled at the probably brainwashed but potentially not, Lily.

"Because I love him." She answered as she fired more beams at Andy, but she blocked them with her Beam Saber.

"Sweetie, that's cause the gods made you love him, it's not real lo _ve!_ " She yelped as one of the lasers got past the Beam Saber, as she had mostly been relying on its size to deflect since she had little skill or experience with it, though most of it bounced off her reflective shield before dissipating on the Magic Shield.

"I know, I know how it ends but I just can't help myself, but I was defeated by the King and shown the foolishness of trying to defy him, the world is dead, and we shall all soon follow." Her voice without any will in her voice like it had been crushed out of her.

"It doesn't have to end like that though!" Andy yelled as she steadily flew towards where the Lily was floating in the air bombarding her with lasers. "We've already defeated everything that 'king' has thrown at us, and just look at what used to be Jason!" She said, pointing at the Demon Pillar with her free hand, turning her head to make it look like she was looking at it but not taking her eyes off of Lily.

"Spoken like one who has yet to taste true despair, it doesn't matter if you defeat us here or have defeated others before. So long as one Singularity succeeds it is all for naught." She stated as she went into melee, power surrounding her staff as they clashed in mid-air.

Andy had the advantage in defense, reach, and weapon strength, due to using an actual Noble Phantasm, and due to the Ethereal nature of said Claws, she was able to block the attack by Medea Lily, and then reach out with her other hand _through_ the Beam Saber with a quiet "Mana Burst" and ripping Medea Lily's staff out of her hands, before surrounding her in a rough sphere from the dragon-like whip. "Surrender, and I'll be able to prove to you that I'm telling the truth when I say that we. Will _. Win._ " Andy said, in the moment believing it for once just as much as she was trying to convince the seemingly broken Lily of it.

"You did, and I'm spent put Jason out of his misery would you?" She asked as she dispersed and only a Saint Quartz was left in Andy's hand.

Andy quietly stored the Quartz before turning in the air towards Forneus and her Servants still combating it, just in time for the Grand Finale.

"This is the end. **GOLDEN SPARK!** " Shouted Kintoki as he unleashed his Noble Phantasm in the form of a massive Lightning bolt that seemed to incinerate the Demon God. Leaving a dying Jason floating in the water, as he the Argo started to rot at an accelerated pace with also Hector disappearing as Andy saw Gae Bolg speared through his body. She had missed that fight entirely.

She swooped to where Jason was disintegrating and dragged him out of the water in the teeth of the dragon-like beam saber so they could collect his Quartz, and hopefully the Grail, once he dissipated, and dropped him on the beach near her Servants before landing with much more elegance. She definitely didn't drop down on Jason with the fury of a meteor, nope. He seemed to somehow still be...relatively intact after that but looked to be in more pain. "All right everyone, we just need to wait for this fucker to finish dying and then we've officially done it! Does anyone need healing?" She said cheerily.

"Nope, not needed." Was the response some form or another from the Servants.

"You can all rot in Tartarus." Came the last pathetic whimper from Jason as he finally vanished.

"You first, asshole," Andy said as she picked up his Saint Quartz and stored it, before picking up the Grail and handing it to Mash. "Alright, that's everything, so now I just need to get something from the Hind and then we're heading home!" Andy declared.

It was then the ship came up to them as its name was called. "Knew we would win," Drake said as she hung from the side of the ship, looking down on them.

"You had more confidence than I did!" Andy said back as she flew up to have a talk with the Captain. "And, of course, if it weren't for you going in cannon's blazing I probably would have kept agonizing trying to figure out how to hurt Forneus instead of actually trying anything."

"Your welcome, so I guess you're gonna pick up your little Magic things before you leave?"

"Yeah, and I kinda wanted to have a toast with you before we left. I've never had alcohol from a Holy Grail before." Andy said, not mentioning that she'd only ever tried alcohol twice.

"Sure thing," Drake said handing Andy a mug that had just appeared from thin air.

Andy disappointedly looked at the mug for a moment upon realizing she was not just handed Drake's Grail before taking off her helmet and raising the mug. "To Captain Drake and her crew! We'd probably be dead without ya!" She proclaimed.

"You know it, so it's kinda sad I forget all about this adventure then stuff returns to normal," Drake said with a bit of sadness.

"Well, I'll probably end up summoning you at some point in the future like with the others, but yeah," Andy said, fully expecting that specific outcome after Nero doing the same. "Actually, I'd bet if I had something of yours of magical significance, like, I dunno, your Grail, I'd probably be able to summon you with your memories. And after we fix all this, you'll still have the one you're supposed to have in history. It's a win-win!" Andy said cheerily, having absolutely no idea if the first half of her statement would work.

"Pfft, as if you need to lie better if you want my treasure Andy but nice try a pirate can be made out of you yet, but if you want something from me take this," Drake said as she placed her hat on Andy's head.

"Eh, it was worth a shot." Andy laughed. "But, thanks. I'll be sure to use this to try and summon you then." Her voice got quieter and more morose. "But, ah, don't be offended if I wait till I summon Asterios back first before that, we'd all be super dead if it weren't for him."

"Of course not, the fluffy boy deserves to be with his one true love doesn't he? Great, I'm beginning to sound like the idiot."

"Just don't go on any monologues and you should be good," Andy said, grinning widely. "Oh, and you can keep the scarf then, that'll be your memento of us."

"I am, now go get your stuff, I see you later even if I don't remember," Drake said as she went up to the helm.

"Well, I have been recording everything I've seen this whole time, I'll just show the other you the footage." Andy said nonchalantly as she flew to the door and below deck to get her things from her 'workshop,' leaving the untouched mug of ale in the doorway.

Xxx

"Welcome back Andy." Roman greeted them as they left the Coffins, along with Andy's newly recruited Servants who were standing on the platform.

"Good to be back, Boss," Andy said, the rush from defeating Jason (and less importantly, Forneus) as well as actually having to fight a Servant and _winning_ (though that little girl almost kicked her ass, if it hadn't been for the psychological aspect of the fight) meaning she was still raring and ready to go, full of vim and vigor. "Do you need me for anything urgent Boss? I kinda wanted to make use of these Saint Quartz, try to bring back best boy."

"Not right now, but my earlier conversation with David while you were picking up your stuff. It's been confirmed that they are Solomon's Demons and that he could be able to destroy the world if he wanted to. But if he wanted to, he would have done it while he was alive. Though only if he somehow had suffered a massive betrayal. So we're still in the dark about the Mastermind."

"Like the loser there said. I didn't have the perfect relationship with my son, but even he isn't the hundred percent dick that is required to burn human history." David said.

"Hm _m_. So someone has either the Ars Goetia, Solomon's Rings, or both, or like some knock-off of them that's only one step down from the real thing." Andy paused to consider the implications. "That's not terrifying at all." She said, monotonously.

"Hmm possibly or someone really pissed him off and caused him to lose faith in humanity, and I put a nil chance on the later," David added. "He has the power to destroy the world if he wanted, but the whole incineration thing is a way too convoluted way to go about it?"

"Yeah...well, there's no point speculating about it right now, I'm going to go try and bring back best boy and then I'd say everyone should get some rest. Oh, that reminds me, Da Vinci did you manage to make any Tickets while we were gone?"

"Got two for you." She said as she threw them at Andy. "Could only make two during the trip. As most of the power was dedicated for the Rayshift, and monitoring of you and the deployment of Servants."

"Thanks for what you could make anyway. Now, does anyone have anything they need to say urgently?" Andy asked.

A general no was given.

"I'm going to find my sisters get me if you manage to summon him," Euryale stated.

"Of course," Andy said, almost insulted. "Kouhai, C'mon, we've got summons to do."

Soon they arrived in the Summoning Room, and Mash got the summoning circle ready. As she did, Andy had a revelation. "Oh, that's why it works so well for Summoning, it's _literally_ a place where 'heroes gather.'" She said aloud while Mash was finishing the setup.

"It is, and I'm grateful for that." Mash as she pulled up beside her.

"Oh yeah, definitely grateful here," Andy said sincerely as she approached the circle. "Which reminds me, unless we get like some special case or a Caster with EX item creation, I wanted to have an important talk with you after this."

"Okay, Senpai."

"Alrighty now, BBBB! Bring Back Best Boy!" Andy said as she used the Quartz for the first summon, hoping since they were from Okeanos too they had a higher chance of summoning Asterios.

The circle lit up with all the familiar smoke, and Andy saw. "Well, this is awkward." Said Blackbeard, who was then kicked in the nuts by Mash. "Augh, god that hurt, but I deserved that."

"Kouhai, don't treat new allies like that," Andy said, getting in between Mash and Blackbeard. Before also kicking him in the gonads, though it no doubts hurt much less than when Mash did it. "I was supposed to do that first, he stabbed _me_ remember?" She said jokingly, before turning to face the surprisingly still standing Blackbeard. "If you take even one step out of line I will use a Command Seal and make you hook your brain out through your spleen, understand?"

"I understand Master, but previously we were enemies, and that was a fair shot." He stated. "But I'll behave, though I gotta ask what is your cup size?"

Andy was about to kick him again before she paused. "I...don't actually know. All my bras were custom made. Huh." She said, realizing all of her clothing was custom made since arriving here, which was why everything fit so well despite her size. "Also, no more comments like that, or I'll show you an A-rank kick. And if you so much as _touch_ the children _so help me god..._ " She said, purposefully trailing off to leave the threat in the air, the imagination of such a threat much worse than anything concrete.

That was then Blackbeard smacked her across her face, and then had a shield inches from his. "Let's make one thing clear here Master. I love children but _Never in that way_. That is beyond disgusting to accuse someone of that." He stated with a completely serious face as his eyes bore into hers. "And before you comment about Euryale, she is decades old, and she does not have the mentality of one. I like the body time, but I would never force myself on actual children."

"Oh, look. A single moral scruple." Andy said, glaring at the pirate. B+ Strength, even when he was _definitely holding back_ (she'd be chunky salsa otherwise) hurt like a _bitch_. "Congratulations. You're not the lowest of the low. And if you want to keep that hand, never touch me with it again." She said coldly, tears of pain, remembrance, and a bit of fear in her eyes but her voice not wavering. "Take an armband, find a room, and stay there until I tell you, you can leave. I'd rather not kill one of my own Servants."

At that Blackbeard smiled. "We're going to get along fine Master, as long as you have steel in you. But I will say this even a Devil has standards, but hitting women isn't one of them this fist is unisex in pain."

" **Go** ," Andy said, a Command Seal accidentally flaring up and disappearing.

Blackbeard just gave her a thumbs up, as he took an armband and proceeded to leave cooly the room.

Andy glared at the door for a while after he left, doing her damnedest not to break down at having to have _this_ asshole use up her resources, and then having the _audacity_ to hit her.

"Senpai." Came the concerned voice from Mash.

Andy looked over away from the door after a moment, before nodding at Mash and wiping away the bits of tears. "I'm...I'm fine, Kouhai. Let's just see who's next, yeah? Hopefully, it's not Jason." Andy said as she summoned the next Servant, very much so hoping it was _not_ Jason.

And then she was hugged by the big muscly arms of Asterios. "Master, is okay now?"

Andy smiled wide. "Yeah, Asterios, everything's okay now." She said, a few more tears, this time of happiness, coming from her eyes. _"Euryale, he's here!"_ She excitedly said telepathically to the newest contracted Gorgon sister.

" _He is? I'm coming!"_

It took Euryale approximately twenty seconds for her to barge in at full running speed. "Never do that again!" She shouted as she jumped onto him and grabbed his fluffy mane-like hair.

"I mean, I'm glad you did, but she has a point," Andy said, still in the large man's embrace, which honestly she was fine with for the moment. "Don't do that again." She said, not wanting to lose any allies, especially not the newly acquired best boy.

"Asterios is sorry, but you were gonna get hurt."

"Ohmygod, Asterios, you really are the best boy," Andy said, more than a little astonished and touched by the simplistic sincerity in his words, as if it were the simplest conclusion to come to.

"He is, and he is mine, come Asterios let's go and introduce you to my sisters," Euryale said as she let go in the manner of a refined lady. "Andy has other Servants to summon. Afterward, we can beat up Blackbeard some more already shot him the balls on the way here."

"I take it Asterios will be sharing a room with you, Euryale?" Andy said, half-teasingly, half seriously before they left.

"Yes, of course, I have seen the bed, and I'm in need of a superior one." She stated.

"Oh? When can we expect little fluffy snakey babies then?" Andy asked, this time fully teasingly.

Both of their faces became beet red. "He is way to big." She muttered.

"Medea could probably whip up something to make you both the same size if you really want to," Andy said, a bit more seriously now, though it was rather hard to be serious when you're being half-crushed by a giant fluffy minotaur man/best boy while teasing him and his loli goddess girlfriend. God, what has her life come to?

Though it was then Asterios finally let the hug go as the two of them left the summoning without saying anything out of pure embarrassment.

"...Would Medea make Euryale bigger or Asterios smaller…?" Andy wondered aloud after they left, not actually sure, but definitely wanting to see the resulting change in size. "Well, questions for later. Let's see who's the last addition for today!" Andy said, forgetting to use Drake's hat, which was currently stored away, in her excitement.

"This is Sparta, with my appearance totally calculated by the power of math!" Leonidas shouted as he appeared from the smoke.

"Leonidas, welcome to Chaldea. Our accommodations may not be as...fuck it, spartan as you like, but we're glad to have you join us." Andy said, already deciding to add the guy who more-or-less made 'Spartan Training' to her physical training regiment as a teacher.

"I am to me, my shield, and men are ready to serve Master with three hundred times the effort. Now I can see you're working out, but I shall get you into proper spartan shape, for anybody can do that man or woman. Though not disabled hunchbacked idiots THAT! Sorry about that now do you have a room for me to live?" He asked as he calmed himself down.

"Ah, yes. But in regards to the training, you'll have to coordinate with the others, especially now with my new project so everyone can work off of each other instead of getting in each other's way." Andy said, happy for another teacher/trainer.

"I see diversity is good, you're a Mage, and so your magical talent has priority, but a sound soul and mind lies within a sound body." He stated.

"Well, I am kinda planning on reconstructing the majority of my musculature from the ground up, but that'll be pretty useful yeah," Andy said before turning to Mash. "Kouhai, if you would?"

"Here Mister Leonidas, this armband will help you interact with Chaldea," Mash said as she handed the armband to Leonidas.

"Thank you Miss, and Master if you need me for a mission or workout just ask." He said as he _**Flexed**_ those iron muscles of his.

Andy stared at said muscles with a dumb expression on her face. "Yeeah. Workout. Train. Yeah." She said dumbly, eating up the eye candy.

"Spartaout." He said he kicked open the door and left.

"Hot _damn_ that was an emotional rollercoaster," Andy said after a moment.

"So Senpai you wanted to talk?" Mash asked as she picked up her shield and shut the room down as the summoning was over.

"Ah, right," Andy said, remembering. "I realized after we left I never asked about if anything else beyond your armor and your Phantasm changed about your abilities when you found out about Galahad. Were there any other changes, any newfound abilities, increased parameters, anything like that?"

"Two of my skills have changed Snowflakes has become stronger, and I now know what my Inheritance skill does, it is Mana Defence, the defensive version of Mana Burst." She answered.

"Ooh, that sounds good. In what are Snowflakes stronger though?" Andy asked.

"The defensive aura effect is boosted."

"Oh, okay. And, the last question about the upgrades, do you have the knowledge on how to use that sword now too?" Andy asked. She knew it probably wouldn't be some hidden Galahad-Excalibur or something, but she was still curious about it.

"I do and more hand to hand combat, but it is just an ordinary sword like Ushiwakamaru own blade." She answered

"Ah, that makes sense. And since your main focus is on defending since you're a Shielder and all, I'm betting you won't use it much with your shield?" Andy asked.

"Correct, though funny enough with you mentioning it in Rome if I were a Lancer I would have that spear." She said.

Andy practically blue screened at that for a moment. "O _h_. Uhm. Y'know, I didn't even consider that. Damn. I can kinda imagine it in my head and...da _mn_. Shame there isn't a way to change your class, Galahad was a Knight so he could probably be a Rider and have Lord Camelot and the Lance of Longinus." Andy speculated for a moment.

"Senpai, you could force me to use it by using three command seals like Cu suggested with him and Warp Spasm. Though it would probably be one-time secret move. We can be like "oh no we are losing" and then bam! Longinus."

Andy was nodding along to her idea the whole time, listening intently. "I like the way you think Kouhai. Very dramatic, very thematic. Though we should probably save that for whoever it is behind all this, it'll be extra appropriate then."

"Sure thing, Senpai. Though I'm hungry now. And we need some rest so that you can do snuggle stuff with Astolfo tomorrow."

Andy sputtered as she turned to respond, before she tripped over nothing at her words, falling flat on her face, a skill she had perfected long ago, though for once it was out of embarrassment instead of the source of it. The struggles of turning, walking, and being teased were never-ending.


	48. Date With Astolfo

"Hello, Master! I am ready!" Astolfo announced himself as he entered Andy's room.

"Astolfo, I get that you're excited, but can you please knock in the future? I could have been changing." Andy said, wearing the suit form of her plugsuit, having panicked at being unable to find a suitable 'first date' outfit. "I mean, I wasn't, but still, the point stands."

"Heh, heh. Now, do you have anything planned?" He asked.

"Uhm, dinner and a movie?" Andy asked, making it up on the spot. She hadn't had much time to put thought into this, and also hadn't been on a 'proper' date as an actual adult and not a dumb teenage kid, and as such had no idea what she was doing. _Especially_ since she'd never taken a guy on a date as a girl.

"That sounds fun, we can get Mr. Emiya and Ms. Boudicca to make us some good things. And what movie should we watch?"

"How about... Mamma Mia?" Andy said, figuring it would be good for a first date.

"That sounds like a good choice, come let's get go down there," Astolfo said as he took Andy's hand and pulled her out of her room into the hallway.

"Hey, be careful there strong man you almost pulled my arm out of the socket," Andy said. The height difference and the absurd difference in strength combined with Astolfo's eager obliviousness seemed like a bad combo for being literally pulled places.

"Oops, sorry." He apologized as they began to walk down to the dining hall as that was the only place to get food, of course, still holding hands.

"So, umm, I forgot to say it when you showed up, but you look... really good in that outfit, Astolfo." Andy complimented him, as they walked to the dining hall. She recognized that it was somehow the same outfit he had worn in Trifas with Sieg, but didn't say that part out loud.

"Thanks you look great too, male clothes suit you even as a woman." He complimented her in his own Astolfo way.

Andy blushed at the compliment. "T-thanks. It's probably because it's Da Vinci's handiwork though."

"Nah, it's because you're wearing it. Though let's get inside, we are here already." Astolfo said as they were now outside the dining halls door.

Andy's blush deepened at his words. "Y-yeah, lets." She said, before they entered, still holding hands, and Andy saw-.

"Good evening I shall be your waiter for the evening." Emiya greeted them dressed as a waiter, the entire dining hall was darker than normal with a single, fully prepared candlelit table in the center. "Please take a seat." He instructed.

Andy was more than a bit surprised, considering the only person she told about the date was Mash...she really was the Best Kouhai. "Uh, right, thank you." She said, walking over to the table with Astolfo before sitting down opposite him.

"Here is the menu please select your course and drink," Emiya said as he handed the two of them a menu.

"Uhm...I'll take the risotto and water." Andy decided after a moment of looking through the menu.

"And I take the meat course," Astolfo said announcing his choice. "And for drinks, I like some water and a bottle of wine."

"Your choices have been noted, now please enjoy the music," Emiya said as he left them, and that was then a portion of the room lit up, and Andy saw Mozart playing on the violin.

They sat there for a moment doing just that. Mozart's magnificent, magical music was truly something to enjoy, and it helped smooth over Andy having very little idea what to do.

Astolfo was just smiling at her.

"So, uhm, Astolfo," Andy said, deciding to break the silence between them. "I know about you as a person, but do you have any hobbies, things you like to do?"

"Traveling, I like going wherever it pleases me and seeing new places. Cause when you do you get to meet new people and have great adventures." He told her.

"Oh, that makes sense. You kinda have this aura of wanderlust about you, and I have no doubt you already have a bunch of stories to tell from your previous adventures." Andy said.

"Yep, the other Paladins and I got up to a lot of crazy stuff especially Roland. Though there was one time, Charlemagne and I found this big ruin, with lot's of alien writing it had a big bunny picture on it."

"A big bunny?" Andy asked, curious to know more about Astolfo's adventures.

"Yep, though it was more humanoid in appearance, with long ears and big hands. Actually, I found something in the database here that looked a lot like it, not precise let me bring up the picture." Astolfo said as he fiddled with his armband. "Here." He said as he showed her the holographic picture.

Andy blinked owlishly at the image. "That's a Digimon. You said it just looked kind of like that, right?" She asked, worried about the possibilities of that world being this one considering their already existing enemies.

"More like its outline matches with the image we saw, though we also found a door with weird robot looking things inside so Charlemagne just blew straight up with Joyce. Funnily enough, he and Altera share the same sword. Though it used to belong to her, though as a Noble Phantasm they would probably be very different if you managed to summon my King."

"Huh. Did that have anything to do with the whole 'moon' thing?" Andy asked, putting together the 'alien,' 'robot,' and 'rabbit' factors with what she knew about the Moon Cell leading her to worry a tad about it, but at the moment it was mostly curiosity.

"Eh, it is more like after I got Hippogriff, I used him to travel to the Reverse Side of The World's Concept of the Moon to get the potion to cure Roland, though that Kaguya girl took offense and did the whole sanity thing," Astolfo explained.

"W _ow_ , that's...wow," Andy said, a bit blown away, processing the fact that apparently, legends cross-pollinated across different pantheons and myths and such regardless of origin. She knew he had left his sanity on the moon, but hadn't realized it was Kaguya specifically who had taken it; that opening up all kinds of possibilities.

"Your drinks." Interrupted Emiya as he placed two pitcher's of water on the table along with a wine bottle. "You're food is going to be ready in five."

"Ah, thank you," Andy said habitually, before turning her attention back to Astolfo. "So how did you meet Hippogriff? Aren't they supposed to be impossible and all that?"

"Well, Hippogriffs are the symbol of Apollo, so I guess it literally took Divine Intervention for a mare and Griffin to get it on. But mine I found near Céret in France known today as the area Roussillon." He answered.

"You just...found it?" Andy asked, not sure if she should really be surprised considering who she was talking to.

"Eh, more like I beat up a Magus for him, some dude named Atlantes who tried to stop Ruggiero from allying with Charlemagne and becoming Christian, though I think was mostly because of the alliance."

"...I really need to read up on your legend sometime." Andy said upon realizing she didn't know half of the things he was talking about in that sentence. "But, uhm, sensitive topic, are you Christian?" She asked, knowing full well he was a Heroic Spirit and therefore had already died and all that but so was Jeanne, and she still had faith.

"Do I believe God exists sure, do I think the bible has stories with good moral lessons, sure. Do I pray nah, I don't see a point in that? He can hear us all the time so why would we need to pray to him. So, yeah I think I'm a Christian." Astolfo stated as he went over how his belief worked.

"Oh. Okay." Andy said, not really knowing how to respond.

Thankfully, Emiya arrived with the food at that moment.

"Here is your dinner, Risotto for the Lady and the meat course for the Paladin," Emiya announced as he placed the plates on the table. Astolfo's was larger than hers as it contained several different types of meat cooked in various ways with a bowl of salad and sauce next to it.

And her Risotto was there two of one vegetable based and another with more meat, turkey, her favorite to be exact.

"I hope you enjoy the meal," Emiya said as he left.

"Thank you," Andy said to Emiya as he left before she began to eat.

"Yeah, this looks great thanks red," Astolfo said as he slowly began to eat his food like a normal person and not like the Saberfaces, such messy vacuum cleaners.

They ate in a comfortable silence for a bit, enjoying the deliciousness that was Emiya's cooking. A few minutes passed before they said anything of substance again.

"So, Andy we've been talking a lot of about me, but all of us Servants don't know a lot about you, and the dream cycle has only given fussy bits about your childhood. You were cute." Astolfo said.

Andy blushed at that. "Well, uhm, thanks. But, uh, I guess...you probably already guessed based on my Stitchcraft, but I like to sew. And I like to cook, though I'm not as good as Emiya. And, before I got kidnapped, I really liked to write, but since then I haven't really done that. What's going on around me is a lot more interesting, and time-consuming. And who would even read it, y'know?" She joked morbidly.

"I would love to read, whatever you wrote."

Andy's blushed deepened. "R-really? I don't...really have anything at the moment, b-but if I start writing again you'll be the first to know." She declared.

"Sure thing Andy, got anything else to say about yourself?" He asked.

"Uhm...I'm really happy you're here at all, and I never would have imagined going on a d-date with you, so thank you," Andy said, face reddening, not looking directly at Astolfo.

And that was then the music, changed to a very familiar sounding tune. "Ohoh!"

Andy's blush deepened about 15 shades upon recognizing Careless Whisper. She looked over at Mozart. "I feel so unsure as I take your hand." He sang with a full-blown grin as he looked at them.

Andy looked back at Astolfo, who was grinning like a lunatic. "Well, you heard the man wanna dance?"

"Uhm, I-I'm not really a good dancer, b-but, if you w-want to," Andy said nervously. Her... frame had meant she had never really been a dancer, and no one had ever asked her to dance in this kind of context.

"Nothing extreme just, more like walking close together." He said as he took her hand once again.

"A-alright," Andy said as he led her over and they began to dance slowly.

And the music changed from less modern to more classic. As two of them were up against each other's chest in the rhythm of the music. Well more like his head against her chest causing Andy to blush more, they continued doing that for about two minutes more before returning to their seats, Mozart switching back to just violin instead of using more of his summoned ghost orchestra.

"I liked that," Astolfo stated.

"I did t-too," Andy said, still blushing, and still rather embarrassed at both dancing with her...boyfriend? Not quite yet, this was just a first date, so with her date for the first time.

"So let's finish eating and go watch the movie afterward, yeah?"

"Y-yeah, lets."

They did just that, alternating between small talk and comfortable silence as they finished their food. Soon, they were completely done, the wine bottle left untouched. "So, you ready for the movie, or did you want dessert?" Andy said after a moment once Astolfo had finished his food, taking longer to finish off the multi-course meal he had gotten.

"Well if there is still room in your stomach for it?" He asked.

"Well, I'm not hungry still, but I figured since your a Servant you might want a little more," Andy said.

"Well, a snack to eat while watching a movie can't hurt can it?"

"True."

"Well, let's ask Mr. Emiya if we can't get something along for the ride."

Xxx

"Wow, that was a great movie Andy," Astolfo said as they left the entertainment area, that like the dining hall had been empty for them to use.

"Yeah, Mamma Mia's a classic. I think there was a sequel that was supposed to come out before...y'know." Andy said, referencing their entire situation. "I'm glad you enjoyed it."

"I did, and really this evening with you Andy, I hope we can do this another time, though I think some of my fellow Servants are waiting in line for their date with you especially Mash." He stated.

"W-wait, what?" Andy asked completely thrown off guard. "I-I thought th-this was the start of a r-relationship?"

"It isn't? Just because you're with me doesn't mean you can't date other boys or girls." Astolfo said, which clued Andy in that the pink haired Rider, had completely different idea of what a 'Relationship' actually was about.

"T-to me it d-does," Andy said, slightly less off guard. "A committed relationship, in m-my books, is two people together with no other romantic p-partners."

"Eh, if you choose to. I don't care if you have other besides me, I always be yours." He said teasingly as he leaned closer. "Hmm, just realized I can't do surprise kiss, you're way too tall."

"W-well, I can l-lean down a bit," Andy said nervously, leaning just enough that if Astolfo stood on his tiptoes, he could manage it. "It just won't be a s-surprise."

"Well, that takes the fun out of it." He said as he leaned back. "Well like I said tonight was still fun, so see you in the morning."

Andy stood straight up again, on several levels disappointed. "Yeah, I had a lot of fun too. See you then." She said, already planning on heading to Medea's Workshop as they parted.

She went quickly down to the woman's workshop and was greeted by the Greek woman as she laid over a table an unmarked bottle next to her.

"Hey, Master." Downer was the best word that could describe what Medea sounded like right then and there, as she didn't even bother to raise her head.

"Have you been drinking, Medea?" Andy asked sympathetically, not being able to imagine the kind of emotional turmoil she had gone through at seeing Jason and her own brainwashed younger self.

"A little. But I had strengthened it a little for it be able to affect me. Hick." She answered. "Don't worry this won't last more than a week, didn't last time."

"A whole week?" Andy asked, somewhat disappointed she'd have to go that long with Medea's expert counsel on her Silkies, not to mention the current issue. "Well, you do whatever you need to cope. But, ah, you wouldn't happen to have any existing potions that could change someone's size would you?" She asked anyway, figuring if Medea didn't she could ask Gil, but it would be better to ask the person in front of her first.

"Huh, I just made Euryale more elastic. Why size? That seems stupid." Came the drunken answer.

"Well, a number of reasons, one of which being for the rare need to blend in, one...did you say you made Euryale more 'elastic'?" Andy asked, only just processing that part of the statement.

"Well, you _are_ really tall. Yeah, how else is he going to fit? You want some too?"

"Nonono, no thank you to that part. But, I dunno, to me it would have made more sense if she grew to his size or he shrunk to her size or something." Andy said, picturing a chibi Asterios and then an Asterios-sized Euryale like a larger Medusa, both of which she had wanted to see on some level. "But you do have something that can make me shorter, that's preferably reversible if need be?" She asked.

"Heh, want to be in kissing height with Astolfo, and I don't want to deny her _feeling that_."

"...Yeah, that's the main reason." Andy acquiesced after a moment, chalking up the second half of the sentence to 'Greek divinity' and deciding to move on. "Oh, but it won't interfere with the fleece 'tattoo' right?"

"Okay, that might be a problem, come to me in a week, and we can discuss it there, cause we aren't in a rush at the moment, cause if the patterns hold we won't see hide or hair of the next Singularity until the end of December."

"Oh, yeah, true. Though I suppose at that point, it might be easier to start work on the Silkies, since, in theory, they would let me do the same thing…" Andy speculated. "Oh, right, that reminds me, you never actually gave an answer on if you knew how to harvest the Magic Cores from the dragons we harvested."

"Need them alive for that, so next time you encounter one keep it alive for me to extract its spiritual organ. Though didn't we talk about harvesting Magic Circuits from grown homunculi."

Andy grimaced. "I don't really feel comfortable making what's essentially an entire human being just to use it like that. Is it possible to just make individual parts that still have functioning Magic Circuits?"

"Eh, the most basic ones, don't even have a sense of self, and kinda look like human-shaped putty."

"Oh. Huh. I...suppose that's more ethical then. Would it be better, resonance wise, to use my own DNA for them? Because I had also kind of been thinking of using Homunculi 'clones' of myself to use for spare parts to aid in the creation of the Silkies, but I don't really know much about how they work so I wasn't sure if that was a good idea or not." Andy asked.

"It is less chance of spiritual rejection and better synchronicity. Though I'm not the best to talk about this I am not an Alchemist, maybe one of the staff can help you, what I've told you is more "General Caster given knowledge" that most of us are given to better understand Modern Magecraft."

"Oh! I didn't even think about asking the staff, that's a great idea. I'll have to put out a request for any alchemists then after I talk to the Professor about it." Andy said excitedly, having completely forgotten a good deal of the remaining staff were Magi and thus could contribute to her Silkies project. "Thanks for the help Medea, and if you need anything just ask." She said sincerely.

"Nothing for now." She sat up and pulled out a box from beneath the table. "To increase the space on the inside of a smaller than normal room." She began to mumble.

"Careful with the drunk magic Medea. See you when you're sober." Andy said as she left, worried about the aforementioned drunk magic but trusting Medea to be able to handle herself.

She then went straight for Waver's workshop, more than a few questions for the Professor in mind. She soon knocked on the door, which wasn't very far from Medea's.

"Come inside," He answered.

Andy entered the workshop, where Waver was in the middle of reading something. "Professor. I have a few questions about Homunculi, and about some other things pertinent to my Silkies project, that I was hoping you'd be able to answer."

"Of course, at the most basic, most will say that Homunculi are just artificial humans, but they have more in common with fairies and elementals. That a proper non-modified one, have basically eternal lives, as its basically tied to the World itself. More living Magic Circuits, but grown from human DNA and then shaped into form." He answered, leaving the air open for questions.

"Mhm. And, if one wanted to create and harvest them for their Magic Circuits, would there be any repercussions to that for the one receiving the circuits? And if so, would it be better for the Homunculi to be harvested are made using the intended receivers DNA?" Andy asked to start off, wanting to double check with someone who knew a bit more and wasn't drunk.

"If they made from your own, they would be closer, to the structure of your own, and so a less chance of rejection, but remember Magic Circuits are based more on the spiritual body than the physical body, and all souls are unique no matter how simple they are, like those of animals."

"Hmm. What if…" Andy was struck with potentially either a very, very good idea or a very, very stupid idea. "In theory, is it possible to create a Homunculus 'around' something that already exists, kind of growing it from an already existing thing? And, follow up theoretical question, would it be possible to make a Homunculus Familiar?"

"There is a reason you don't make another human your familiar unless already dead, and that something, be more clear about it."

"Yes, but would it be possible to create a Homunculus, let it be dead long enough to make it a familiar, and then still use its previously existing Magical Circuits? I recall something about Magic Circuits lasting a bit after death so I thought that might work."

"Not really, what you might be thinking of is Magic Crests, that are able to keep their carrier 'Alive' after the heart has stopped beating. Magic Circuits are tied to the Soul, and after it loses its tether, it is on an express route to the Root. Unless this was the Age of Gods, and you could just walk down into the nearest Underworld, and collect the needed Soul."

"Hmm. So would it be best to just cultivate the Silkies for now and work on integrating myself with them instead of the other way around?" Andy said, happy to have had the potentially deadly idea shot down now instead of going on to do it and dying.

"Your silkies can you tell me more about them, what your plans are for them?"

"Well, I already told you about the inspiration for them, Zouken Matou, one of the bastards responsible for the creation of the Greater Grail back in Okeanos but I suppose I should probably get into more detail, so I don't end up pulling myself apart at the seams," Andy said, half joking in her wording. "My intent is to create small, relatively basic as individual familiars that each make up the parts of a larger Magical Crest, each containing some part of my own body, and using more Silkies inside my own body to 'patch things up' as it were. Really, the end goal, based on how long of an endeavor it seems winning is going to be, is to turn into a living mass of Silkies that can just reconstruct themselves into me if my 'main' body is destroyed, or be used to, again, patch it together if injured. Realistically, I'd end up putting at least one in every other familiar I make in order to maximize my survivability." Andy explained.

"Like living health packs. Though if you go for it, you have to transfer your mind and soul into another vessel for storage."

"I figured as much. Zouken had over 500 years to work on his, and he was using some kind of preexisting creature." Andy said. "But, I always did like the idea of Transhumanism, so if that's what I need to do to ensure the survival of literally everything, I'm fine with that. Being able to be everywhere and not die will be a worthwhile tradeoff, and if I can leave the 'vessel' here in Chaldea, it'll be way safer than any amount of anything else I could bring into a Singularity as I am now." Andy said, almost trying to convince herself as if she wasn't quite sure this was the right path to walk down.

"Wouldn't work Rayshifting requires an almost constant monitoring of your Soul to project it into the past. You can't really leave it outside the coffin." Waver said.

"Actually, that's something that's confused me for a while. When Mash and I Rayshift, how much of our physical bodies go with? Because it's always talk about sending the souls into the past, but physical objects found in the past can be brought back with us." Andy asked, confused to the semantics of the situation.

"Spiriton conversion, converting matter into spiritons, and sending it forwards and backward through Rayshifting."

"Oh, its a one for one conversion, my bad," Andy said, before having another idea. "Wait, what about using Da Vinci's genius? I mean, I can store Familiars in the hammerspace, and they have a sort of life-thing going on through our link."

"The bigger problem is the transfer of consciousness from your body to another, that is why I wish we had an Einzbern here, as they are Masters at the art. Or an Ainsworth, they can do something similar. Heck, even Touko." Waver started complaining.

"Careful with the 'w' word, Waver, we have several Holy Grails in the building." Andy half-joked, not actually sure if they could do anything once Da Vinci had her hands on them. "Though I wouldn't be against more help. Do you think one of the Magi in the staff could be of any assistance?"

"I'll go check the list, and find books for you to read regarding the subject of your research." Waver answered.

"Do you think Gil has any books that might be helpful?" Andy asked, not actually sure if knowledge counted as one of the Treasures in the Vault.

"Not sure, I go ask the tiny King, hmm so much more polite." He mumbled. "To make sure you get the correct stuff."

"And I guess I'll just keep working on the first Handsy Unit," Andy said.

"You go work on the fap arm you got, I go and ask the others. I call you then I've compiled a schedule for you."

Andy's face reddened. "THEY'RE FOR SEWING!" She half-shouted at the Pseudo Servant. "So I can have them working even when I'm doing something else!"

"Alright, talk to you later Master." Waver said as he lit a cigarette.

"Yeah, talk to you later," Andy said, still a little steamed at his comment, before heading off for the Sewing Room, to finish the first step in what would soon be a Textile Factory.


	49. Alter Dream And World's Strongest

October 20

"Ah, you've finally come inside of my world have you Master?" Said the voice of Alter as she looked down on Andy who was in her nightclothes laying down on the ground.

"I guess so," Andy said, still on the ground, a tad out of it. Once she was oriented, Andy got up and looked around, and she found herself standing on what was a desolate battlefield, with Mash, who stared out on field filled with bodies. "Oh, fuck."

Specifically at the body of a silver-haired boy, with the same shield as hers in his lifeless hands.

"Welcome to Camlann and the end of my reign." Alter stated.

"O _h_. And, uh, who was the one who ended that reign?" Andy asked, unsure due to her...Altered timeline from what she knew, especially since Mordred was apparently at sea all the time.

Heck, he could even see her body down the hill her, armor crushed and face exposed.

"My uncle, Vortigern." Alter answered.

"O _h_ , right, the dragon one," Andy said, now looking around for said dragon on high alert. "Then, that's probably who you'll have to face here, I'm betting."

"Yes, this has been my recurring nightmare ever since you summoned, fighting him until I die and then waking up. And he will come soon."

"This terrible how did it come to this?" Mash asked.

"The same way that all tyrannies do. The people revolted, but I had never expected them to serve under Vortigern, that had not been part of the plan. As I had thought him dead, after our previous fight in his castle." Alter answered.

"Oh," Andy said simply, remembering that Alter was in fact, the _Tyrant_ King, meaning either Vortigern was actually a good guy in this timeline or the people considered him the lesser of two evils, which was telling considering from what she recalled he was a _fucking dragon_. "Well, this time you'll have us (mostly Mash) to support you, so we'll win."

"I appreciate that Master."

"Wait, Alter it sounds like you wanted to have the people revolt against you?" Mash asked.

"I did, I knew from both Merlin and my Sister that Camelot would fall it was just a matter of when. So I set about ensuring it happened the way I wanted to. So I became a Tyrant to the people conquering as much land as possible during my reign. In the hopes that it would create a Hero greater than myself, to lead the people and create a kingdom on the ashes of Camelot. But then Vortigern subverted the plan with the help of Nimue. The Fairy of the Lake did not take kindly to Excalibur being tainted by my Sisters powers then she empowered Excalibur to turn its light, dark to defeat Vortigern, and the death of Lancelot, her son." She paused for a moment. "So, she and Vortigern sought to end me. Dealing the first blow by imprisoning Merlin within Avalon for all eternity. And having subverted Sir Gawain's will and using him as a puppet to assassinate my sister, his mother resulting in both of their deaths, by having Galatine, as you call it to self-destruct releasing the image of the sun that exists within its hilt." She explained.

"How tragic." Was the only thing Mash apparently could say to all of that.

"Damn." Was Andy's similar reaction. There was a _lot_ to take in there, especially with the impending threat of a superpowered dragon that was responsible for Alter's death bound to arrive any moment.

"Yes, that is what you get for trying to control Destiny to your own will, and in the end, nobody won as Vortigern, and I killed each other, ending by crunching each other's throat at the same time. With only brave Sir Bedivere to comfort me as my life ended, Nimue having come and taken Excalibur and Avalon back." Alter finished.

"...So I take, much like he became Albion, in this final fight you lose yourself to Y Ddraig Goch?" Andy asked morosely, noting the method of death for both being 'crunching each other's throats,' which would be quite the feat for a human(?) of her size on a dragon.

"Yes, something which my possession of Avalon prevented me from doing, but I was fine with that I was only in need of the core to power my blade. But in the end, like Vortigern had when he drank the essence of the White Dragon, "I Abandoned my humanity!"." She said dramatically.

Andy was quiet for a moment before nodding resolutely. "Like I said earlier, you won't have to do that this time. This time you have Mash and me to help, and there won't be a need to lose yourself to win a pyrrhic victory."

"There is one way to win this now that Mash is here, one I could have utilized when I had been alive if Galahad had been so." She stated.

"As long as it doesn't involve sacrificing her, do what you need to."

"No need the walls shall just need to stand."

"Oh, good, in that case, there's no chance of you losing," Andy said confidently, and then quickly got behind Mash due to being a squishy human in what was about to be a battle of titans.

An inhuman roar was heard, very similar to the one Andy had heard from Fafnir.

"Here he comes."

And then, looming over the horizon of dead knights, Andy saw it. The dragon destined to destroy Britain, Albion, in its full glory. If she hadn't already seen Fafnir and more scarringly the Demon Pillars she might have been absolutely scared out of her mind. As it were, she was only reasonably frightened as the massive white dragon rapidly approached.

"Mash, get ready," Andy said, awe tinted by terror in her voice.

" **The place that cures all wounds and dissolves all hatred, our home, sits here!――"  
"Manifest, Lord Camelot!"** Mash chanted as she slammed her shield into the ground.

As she did, massive stone walls arose from the ground around her, blocking out Andy's view of Albion/Vortigern. Honestly, this was far more impressive than some dragon, considering these walls would literally never fall with Mash as their user. " _Woah_." Was her only response to the sudden unbreakable walls surrounding them.

Andy heard the sound of Vortigern roaring, and then heard something pushing against the barrier created by Mash, and going by what she could see at the edge, where the view was clear she could clearly tell that he was firing a beam.

"Thank you, Mash, now to do my part." Alter stated. "Thirteen Seals - release. Bedivere, Mordred, Galahad, Gatheris, Gareth, Agravain, Kay, Ector, Merlin, and Arthur. Ten seals have been released." At that, Andy saw Excalibur Morgan screaming with pure power ready to be released. "Mash, drop the barrier now!" Mash obeyed as the walls of Camelot disappeared.

" **Excalibur Morgan: Sword of Promised Victory!** " She shouted as she unleashed a beam more powerful than Andy had ever seen her do before. The black light, collided with the white light of Vortigern's Dragon Breath. But it was no match for the Alter's attack as it, and Vortigern was consumed by it, leaving only a fang, stuck in the ground.

"Wow," Andy said after the massive collision of beams ended, and she could see again. "I guess you needed us to get Galahad's seal?"

"Yes, my sword and spear have seals on them placed by my knights. For the both of them would cause too much destruction if they are not. And Galahad's is "This fight must not be for personal gain."" Alter smiled a bit as she said that.

"Well, congratulations Arturia. You did it." Andy said, trying to be celebratory but at the same time eying up the fang the length of her forearm stuck in the ground. "Hey, uh, any chance you could retrieve that fang? I know it's probably not going to come back with us, but it's worth a shot."

"Probably going to turn into a Saint Quartz or something like the bell did," Mash said.

"Well, that would still be pretty useful," Andy said, not swayed in the least from collecting it, but with no method to do so considering she did not have the benefits of Tenfold Shields in these dreams.

"Try, and pick it up, this is a dream after all, so it might lighter than you think?" Alter said while smiling, but Andy took notice that sunlight was starting to shine through the cloudy red sky, now turning blue.

Andy shrugged, walked over to the fang, and attempting to pull it from the ground, the fang almost flying out of the ground like the sword from the stone. "Huh," Andy said as she looked at the fang. "I wonder if all of these dreams work on dream logic then…" She speculated aloud, as she went back over to the other two. "You were right, Alter. I guess I'm just used to not being able to do anything without help."

"You say like that is a bad thing, I would be nothing without my knights, and thank you for helping me stop this nightmare." Alter said, and Andy noticed that the usual coldness of her voice was gone, and peppier like Lily's.

"Of course, what kind of Master would I be if I didn't help my Servants with their problems?" Andy said more than asked, knowing the answer was 'a normal one.'

"Okay enough with the sappiness, see you in the 'morrow." Alter said.

"Yeah, see ya then," Andy said, smiling at the goth Saber's attitude.

It was at that Andy's eyes fluttered open and she felt something in her right hand. She lifted it up and saw the familiar rainbow color of a Saint Quartz.

And now she had one, it was going to take some time to get the next two unless she went on even more Servant dream trips.

That was when her armband beeped, looked like somebody was calling her and it was Waver. "I've got the Material and Books for you sorry for the wait but I had to catalogue and arrange all of them in the correct order of reading and make schedule for practicing your new knowledge, cause you ain't even touching the whole transference or body modification, until the basics or stuck in your head, so that you can recite them from memory. Come and get the books in room. 3b'-4. After breakfast, Waver out."

Andy just soaked all of that in quietly cursing her lack of knowledge in the realm of Magecraft before proceeding with getting ready. At least she had completed the first Handy unit yesterday, so at the moment the practically just-arms familiar was working on finishing the H.U.G.H. unit until she could get in there and sew in the Runes, which the Handy Unit wasn't able to do at the moment.

Today was going to be a long day, wasn't it?

Xxx

Andy made her way down to the fourth basement floor, down the B wing and stopping at the door marked with a 3.

Andy entered the room after Waver called her inside.

Her jaw became slack as she saw the rows upon rows of books sorted into shelves that align the walls.

"Here is the all the knowledge I've been able to amass for you regarding anything you can wish to know about Magecraft. And this list here is the chronological order of the things you need to know, to do our Mega Project as it were." Waver said handing her the two rowed A4 Paper.

"W _oa_ h, that's a lot of knowledge," Andy said, blown away by how many books on Magecraft, something she thought didn't exist due to Crests making them obsolete and maintaining Mystery better, now at her fingertips. "None of these books will like, make me go insane or attack me, right?"

"They have been removed, most of these belonged to staff, they had with them, and you should give thank you for them being willing to part with them. The others are just grimoires and things like that the Animusphere family and Chaldea has collected, and books from the Clock Tower that I've transcribed." Waver said.

"How long do you think it'll take to read all this?" Andy asked, practically salivating at having this much knowledge in front of her at how to _do more magic_ , but at the same time knowing it was probably going to take a long, long, _long_ time to read and apparently memorize it all.

"Your books? A few months, for all of them? Years, so you have things to entertain yourself with, while you live here in Chaldea. Though not all are spellbooks. All of the books on the third shelf on the right is dedicated to encyclopedia and history books regarding the Moonlit World and differences, that is known between the known and real history of the world."

"Oh, oh okay. I was thinking everything in here was what was on the list, not; just' everything on the list is in here...squares and rectangles, sorry. But that shelf does sound nice for figuring out how much I know is wrong ahead of time so I'm not blindsided all the time." Andy said, before having an idea. "Oh, hey, gonna run this by you real quick Prof, I've been using some rune-enhanced gloves and a headband to sew faster, would it be a bad idea to use like glasses or something with a similar effect to read faster?"

"It doesn't work like Andy, it would just cause you to forget as fast due to your brain being unable to properly process the information, works for enhancing speed to work faster, not so good for memory retention, I've had students try that before, we had to use bleach to remove the smell of liquified brain from his table." He answered.

"Alright, no fast read glasses for me understood," Andy said, very much so not liking that mental image. "But, I almost forgot to say it, thanks for this, Waver. This is going to help immensely in me not dying, and therefore the restoration of Human History. Thank you."

"I would have done this anyway if it wasn't the case, I like seeing my students succeed especially a First-Gen prodigy like yourself. You have a knack for Magecraft you know, I don't know why Da Vinci didn't want to teach you. Though the mind of a Genius is hard to understand, especially a mind like hers."

Andy shrugged. "I kinda just figured it's because she's running just about everything in Chaldea." She did not say out loud that she had the ominous feeling Da Vinci as her teacher would likely get her killed a lot easier than any Singularity. "But, ah, I'm pretty sure the only reason I'm as good as I am, is because I have the world's best as my teachers."

"Yes, a good teacher is needed for a student to learn in the first place, one that conveys information they can retain the correct way." Waver said. "And while Da Vinci is the one that keeps Chaldea running most of the time and a Genius, she has no way of parting that knowledge in a meaningful way to another, unless that person is exactly like her."

"Ah, yeah, incompatible then," Andy said, now that she had the reason for her ominous feeling put into words. "Oh, yeah, on the topic of teachers, have you coordinated with Chiron, the Cu's, and Leonidas yet on the new schedule? Chiron's bound to teach so really out there stuff, and Leonidas is so ripped I feel muscle building just being near him, I really want to learn what they have to teach." She said, excitedly.

"I'll go and talk to them so that your such a schedule that, you get enough rest and don't get burned out and crash."

"Yeah, that's why I wanted all five of you working together. In the meantime, I guess I'm going to grab the first few books awhile and start reading." She said.

"Oh, and remember to flip the paper its double side, and come to after you're done for the intermediate level list." Waver said as he left Andy alone in her own private library.

She looked at the top of the list for the first book. "The Beginnings of Alchemy, by Paracelsus von... Hohenheim. What." She said, upon seeing the last name. "Huh. Guess that Hohenheim is named after this one. Wonder what the 'real' Philosopher's Stone is made of…" She muttered to herself as she began looking for the book, sitting down in a nearby chair, and beginning to read the thick leather-bound tome.

Xxx

October 23

Three days had passed since Andy had been given her little library by Waver, and she had begun reading on her alchemy with it having little to with the Alchemy of the show. And more like 'real life' alchemy that she knew of, but the more magical chemistry people in her world thought it was. Along with learning that in this worlds Philosopher's Stone, was a magical supercomputer that allowed for extreme calculations, it allowed Hoenheim in conjunction with his Azoth sword to, Magical Girl blast the shit out of people.

In the meantime, she had completed the H.U.G.H. Unit's base form by virtue of her Handy Unit working around the clock, though she hadn't yet had the time to finish the Runic component due to her new rather intense training regiment. She'd only need about 15, 20 minutes tops, but she'd have to do the whole thing in one go or risk wasting it.

"Senpai the circle is ready." Though today, right now, it was summoning time.

"Right, thank you Kouhai," Andy said, having been spacing out a bit, not helped by how physically exhausted she was. "Alright, let's see if this works," Andy said, holding the Tome she had been reading in all her free time the last few days in one hand and a Ticket in the other. It was unclear if this was actually made by von Hohenheim or was merely a replica, but if there was even the _chance_ of summoning the father of Alchemy, who no doubt would have a high Item Creation skill if a Caster, she was going to go for it.

She summoned the newest Servant added to Chaldea's roster, fingers crossed the catalyst worked, for once being a 50/50 toss up of if it would work or not in her mind.

As the smoke cleared, Andy looked eagerly at the newest addition, and slowly realized the Servant was a _lot_ bigger than she was. And then it 'spoke,' and she instantly knew who she had summoned.

"▂▂▃▃▄▄▅▅!"

"By this Command Seal, I order you Heracles to suppress your madness as low as possible while in Chaldea!" Andy said rapidly, the roar (and maybe her excitement?) leaving her shaking. She just summoned _fucking Heracles_ , and despite being a Berserker that was a more than welcome addition to her roster. Also, it proved the book was a replica, but that wasn't important at the moment.

"So, you managed to defeat Jason and Medea," Heracles stated.

Andy was now absolutely terrified, considering Heracles had been ride or die enough with Jason to risk destroying the world. " _Uuh_ , y-yeah?" She said, getting behind Mash and preparing to use a Command Seal if necessary. Which definitely looked awkward as she was still bigger than her Kouhai.

"Thank you for stopping my friend from making a foolish mistake." Heracles thanked them.

Andy let out the breath she had been holding. "O-of course, it's our job to prevent the destruction of Human History. Thank you for joining us, Heracles, it's an honor to have you with us. I'm Andy Murphy, your new Master." She said, falling back on routine to help herself calm down from the _overwhelming terror_ she had been feeling just moments ago at the idea of a truly pissed Heracles.

"I am too, it seems that this venture shall be my thirteenth labor. And I will tell you that I too, was trying to prevent Medea's plan, I had quickly deduced she had subverted after returning from a scout, but I could not betray my friend like that, so I had been planning to kill Euryale with an accidental arrow, though thankfully you came along and were strong enough to defeat me." Heracles explained.

"Well, it was less a matter of Strength and more of ingenuity on the part of my Servants," Andy said, using her Stat-o-Vision on the (in her mind) OG Berserker as she did.

[spoiler=Heracles' Stat Sheet]

True Name: Heracles

Class: Berserker

Master: Andy Murphy

 **Parameters:**

Strength: A+

Endurance: A

Agility: A

Mana: A

Luck: B

Noble Phantasm: A+

 **Class Skills:**

Mad Enhancement: B

 **Personal Skills:**

Divinity: A

Battle Continuation: A

Bravery: A+

Eye of the Mind(False): B

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Nine Lives: Shooting the Hundred Heads(Anti-Unit): A+

God Hand: Twelve Labors(Anti-Unit): B[In-Active]

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"And power is not strength alone, many of my labors were completed with cunning and skill or generally being nice." He said.

"But, ah, speaking of power, why is God Hand deactivated?" Andy asked, figuring to get this part out of the way now.

"Well, unlike my former Master you don't have enough Magic Circuits to channel enough Prana at the same time to power God Hand."

"I don't think anyone would have enough as that Master," Andy said, having learned from the little she had read that the amount of bullshit the Einzbern's put into their Homunculi was beyond anything she could ever dream of replicating without one of them doing it. "But, I suppose that's the trade-off for summoning you at all. Oh, and, ah, what does Nine Lives do in this incarnation exactly?" She asked, knowing as an Archer it meant super cheat hydra lasers.

"Here it a hundred slashes, done at godspeed, within a single breath." He answered.

"...Well, I suppose we won't have to worry about the Demon Pillars anymore." Andy said after a moment as she imagined the mountain of muscle swinging that specific axe, which was _bigger than him_ , a hundred times that quickly. The sheer amount of force would probably be enough to _burn_ the atmosphere around the target, which was now something she really wanted to see. "So, uh, my Kouhai here will give you an armband, and then you can find a room and get yourself settled, Heracles."

"Thank, you Master, though can you point me to where Medea is located I have a few things I want to say to my old friend."

"Oh, on the armband there's a Map function that shows you where everyone is, you use that to find her Workshop, o-or I suppose I can bring you there myself if you'd like?" Andy said, the red and gold eyes of Heracles looking down at her from a face she could not read as anything but 'I'm going to kill you,' though he had had that expression the entire time, so she just assumed it was just how his face looked as a Berserker. Still very intimidating.

"Thank you, I can find the way myself," Heracles said as he took the armband and placed it around his left pinkie finger. And Mash showed him quickly how to turn it on and use it. Afterward, he left the room and headed down the hallway going towards Medea's workshop, Andy could hear his footsteps, well at least he couldn't walk around while being unnoticed.

"I am both terrified, because how can I not be, and happy he's on our side," Andy said a few moments after she couldn't hear the Berserker's steps anymore. "How were you so calm, Kouhai?"

Mash didn't say anything. She just continued to stare towards the door.

"Uh, Kouhai? You okay?" Andy said, waving her hand in front of the smaller girl's face to see if she was still conscious/cognizant.

Though after a few more seconds she finally spoke. "Sorry, Senpai I just needed to finish screaming internally. Is there something you said?"

"...Yeah, don't worry about it." Andy said, recalling how she had screamed a lot less 'internally' after Heracles' debut in Okeanos. It was the main reason she soundproofed her room on the Hind. She checked the time quickly. "Hey, Kouhai, I've got another hour till I have to go back to the grind with the Instructor Team, do you wanna see something cool?"

"Sure thing, and it better not be a dead body Senpai?" She said in a monotone voice, alluding to her sentence joky nature.

"Oh, no I left the Screamers in Okeanos, they were way too inefficient even as bombs," Andy said completely seriously before grinning. "But don't worry, it's cloth based, the only thing that used to be alive in it is a... _bit_ of Dragon Bone." She acquiesced.

"Yeah, you're situating your Magecraft to be stitching things together. So, what does it do precisely?"

"A lot. It's...a generally handy thing, truthfully." Andy said, visibly suppressing a grin. "It's probably best for you to just see it to understand." She said as they began walking to the Sewing Room. "Also, I'm calling it 'Stitchcraft,' it's pretty clever in my opinion."

They soon entered said Sewing Room, which really should be rebranded to being Andy's Workshop considering she had set up everything in it. There were now all kinds of diagrams for potential Silky iterations, and a large diagram of a hippogriff on several walls, and at one of the tables near the sewing machine was a pair of cloth arms that looked like they came off a stuffed animal attached to the table, sewing...something. "The Handy Unit over there is finishing up on the tedious part, then it'll take me about 20 minutes to finish the Runic components and set it all up, so I hope you don't mind waiting for the big reveal," Andy said, playing up the theatrics of her newest creation to be.

"I don't mind Senpai I can wait," Mash answered.

"Take a seat, don't worry they aren't familiars (yet)," Andy said, motioning to several of the comfy looking chairs around the place.

The shielder took a seat and watched as Andy got to work.

19 minutes later, she activated the core and the Familiar came to 'life,' floating into the air. "It's alive!" Andy joked as it did so. The new familiar looked like a hooded blue cloak taller than Andy's current form, with a plain black mask attached to the hood that made it look like there was nothing but darkness under the hood. "Ta-da! The Helper Unit, Generally Handy, aka Hughy!" She said as she presented the new familiar to Mash, who clapped politely.

"So, what does it help you with?" She asked.

"Well, Hughy here is more of a docking station, a core for the rest of him to come back to," Andy said, before snapping, and 6 arms, much like the ones attached to the table, floated out from under the cloak, none of them actually attached to the cloak. "Hughy's basically a mobile Handy Unit that I made fly using the same principle as Griffsy. And, to top it off…"

She walked back over to the table and uncovered the Great Dragon Arms from Okeanos, which were leaning against the wall next to it. " _These_ bad boys are also part of Hughy, but because their so big it's kinda hard to fit them under the cloak part, but." She snapped again, and the arms, the only part of the original skeleton visible being the claws the rest covered in the same blue cloth limbs as the smaller arms, slowly twitched to life, before slowly rising into the air and floating over next to the main part of Hughy. "Now that Hughy's operational, my efficiency has increased exponentially, though I guess I need to figure out how to get the bigger arms to move faster," Andy said happily, writing something down on a notepad on the table. "So, whaddya think?"

"That you accidentally'd a Stand? But it is really cool."

"Oh, that part was absolutely on purpose, but Hughy's not really combat ready unless I can speed up the main arms," Andy said, for once happy about her intent being seen instantly. "I also installed a camera as the main 'eye' in him, so I have footage to go over if something goes wrong while working. So, say cheese!" He joked, Hughy's mask orienting on Mash. There was no flash, of course, but she still wanted to make the joke.

"Cheese," Mash smiled while giving a peace sign.

Andy immediately took several pictures through Hughy's camera. "Yup. Those are going in the Scrapbook." Andy said, nodding as she looked over the digital photos, sending them to her armband. One of the oddities of having a camera in a familiar was that she could see the photographs and recordings just as easily as she could control the Familiar. She'd figured that out with the Handy Unit.

Xxx

October 27

"Contractor." Said Hassan announcing himself, as he appeared right next to Andy in her library, while she was reading.

"Hassan, did you need me for something?" Andy said, in no way smothering a surprised shriek. Nope, she knew he'd been coming the whole time! Yes, that was what had occurred (it didn't).

"Contractor, I have come to you in the aid of an assignment given to me by Director Roman, who a few weeks ago began detecting a few anomalies in Rome, and has realized that a string of kidnappings have occurred in such a size, that they should have been recorded by TRIGEMESTUS have occurred. And so has been sending me to spy on the kidnappers and sabotaging them along with Robin Hood. Though we have finally come across their main base, but it is to well defended for us to infiltrate, so we request your aid in taking them down with overwhelming power and rescuing the children." Hassan reported.

"Mhm. Alright, so you, me, and Robin will head in incognito, and then I'll bring in...you said kidnapping, so Atalanta, and...Heracles for the Overwhelming Power part, once we're inside with Grand Order Change. Unless you suspect there to be Servants or other combatants able to counter your stealth efforts with me in the Singularity?" Andy asked completely seriously, cold anger in her voice. She was _not_ going to have a repeat Coolthulu moment.

"No, but they have a competent mage at their, disposal that is why we have not been able to enter the main complex. And they have Chimera's patrolling the grounds."

"Oh, goody, they come with resources," Andy said, not worried about the Chimera's in the slightest, considering _she_ had been able to kill one before. Their pelts might be useful for something. "But, the magus. Reasonably speaking, could we still get inside if I'm in the Singularity to provide you the proper upkeep, or would we need to bring in Medea to cut through their defenses?"

"The magus would be a good addition to crush them as fast a possible," Hassan said. "And the most efficient."

"Alright, then let's go," Andy said, closing the book she had been reading dramatically.

Xxx

Andy stood with her Servants, among the rocky cliffs of the mountain, they had been Rayshifted to as the kidnappers' base was inside the mountain.

And they were all looking at the entrance, which had guards posted, and Chimeras walking nearby.

" _Robin, Hassan, can you get us past here quietly, or would it be easier to kill them first?_ " Andy asked the stealthy two on the mission telepathically, not actually sure if it would be easier to fight out or fight in considering they had a lot of hostages.

" _I can see about three Chimeras and ten human guards. And the beasts are probably directly connected to the Magus in charge and if they die the magus will know something is wrong so if Medea has found and is able to take down the Bounded Field we can easily sneak inside."_ Robin responded.

" _Understood,"_ Andy replied to Robin before checking with Medea. " _Medea, have you found a part to cut through?"_ She asked the Age of Gods Magus.

" _Yes, I can easily take this down, it's powerful, but is structure is awful I can pick one thing apart, and the whole thing will collapse, whoever set this up was in a rush. And I can do it in a way they won't notice until it is too late. And there is a tunnel that leads into the base from the outside, so when the Bounded Field is down, we can go in there and wreak havoc."_

" _Good, but we aren't wreaking havoc until the children are secured, that's why Heracles and Atalanta aren't here yet,_ " Andy said, nodding at Medea. _"Robin, Hassan, are you ready?"_

" _Yes."_

" _Yes."_

" _Alright. Then, let's liberate._ "


	50. Order of Semiramis

They all walked through the hidden tunnel as Medea took the Bounded Field down. Thankfully, it was empty, likely due to how cramped it was, meaning no Chimera could fit in it. They soon reached what seemed like the end of the tunnel, opening up into a much larger one that had torches lining the walls, looking like a stereotypical dungeon with various doors that led to rooms.

" _Master, the children, are held up at the end of the current corridor, with two human guards in front of it, all the others are in various rooms and corridors, Hassan should be able to take them down quickly."_ Came the message from Medea whose hand was pressed against the wall.

" _Can you confirm that_ all _of the children are in that room?"_ Andy asked, wanting to make sure before bringing in the engine of destruction that is Heracles.

" _Yes, they are."_

" _In that case, Hassan, take out the guards, and then I'll bring in Atalanta to watch over the children so we can focus on the Magus and his Chimeras,"_ Andy ordered the Assassin.

" _Understood Contractor,"_ Hassan responded as he vanished and a few seconds later he turned back in. _"The guards are down."_

Andy nodded, before using Grand Order Change and bringing in just Atalanta for now; this corridor was too small for Heracles to fit without causing structural damage. The cat-eared Archer arrived in the typical flash of light.

"What is it you have need of me for Master?" She asked in a quiet tone.

"There are about 50 children in that room down there who were kidnapped by a Magus. I want you to guard them while we deal with the Magus and his Chimera familiars." Andy said in a similar hushed tone, figuring stealth was no longer as much of an issue now that the children were secure. "I trust you'll be more than able to handle such a task?" Andy asked, knowing full well her love of children.

"I understand." She said in a cold tone, her face turning into one of fury.

"Good. Make sure they stay safe." Andy said. "Robin, stay here with her in case she needs any help." She said, not discounting that the cave might collapse and one Servant might not be enough to handle saving 50 children from that. "Medea, Hassan, stay with me, we're going to deal with the Magus directly, but try to keep him alive for now. I want his circuits."

"Understood, Master, We shall get the children and bring them to safety," Atalanta said.

"The Magus is located further inside the complex," Medea stated.

"Alright, then let's go," Andy said, queuing up Heracles on Grand Order Change but not bringing him in yet.

The three made there way deeper into the complex, passing by the cell where all the disheveled children were as Atalanta and Robin released them.

As they were on the way to the Magus, they did run into a few of the kidnappers who Andy quickly took down with a few thrown sewing needles. Her research had made her very knowledgeable on the human body, and with Tenfold Shield augmenting her abilities paralyzing them even with sewing needles by throwing them at their necks nerve-clusters.

They quickly made their way to a large wooden door, where Medea said the Magus was inside.

On the way there, Andy had decided she was only going to bring out Heracles if Hassan and Medea were having trouble, considering it was just one Magus and some Chimeras.

It would also be less fun if her materials got eviscerated before she could get some practice in. She had a few she wanted to try on that Magus in particular for kidnapping the children in the first place…

After confirming with Medea the occupants of the room- the Magus and the three chimeras, two were functional the third was being worked on- Andy decided the best way to go would be for each Servant to take one of the active chimera's while she took down the Magus, and then they'd interrogate him from there.

After confirming this with her Servants, they all burst into the room in a flurry of action, Hassan throwing his dirks like bullets at one Chimera while Medea shot the other with a few lasers. Both were rather severe overkill. Andy threw several needles at the Magus, several to pin the hand that was working on the Chimera down so he couldn't escape and one to paralyze him like the guards.

Andy almost, _almost_ felt sorry for the guy as he didn't have time to be able to react to them just utterly humiliating him. And now he stood there, all his muscles paralyzed and locked unable to move.

"Alright, Magus is down. Medea, can you restrain him with something so I can ask our new friend a few questions?" Andy said, faux-cheer in her voice.

"With pleasure Master." Said Medea as she began chanting and magical chains then appeared, that constrained his body. Finishing it off by nicking him Rule Breaker. "And I've broken the hold over the Chimeras transferred their connection to me. What do you want me to do with them?"

"Hmm. For right now, just keep them docile. I'll think of what to do with them in a bit. In the meantime…" Andy said, before removing the needle in the Magus that had been keeping him paralyzed. "Hi! Let's start with the introductions." She began with more faux cheer. "I'm Andy Murphy, your worst nightmare. What's your name?" She asked, wondering if this was just some upstart or another time-displaced Magi. It only mattered in the sense of what she was going to to do him, after all.

"I will send you to Lord Pluto!" He screamed in her face.

She jammed the needle back into the nerve cluster. "Okay, let's start over then," Andy said, faux cheer still present as she pushed one of the clawed fingers of her gauntlets into the Magus's leg and watched as all he could do was look at her angrily in pain. "I'm your _executioner_. How quickly, and painfully you die here is based on how cooperative you are. So, how about you cooperate a bit, or would you rather I Harvest you while you're still alive?" She asked as she removed the needle once more.

"I am Janus." He answered bitterly.

"See, that's better! Would you like to tell me why you were kidnapping so many children, Janus?"

"For our order, the mind of children are easy to manipulate, turning them into our assassins would have been easy. I do not know what happened a short war has ragged across Rome, and I saw the opportunity to gain power after our dear Emperor goes crazy, like that family always does." He growled.

"Ah, I see. And, pray tell, what order would that be?" Andy asked, moving the claw still currently in Janus's leg around a bit out of anger upon hearing the intended fate of the children.

"I am the current head of the Order of Semiramis, I myself being her latest descendant. We have been hiding in the shadows for far too long biding our time to regain our rightful place as those that control the world. Rome shall be the bed for that." He answered. "And believe me you will pay righteously for this humiliation, I will kill all that you care about!"

"Oh, will you now?" Andy asked, not worried in the slightest. "Well, I just have one more question for you, Janus, a descendant of Semiramis, and then I'll let you get on your way to the afterlife. Do you have a Magic Crest?"

"As if I would let you take it!" He shouted.

Andy jammed the needle back into place, paralyzing him once more. "Thank you for your information, Janus." She said, still faux-cheerily as she got up. "Medea, would you be so kind as to harvest this fools Circuits and Crest, if you can?"

"I can, would you also like me to add his to the Crest?" She asked.

"Ooh, that would be lovely, thank you Medea," Andy said, actually cheerily. "Ah, but is that process going to kill him?" Andy asked, not actually caring for Janus's life, more caring for if she would have a living test subject now that she found one she had practically no qualms using.

"No only if I rush the extraction process. Now I just need something to preserve it in, and thankfully he has the materials at the ready." She answered.

"Then, by all means, go ahead," Andy said. "I can wait."

"Thank you, Master. Now about the children and the rest of kidnappers of our little Magus order. Shall we eliminate them and bring the children to the nearest Village. Though if we need to transport them, you would need to bring Blackbeard in as he is the only with a large enough vessel to carry them all."

Andy made a noise partway between a strangled gurgle and a sigh of resignation. "Fi _ne_. We'll deal with that part when we get to it. Though, keep the kidnappers alive for now, in case Janus here isn't... _sufficient_ for my research."

"All right Master I shall now begin," Medea said as she began casting various spells, as the Crest appeared on his free but still paralyzed arm. Andy saw it seemingly began to peel off it and out the skin like small threads, that was slowly transferred into a small clay vase, that Medea had filled with a green liquid. It only took the Magus ten minutes to extract the Magic Crests and Circuits from his body and soul.

"Here you go, Master," Medea said as she handed her the small vase.

"Thank you, Medea, but ah...what do I do with it?" Andy asked as she took said vase, slightly confused. She hoped she wouldn't have to drink it.

"It is just a storage for the Crest, the liquid is a preservation one that keeps the Crest from eroding and disappearing. You can experiment with it and extracts it knowledge when we get back." Medea answered.

"Ah, gotcha," Andy said, and after confirming it wouldn't destabilize by storing it, she stored it in Tenfold Shield's hammerspace. "Now, where was I..oh! Right, my _good friend_ Janus!" She said, faux cheer back in full swing as she turned towards the chained and paralyzed former Magus. "So, how about we start by taking you apart and seeing how you go back together, sounds fun right?"

Janus's eyes, the only things he could move in his paralyzed state, were at this point looking well and truly panicked.

"Oh, don't worry, that paralysis means you'll just feel _every second of it_ ," Andy said as she retrieved a scalpel and a pair of scissors from her hammerspace. "Let's start from the bottom and work our way up, shall we?"

Xxx

"I believe that was a fruitful endeavor Master," Medea said as they walked to Andy's Workshop, after having returned from their little trip to Rome with all of their new loot. Andy had gotten some testing in on Janus of her stuff, such as intimately copying the musculature of a living human arm, or stitching a living being back together, and stealing all of his everything. Like his wonderful Chimeras that was now her Familiars after Medea transferred the Karma link to her. All ten of the functioning ones, they wouldn't be able to much against Servants due to being of the Magus created variety and not the breed itself born of Echidna and Typhon. But her mook slaying capabilities had skyrocketed, and the fact that they acted like big cats were a plus.

Andy had also taken all of his materials and poisons that he had in storage, they would able to create some antidotes from those if they encountered the Phantasmal Species they came from. She knew that poisons from those were able to effect Servants, as she seen Semiramis do against Mordred and Robin's Yew poison.

After that, they had transported the children to the nearest village after Atalanta was given the get-go of taking her anger out on the kidnappers. Andy had reluctantly called in Blackbeard, but the pirate had behaved, and Andy had learned that his ship could actually fly in the air. Andy was beginning to wonder if he really was Blackbeard and not Captain Hook.

"Yes, very fruitful indeed!" Andy said, actual cheer in her voice, Tenfold Shields absolutely soaked in still-drying blood from her experimenting with Janus. "So, with that fools Crest, you said about extracting its knowledge, right? How would one go about doing that?"

"Well, the normal route is getting grafted to you so that you can use it that way. But you really can't as you aren't blood-related at all, so the rejection there is 99%. So we need to turn into a spell grimoire, basically a living book familiar."

"Oh? How long does that take?" Andy asked, silently enjoying the idea of having a spellbook in any capacity due to her association of them with Proper Wizards(despite being a Spellcaster), even if she knew she would still be wildly outclassed by practically every opponent. It was the principle of the matter.

"Well, we first have to make the book of course, though materials needed can't be normal paper and leather. It has to be made of flesh, but unlike that book, we can make do with one of your Chimeras for proper compatibility."

"Aww, that's a shame, though I suppose it'll be easier to keep track of nine chimeras instead of ten," Andy said, immediately on board with the idea since she didn't have any emotional attachment to the Chimeras yet. She goes about naming them and such later, but for right now they were still just Materials to be Harvested. And it wasn't like there was enough of Janus back in Rome to use for it anyway. "We should do that ASAP, it'll be better to have access to the knowledge sooner rather than later."

"Making the book is going to take some time. But it should be done and working properly within a week." She answered.

"That seems reasonable. Should I leave one of the Chimeras in your Workshop then?" Andy asked, just realizing she would need a place for her new Chimeras to stay, and her own 'workshop' wasn't big enough to do so.

"Yes, that would be the best thing to do," Medea said.

"Then...this one," Andy said, picking out one of the Chimeras at random. "And the rest will come with me. I guess I have to expand my Workshop again…"

"You have good luck with that Master see you later," Medea said as she walked away with a single Chimera.

"Oh, wait, Medea, did you finish that size potion?" Andy asked as Medea walked away, as she remembered asking for it when Medea had first gotten super-drunk.

"I did, I wanted to give it to you, but then our little side quest happen." She took out a small bottle. "Spray it into your mouth with a millimeter needle cause this stuff is potent. Every millimeter removes a centimeter of height. So don't drink it all or you end up like an oppai loli… God, the modern world is beyond weird."

"Do you have something to reverse it?" Andy asked, worried about the ramifications of such a potent size-shifting drug. She wanted to be a bit shorter for Astolfo, not permanently child-sized since she _knew_ someone or something was going to use it like that on someone at some point now that it existed.

"Oh right, here," Medea said taking out a second bottle and she noticed that each bottle had a letter on it that indicated what it did. "It just instantly reverses the shrink one."

"Will any amount of work?"

"Yes."

"Alright, thank you, Medea," Andy said as she took the two bottles carefully. "Oh, and one last question, the shrinking one, is that specifically calibrated to me or does that work on anyone that ingests it?"

"Works on anyone."

Andy grinned widely at that. "Thank you very much, Medea. This'll prove very useful in the future. Now then, c'mon Chimera's, momma's got a plan for you…" She said, giggling to herself as she did.

Xxx

October 30

It was weekly ticket time, so Andy and Mash were back down in the Summoning Chamber. Nothing interesting had happened since the trip to Rome to put an end on that Order and stopping the kidnappings. Though Andy found out that the shrinking potion worked on the Chimeras, so she now had nine kitty Chimeras running around her workshop. And they truly were cats as when she wasn't controlling them. They acted like cats did, sitting in boxes and everywhere they are not supposed to be. And they did find a playmate in Griffsy.

She was still working on names for them, but for now, just trying to keep them away from where the Handy Units were working. She had three of them now, and they were all constantly working on whatever project she put her mind to.

Of course, right now, was summoning time. "Alright, let's see if we can milk a little more worth out of Janus…" Andy said, holding a small vial in one hand of the blood that had been spattered over her armor. He _did_ say he was a descendant of Semiramis, after all. It was worth a shot. "Let's see who's joining us today!" She said enthusiastically as she summoned the newest Servant.

"Bahaha!" Eric Bloodaxe announced himself.

"Welcome to Chaldea, Mr. Bloodaxe." Andy greeted the Berserker, unsure if his Mad Enhancement would be a problem or not since he wasn't growling and didn't have EX. "I am your new Master, Andy Murphy. Thank you for joining us in our fight to save Human History." She went through the normal spiel, pushing aside her disappointment for the moment.

Eric held out his hand for a shake in response. Andy responded in kind as the Viking King went for a warrior's handshake, clasping her forearm.

" _I must apologize for my physical silence Master, my wife does not like it when I talk to other women. So as a Berserker I can get away with it."_ Came his mental voice.

Andy had to suppress a laugh at such an _utterly mundane_ reason for a Servant to do something. "Oh, that's fine. I take it she came with you somehow?"

" _She bound her Soul to my axe, and she is what grants me my Support Spell Skill. And my Madness Enhancement only really comes into effect during my Noble Phantasm."_ He explained.

"Ah, I see. And what exactly does your Noble Phantasm do?"

" _The first is my axe itself, it grows stronger the more blood it drinks as it is somewhat alive. Which fuels the power of my second one is my dear wife boosting my Madness And then going on a rampage basically."_

"Ah, gotcha," Andy said, before motioning to Mash. "My Kouhai here has an armband for you then, it has a map on it so you can find a room and get yourself situated."

Eric nodded as he took the armband and left, whistling a tune.

"So Senpai, why didn't Mr. Bloodaxe respond verbally to your questions?"

Andy suppressed a smirk at the mundane-turned-extreme reason. "Well, y'see his wife, Gunnhild, she's with him bound to his Noble Phantasm and one of his Skills, and she doesn't like him talking to other women."

"Sounds like a jealous woman, but a very loyal husband to my ears."

"Yeah, sounds like. And she's apparently a Magus of some kind, so he has pretty good reason to not make her mad." Andy said, recalling the extreme levels of bullshit possible with Runes, and the little 'nondetection' thing Eric had dropped in Okeanos apparently made by her.

"Yeah, she probably the kind that curses other women. It seems 'until death,' didn't mean anything to her." Mash quipped.

"Yeah, seems like." Andy agreed. She then looked at her armband's watch, noting the date. "Hey, Kouhai, tomorrow's Halloween, you wanna dress up Fou and the Chimera's in little outfits?"

"Sure thing Senpai, that would be lovely," Mash answered.


	51. This is Halloween

October 31

Andy had had the Handy Units, of which there were now five, working overtime overnight to make tiny costumes for the Chimeras. Of course, since it was so last minute, she just went with the first thing she could think of, and now she and Mash were dressing up the Chimeras in little Avenger costumes.

And, of course, she made one for Fou, who had insisted on getting his outfit first, and was now watching them dress up the Chimeras in his little Iron Man costume.

Andy, herself, had 'dressed up' for the day, pulling her hair back into a ponytail and wearing a lab coat (which she definitely didn't steal from Roman and resize, nope) with gloves and the pants from the standard Chaldea Mystic Code. She had also tested the shrinking potion on herself, and had brought herself down to exactly 69 inches, which she figured would be both a good starting decrease in height since it was both the same amount she lost when turning female (and was a better height difference with Astolfo) and would help with her 'costume', since even in her female form she was still taller than Roman.

Mash herself had dressed up in a witch outfit, that reminded Andy of Meguin, but it was all shades of purple instead which seemed to be Mash's favorite color. And the rest of Chaldea had been decorated too. Pumpkins and bats, all over the place with others who wanted to were in costume. Andy had seen Jeanne walking around in suit pajama shaped like a dragon.

"Master! Master! I've got something for you!" Came shouts from Kiyohime as she entered Andy's workshop where they were dressing up the Chimeras.

"Kiyohime, is something wrong?" Andy asked the teenage dragon, putting down Chimera #5 whom she had been turning green to be the Hulk, unsure if it was a serious or not given how she was very much, so a teenager and so Andy was never sure when she got like this if it was something life-or-death or she was just excited.

"Nothing like that Andy. I've just got a letter for you." Kiyohime said as pulled out a decorated envelope out from her kimono, it was covered with bats and pumpkins and dragons with Andrew Murphy written on it.

"Oh, thank you Kiyohime," Andy said, getting up and taking the offered letter. "But you know my name's just 'Andy' Murphy now, Kiyohime." She said upon seeing the name on the letter.

"I didn't write it, I just found it lying on the ground. Haven't opened, so I have no idea who wrote it." Kiyohime answered.

"Wait, you mean…?" Andy looked at the letter with trepidation now, before Hughy flew over and she handed the letter to the familiar. "Okay, if it's another deity messing with us, I am _not_ going to be holding it when its opened thank you." She said, before having Hughy go to the opposite end of the room before carefully opening the letter.

And found just a piece of paper with words written on it in English, like a normal letter.

"Shall I read it for you Senpai," Mash asked.

"It's a mysterious letter that most likely came from some trickster deity considering the Halloween theme, I'd prefer if it weren't read aloud. I'll just use Hughy to read it, and hope there isn't some mimetic effect or something…" Andy said, rather worried about the whole situation considering last time had lead to a brawl between many enemy Servants.

 _Dear Andrew Murphy._

 _My Castle Čachtice has been renovated. And so I hereby cordially invite you to my prestigious Halloween Party. It shall be a grand party of the most exceptional pumpkin dishes from around the world. There shall be marvelous dances, and songs are sung by a great idol. So I invite you and others of your choice to join my party._

 _I await your arrival, at Čachtice Castle, 1615._

 _Yours Truly._

 _Elizabeth Bathory :)_

Andy blinked owlishly, before having Hughy float the letter back over to her and reread it with her own two eyes a few times to make sure she was reading it right. And then she laughed. "Of course! She was the only who survived, of course, it's Bathory!" Andy said as she laughed at both the absurdity of the situation and how _apparently_ _laughable_ their security was if some random singing dragon girl could send letters into their base, and random deities could just jump in whenever they wanted to. "We _can't_ say no, right?" Andy said as she handed the letter to Mash after said shielder gave her a worried look.

"Well, it wouldn't be very nice to say no if she went through all this trouble of sending us an invitation."

"I wanna go, I wanna go!" Hollered Kiyohime as she grabbed the letter from Mash's hands and speed read it.

Andy continued to laugh at the entire situation, before finally calming down. "Well, we should see who else wants to go. I'm willing to bet a Chimera it's going to be weird, and it's going to get violent at some point, so everyone who comes with should both have a costume and be ready to fight at a moment's notice I'd say." Andy said confidently, but jovially. This was hilarious to her, and she was also hoping she'd be able to convince Bathory to come back with them after the fact, so really it was just a good situation all around.

And if it was a trap, she always had a surprise Heracles.

Xxx

She had sent out a message via her armband soon after, asking who had wanted to go.

Now, Andy, Mash, Kiyohime, Lily, Gil, Asterios, and Euryale were awaiting approval from Roman on Rayshifting to the party.

"Well, I've analyzed the envelope and letter and found the date stated in it and location, it is a Lesser Singularity that is no threat to Human History. But I did detect several Servants and a minimal Holy Grail Signal inside, which is probably how she managed to make the Lesser Singularity." Roman said. "So yes, Andy you can all go to the party and have fun. Might be a gross misuse of our resources, but hey I ain't got the UN breathing down my neck. So eh. Also, Andy is that my coat you're wearing?" He asked with a deadpan tone.

"...Not anymore it isn't." Andy said after a moment.

"I would have expected, with how your Magecraft has been developing, impressive work by the way. You would go as Stein or Franken-Fran."

"What the fuck is a Franken-Fran?" Andy asked, before shaking her head. "Actually, don't want to know. Anyway, for Halloween, you're supposed to dress up as something you're not, right? So I decided to go as the best doctor I know."

"Thanks for that now of all you go, and I hope you have a good time all of you. I have a pumpkin pie eating contest with Da Vinci. So I send you off."

"Don't make yourself sick there, Doc," Andy said as she and Mash prepared their Coffins.

And like usual Andy saw that blue swirl, as her body got converted into spirit particles during the trip back in time and back to flesh then they all arrived in front of a giant castle.

"Hmm, smells good." Stated Asterios, who had gone for a stereotypical Frankenstein's monster-y appearance with some help from Andy.

"Yes, this is a smell I have never experienced before." Euryale sad from her new position on top of Asterios shoulder dressed in a Halloween themed dress with horns that matched her boyfriend's.

"That's the smell of Halloween, you lovebirds. Pumpkin-flavored _everything_!" Andy said excitedly, happy to have a situation that was just a party, where yes she might have to fight, likely for her life, but it wasn't a matter of saving the world. Hell, she was just gonna _embrace_ the no-doubt eventual madness and enjoy herself for the moment.

"Yep, Halloween is great you get lots of candy, while in costume going door to door, though we really can't do that, so it's just costume party for us," Gil said who was dressed as a magical girl in a red dress that looked kinda familiar, with cat ears on top. Andy hadn't designed that for him, he had just pulled it out of his Gate of Babylon.

"Yes, that sounds fun," Lily said in response, her costume being a white flowy robe with extremely fluffy white wings and a glowing golden halo that, due to being slightly rushed, was attached to her head instead of floating like Andy had intended. And she looked _exactly_ like an Angel, or at least a children's play version of one. Which was perfect.

"I'm willing to bet they'll be candy inside, Bathory seemed pretty childish last time we saw her," Andy said, internally proud of her basically last-minute costumes for the group. The Handy Units and Hughy really upped her production speed, even with the help from Vlad.

"Ah, welcome guests." Said a melodious female voice as the main gate opened up and out stepped a _beautiful_ woman. "I am Mata Hari of the Assassin Class, your entertainer, and guide for the evening. My Master waits for you inside." She greeted them.

"The World War 1 spy?" Asked Mash.

"Yep, that is me."

Andy immediately used her Stat-o-Vision on the well-endowed Assassin, not in the slightest using it as an excuse to admire the beauty before her, nope.

[spoiler=Mata Hari's Stat Sheet]

True Name: Mata Hari

Class: Assassin

Master: Elizabeth Bathory

 **Parameters:**

Strength: E

Endurance: E

Agility: E

Mana: E

Luck: D

Noble Phantasm: A

 **Class Skills:**

Presence Concealment: -

 **Personal Skills:**

Espionage: A++

Pheromones: B

Double Cross: B

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Mata Hari: The Girl Who Has Sunny Eyes(Anti-Army): A

[/spoiler]

Andy was surprised to see a Servant with such low parameters, but her high ranking skills and Noble Phantasm seemed like they made up for it. But more worryingly was that 'Double Cross' Skill. It seemed she'd have to be wary around the well-endowed Assassin even if Bathory wasn't an enemy. "We'd be honored to join her." Andy said cordially, smiling, deciding to just be prepared to call forth Tenfold Shields and enjoy the party for now.

"Very well then please come inside." Mata Hari said as turned around and Andy got a very good look.

Andy and her Servants followed behind after Mash elbowed her 'lightly' to get her moving.

As they walked the halls of the castle, all that Andy could describe it with was Halloween. Only that single word was needed to describe the decor of Elizabeth's castle. It has everything candles, bats, pumpkins, skeletons (hopefully not real ones), webs, and coffins. Andy almost expected Jack Skellington to show up, 'cause this was pretty much Halloween Town.

Though as everybody made small talk and admired the place.

Andy heard a very familiar female voice shout. "Can't believe the girl forcing me to clean my own Castle." And turning the corner, they all saw Carmilla standing there with a mop and bucket cleaning the floor.

After quickly confirming via Stat-o-Vision that her Master was Elizabeth this time, also finding the Mad Enhancement was gone, Andy couldn't help but find the fact that Elizabeth summoned her own older self. Whom she claimed to hate to the point of having _melted_ her last time, specifically to clean up around the castle, to be _utterly hilarious_ , as she struggled to contain her laughter to little avail.

"Don't you dare laugh brat." She said. "Who are you anyway, I don't recognize you, but I recognize those Servants, you can not be that same boy are you?"

"I am, in fact, the same person, but with a lot more experiences and magic potions changing some things," Andy said, upon realizing that, even excluding the costume, she really did look like an entirely different person. Hell, she _felt_ like an entirely different person than the her from before, but wasn't that always true of one's past self? "I go by Andy now."

"Hmm, I say that is an improvement. I guess she sent you an invite?" She said as she began to clean again.

"Yeah, she _somehow_ sent us an invite across space-time," Andy said, unsure whether to take the first part of Carmilla's statement as an insult or a compliment.

"She did that with a piece of the Holy Grail she found in France, used to recreate our Castle, along with summoning me, the skank right there-"

"-Hey high-class working girl thank you-"

"Along with Uncle and that Cat," Carmilla answered. "Well, at least she knows how to set up a proper party."

"M _h_ m. I really can't wait to have a chat with our gracious host then." Andy said, _just a bit_ worried about there being another Dracula to deal with. And who the 'cat' could be.

"She is in the main ballet room, I just need to finish up here, and I'll be joining you. I will not let that food go to waste." Andy swore she saw Carmilla drool slightly as she mentioned food.

"Ah, well see you then," Andy said, a little put off by that, considering she was a basically a vampire and likely liked her food _very bloody_.

"I wonder should tell her that she is sweeping wrong?" Kiyohime asked as they left Carmilla to her cleaning.

"Don't worry about, she'll figure it out eventually," Andy said to the dragon girl, as honestly, she would rather prefer the vampiric dominatrix stay away from her and her Servants.

After walking for a minute more, they all came upon a grand wooden door that Mata Hari opened revealing the banquet hall.

Generating a lot of oohs from her Servants.

Andy had seen bigger and more full Halloween parties, but that was only because of the few mandatory Halloween parties back in grade school she'd had to attend, and unlike those _this_ was done purely out of fun and a seeming love for the season, so she was nonetheless impressed. The giant Jack-o-lanterns seemingly growing from the ceiling in particular since they seemed to be made from real pumpkins.

Though the moment they stepped inside bats flew down from the shadows of the ceiling down to them and consolidated into the vampiric form of Vlad, or rather, Dracula.

"Welcome Master of Chaldea to our Halloween Party, I hope you will all enjoy this feast." He said bombastically with as much ham as possible. "Now please take a seat your hostess shall be here soon," Dracula said taking a bow and motioning them all to sit at the table.

Andy was internally panicking at seeing Dracula again, but considering his Master she was hoping dearly she wouldn't have to worry about any more undead. She just nodded quietly and sat at the table with her Servants, taking the seat opposite the head of the table, Mash sitting to her right, Lily to her left, then Asterios and Euryale on the right side, and Gil and Kiyohime on the left side.

As they sat down, that was when they heard it.

Music.

Music coming from the other side of the wall.

Andy and the Servants watched as the wall at the end of the room, turned around to reveal Elizabeth in a very different outfit, as she sang with a band composed of skeletons.

She was wearing an _extremely_ poofy black and orange witch outfit, had black devil (bat?) wings, and...her tail got thinner and looked like a stereotypical devil tail? Instead of her lance, she was now wielding an orange forked pitchfork and her fingers-! She was either wearing odd gloves, or her fingers had elongated into pink clawlike versions. Andy was caught completely off guard by the difference in appearance.

Elizabeth finished her rather pleasant sounding song. With slight praise from her Servants as they clapped and she could hear Dracula do so too. She clapped as well, though slower due to her confusion. Apparently, she wasn't the only one who had a transformative experience.

"Thank you! Thank you! So Deerlet what do you think? Do you like your brand new Halloween Caster Elizabeth." She addressed Andy.

Andy was now even _more_ confused, especially at the 'deerlet' part, and used her Stat-o-Vision on Elizabeth to see if she was telling the truth about the class change part.

[spoiler=Elizabeth Bathory's Stat Sheet]

True Name: Elizabeth Bathory

Class: Caster

Master: -

 **Parameters:**

Strength: D

Endurance: D

Agility: D

Mana: B

Luck: D

Noble Phantasm: E-

 **Class Skills:**

Item Creation: A

Territory Creation: B

 **Personal Skills:**

Innocent Monster: EX

Mana Burst(Pumpkin): A

Performance Continuation: A

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Báthory Halloween Erzsébet: Fresh Blood Special Demoness(Anti-Unit): E-

[/spoiler]

"Deerlet?" Andy asked, the rest more-or-less making sense given the context of her having a Holy Grail, discounting why Elizabeth decided to become the Pumpkin Queen for some reason.

"You, of course, you look a bit different of course, but I've been watching you from my castle with my Grail while you were in the Singularities. So now I want you as my Master(read: Manager)." Elizabeth said. "Pretty please." And she gave Andy the puppy eyes.

Andy blinked owlishly as she processed that, before laughing as everything fell into place in her mind. "Y-yeah, of course, I'd be honored," Andy said while trying to suppress her laughter at the absurdity of the whole situation, and the fact that while she had been looking for Caster with Item Creation one was now _begging_ to be her Servant. "Will, your Servants, becoming too?"

"Yeah!" She shouted as she ran over to Andy and gave her a crushing hug. "Of course, I'll transfer the contracts over to you Deerlet."

"Can't...breathe…" Andy said, as Elizabeth apparently forgot in her excitement that Andy was still a squishy human.

"Hehe sorry, but first we have a party to do right. Hit it boys and Cat bring in the food!" She shouted as the skeletons began playing again this time they actually played. This is Halloween.

And that was when one of the side doors opened and from it came a massive trolly with food, it being pushed by a cat?

"Nyah, everybody I am the Berserker Class Servant, Tamamo Cat of the Tamamo Nine, nyah. Your cook for tonight's party, and your personal maid after this, nyah." Tamamo Cat announced herself.

Andy used her Stat-o-Vision on the newly named Tamamo Cat as she questioned her sanity upon noticing the Berserker _maid_ was wearing massive fake paws, and likely the ears and tail were fake too since they matched the color of the paws.

[spoiler= Tamamo Cat's Stat Sheet]

True Name: Tamamo Cat

Class: Berserker

Master: Elizabeth Bathory

 **Parameters:**

Strength: B+

Endurance: E

Agility: A

Mana: A

Luck: B

Noble Phantasm: D

 **Class Skills:**

Mad Enhancement: C

 **Personal Skills:**

Monstrous Strength: B

Curse: E

Shapeshift: B

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Opulence of Sun and Shine and Catnap(Anti-Unit(Self)): D+

[/spoiler]

Andy was no longer questioning her sanity _as much_ due to Tamamo Cat having the Shapeshift Skill, so some of the discrepancies made sense. She still had no idea why she was a _maid_ or why the paws looked so fake, so she decided to just ignore that part. "Hey, Liz, why do you keep calling me 'Deerlet'? Also can you please let go?" She asked of the soon-to-be-contracted Caster, who was still hugging her just not as tightly.

"Oh?" She said as she let go of Andy. "Because you're cute like one." She answered honestly.

"And yet, last we met, I was a pig?" Andy asked, not having let that go the whole time.

Elizabeth looked away embarrassed. "Sorry, I've changed my opinion of you, your no longer just a lowly peasant, but a real hero you know, and heroes are the best managers."

"Ah, it's fine, people say mean things all the time," Andy said, having just wanted an apology for the words anyway. "And I dunno about the hero part, but I suppose I could be an okay manager considering I've been herding cats for the last 4 months. And now semi-literal cats with my new familiars."

"Hey," Came the shout from four out of six Servants, with Mash being quiet, and Asterios, who was in the middle of eating food.

"Former yandere, current teenager," Andy said, pointing at Kiyohime. "You're older-self considered _himself_ enough of a handful to turn into you." Pointing at Gil. "You bully your sister." Pointing at Euryale. "You match your outfit, don't worry." Pointing at Lily. "Best boy, never done anything wrong in his life." Pointing at Asterios. "Ultimate Kouhai." She finished, pointing at Mash. "And you could all kill me without thinking, so, herding lions would probably be easier." She said with a shrug, especially after having been dealing with the Chimera's the last few days, who were tiny lions except they also had a goat head that chewed on _everything_. And they were _still_ easier to deal with.

"True, but that cuts deep Andy." Said Kiyohime.

"Agreed." Said Gil.

"Okay, why are you all so gloomy looking, I got done cleaning so let's have a party!" Said Carmilla as she walked in carrying what looked to be booze.

There was a loud reply of affirmation, and then the party truly got underway.

And honestly it was a good time, and the food Tamamo Cat had made were delicious despite all of it being pumpkin something, she it all taste differently. And as the party progressed, Andy could almost forget that two of the Servants in the room was literally vampires, but they acted like normal people.

As the party went on, Andy had ended up chatting with Tamamo Cat, curious as to _who_ and _what_ she was that she was dressed like that. And why she was either wearing fake paws or had shapeshifted them, cause they couldn't be real unless the stockings were fake too, how else would she put them on?

She had learned that it involved more of that Moon Cell thing, where Tamamo-no-Mae had been summoned as a Caster, who had regained the majority of her divine power in the form of tails to save her Master. But after that, she cut them of which when formed into their own unique Heroic Spirits. With traits taken from their creator. Cat explained that she was the personification of Tamamo-no-Mae's more innocent and sincere aspects, but she was quite wild due to having little sense, so it canceled each other out, so she behaved more like a cat in personality until she developed more. Retaining that mental aspect as a part of her, which she reflects physically via her shapeshifting. With a lot of Nyahs in between the explanation.

Andy listened intently to the whole explanation, nodding along with a neutral expression. When Tamamo had finished, Andy had said "Fuck it," before grabbing the previously untouched goblet of pumpkin wine and downing the whole thing in one go, before sputtering at the unfamiliar burning sensation despite the rather good taste. She had made a stupid PSA like comment to her assembled Servants before grabbing some of the punch and downing a few cups of that before rejoining the table as if nothing happened.

And so the party continued until midnight where it stopped after Elizabeth gave another performance and Mata Hari giving a dance number, and thankfully not stripping. She had learned that the spy, was the one who had invented the modern striptease/strip dance.

And so Elizabeth transferred the contracts to Andy before Roman Rayshited all of them back.

"Well, everybody I hope you had a good night," Roman said.

Andy gave the doctor a thumbs up. "Yeah, it was great. I got a b _uuunc_ h of new Servants, and one of them's even a Caster!" She said, her words slurring slightly. Even with the Fleece in her body drinking that entire goblet of wine hadn't been a good idea considering it was the first thing more than a sip she'd ever had. And the lower body mass than what she was used to due to having been trying Medea's shrinking potion wasn't helping matters.

"Senpai, don't talk you're drunk."

"Ahm not dr _un_ k just a little tipsy." She denied to little avail.

"Let's get you to bed Senpai. Doctor can you give our new additions the armbands?"

"Sure thing Mash, you make sure our savior doesn't crash in the hallway."

"Wait, I think I got a solution," Andy said. "Deploy Restore." She said, the bottle appearing in her hand, before she took a sip, instantly returning to her regular size while the same amount of alcohol remained, though her costume no longer fit. "Ta, all better." She said, now 'just' sounding tipsy as she stored the size restoring potion.

"Nice try Senpai. Still, it's getting late. Come on." Mash said as she took Andy's arm and dragged her out of the Command Center and back to her room, after having taken the elevator back up.

Well, at least it had been a fun party.


	52. Hangover

November 1

"Drink some water Master it'll help with getting rid of the hangover." Lancer Cu said as he sat before Andy at the breakfast table.

Andy, of course, was miserable from said hangover, even despite the Fleece within her body and the fact she only had one goblet. It didn't help that all the lights in Chaldea were the bright, sterile hospital types, so she was now wearing sunglasses indoors. "Why do people _want_ to get drunk if you have to deal with _this_ in the morning?" She asked quietly as she drank more water.

"Because I like many others believe the benefits outweigh the negatives." Cu answered.

"What benefit? I felt like _shit_ last night, I feel _shittier_ now." Andy complained.

"Wow, you really are a lightweight despite your size? For the taste mostly."

Andy (tried) to give Cu a look at that, which didn't work because of the sunglasses, before sighing. "My body just doesn't do well with alcohol I guess. Which is funny, considering my family's history with the stuff."

"And I'm Irish, so that means I automatically win any drinking contest and come away unscathed. Isn't that right!"

"Fuck you Cu."

"Hehe." The spearman laughed in response.

"So, I guess that Halloween Party was good for something with those Servants you contracted with, especially that Mata Hari woman. Though I'm surprised Vlad and Dracula hasn't torn into each other yet. Did you use a Command Seal Master?"

"...I don't actually know." Andy said, looking at the back of her hand to see all three Command Seals still there, meaning if she did it was last night before she had passed out. "Maybe? I should probably talk to them about it. I should probably talk with all of the new Servants, really. Last night was a bit of a blur, but I don't think I actually found out anything useful about their capabilities…" She said, her words devolving into quiet mutterings about the new Servants.

"Probably a good idea Master, I know there are many of us here, but we enjoy these conversations with you. And this place is like a second chance at life with more like-minded people and less death than usual." Cu said.

"Yeah, I suppose so…" Andy said, thinking about the rather wide array of Servants from all walks of life in her employ. Several demigods both literal and figurative, a young female King Arthur, her older alternate timeline goth counterpart, space alien tiny girl Attila the Hun, all three Gorgon sisters, [s]the Minotaur[/s] Best Boy Asterios...the World War One spy that had just joined them was likely the most 'normal' of the bunch, and she could still crush someone's head like it was a grape. "Huh. Chaldea is a real eclectic bunch of misfit heroes trying to save the world." She realized aloud. Even if she had come to that conclusion before, it was still _really weird_ to think about.

"And if we can't save it we can sure as hell avenge it. We've been on a marathon the last week. Modern entrainment is great." Cu said.

"Agreed, though some of those romantic movies distasteful, no sense of true love," Marie said as she slid up beside Andy.

"Hey, wassup Marie?" Andy asked, not bothering with her normal flowery language for the moment. It helped she was more-or-less used to Marie and knew she didn't have to watch her every word.

"Wassup to my homie Master, you look like a washed up dog," Mare answered back sipping on tea.

"Thanks, I feel like it," Andy said sarcastically. "Hangover's _suuuck_."

"This should make you feel better. Guillotine Breaker." She said as a miniature crystal horse formed on her hand that started sending out its healing waves that hit Andy lessening her current hangover and headache a great deal.

"Oh, _wow_ , thanks, Marie," Andy said at the literal instant relief of the brunt of the hangover, tentatively taking off the sunglasses and celebrating internally when her eyes weren't instantly burned out of her skull like they felt earlier by the lights. "I didn't know Guillotine Breaker could fix hangovers. Or that you could make tiny ones, for that matter."

"Well, a hangover is a physical defect, not a mental one, and I can make it any size and as many as I want, though that is limited to my current reserves." She answered.

"Ah, gotcha," Andy said, silently trying her best to not think of 100 duck sized Guillotine Breaker's fighting one Guillotine Breaker sized duck and failing miserably. "Thanks again, Marie."

"You're welcome, Master."

Andy glanced over at the clock and then back to her mostly finished breakfast. "Anyone here needs to talk to me about anything? If not, I'm off to talk to our latest recruits."

They didn't really have anything to talk about at the moment.

Xxx

Andy walked with purpose through Chaldea's halls towards where she felt Elizabeth to be, figuring it best to start from the 'top and work her way down' as it were. She soon found the bedroom which the Halloween Queen had claimed and knocked.

"Come in!" She responded.

Andy opened the door to see that she was currently sitting in front of a mirror brushing her hair. Her hat was off to the side.

"Sorry to intrude, Elizabeth. Are you adjusting well so far to Chaldea?" Andy asked as she entered the room.

"I am, there are so many people here, even my Idol rival Nero." She answered.

"Wait, your w _ha_ t?" Andy asked, confused. How many Grail Wars occurred she didn't know about?

"My Idol rival, we had many competitions in the Moon Cell."

"Oh, so was 'Hakuno' your Master during that?" Andy asked, recalling how she had referred to her previous Master as having changed her outlook.

"He became mine later when he gained control over it after winning his Grail War with Nero and Tamamo as his wives, but like all things, it came to an end."

'Damn Harem Protagonists.' Andy cursed internally at Elizabeth's explanation. "Sorry for bringing up the past, when we should be focusing on the present. I'd like to know the extent of your abilities, especially your Item Creation. And what you did with the Grail."

"Eh, from a linear perspective it hasn't happened yet. But if you want to know, I can shoot various elemental pumpkins from my pitchfork, and my Item Creation allows me to create any festivity item. The Grail keeps my Castle around so we can have a little retreat if you want Deerlet."

"When you say 'any festivity item,' that refers exclusively to Halloween, right? And to what extent of 'festivities' given that skeleton band back at the party?"

"The best of the best for everything, of course, be Christmas, New Year, birthdays, Valentine, Easter and many more. Though it like a can make things that fit the theme of a holiday." She answered.

"...Does that mean you can make fireworks?"

"Yep, big and bright for New Years."

Andy looked rather excited at that. "And, to what extent can you create familiars like I assume those skeletons were?"

"Limited animatronics basically."

"And, can you make costumes?"

"Nope, why did you think I got Uncle Vlad to make this. But that is why I'm even more glad to be here there are now two Uncle Vlads." She said happily.

"Hmm. Say, how quickly can you make those skeletons? I think I have an idea to keep the 'holiday spirit' going all year round.." She said, a mad grin firmly planted on her face.

"Deerlet you're being really creepy with that face you're making." Elizabeth bluntly stated.

"Shush now is not the time for being creeped out, now is the time for mass production!" She said dramatically.

"I need an adult."

"I am an adult!"

Xxx

November 3

Andy looked at the fruit of her labor with a very happy grin, the tired Elizabeth looking on and likely wondering why she had wanted to join in the first place.

The two were currently in a recently commandeered room that had been industrialized over the last few days as the Handy Units and Hughy went into overdrive.

Now, there were several rather basic looking, almost mannequin-like cloth figures, primarily black in color with some orange along them, slumped over along two long tables with large spools of thread on the ends. Each of the 'mannequins' had an orange number sewn to its face and a massive zipper along the backs.

"Alright, the final step, add the skeletons please, my spooky assistant!" Andy said dramatically, motioning to Elizabeth, despite being the only two in the room.

Elizabeth pointed tiredly with one of her fingers, and the small army of skeletons in the room filed over to one of the cloth suits and stepped into them, helping each other with the zippers to hold in the arcane stuffing with their bones. Soon, all 20 mannequins had their skeleton.

"All right, now then, the final touch," Andy said, as she walked over to each and activated the Runestone Cores within each one around where the heart would be as Elizabeth relinquished control of her skeletons.

Andy, once done, walked back over to Elizabeth, who was watching with tired anticipation, as Andy snapped once, and all 20 turned to face her, saluting to her with their disturbingly human-like hands, the result of Andy's vivisection of Janus. "Alright, Stuffys, get to work!" She said.

"Yes, ma'am!" They replied completely synchronized using the voice box filled with pre-recorded phrases she had put into them before turning to the tables and beginning work, the one closest to the spool at each table beginning to make...something, it was too soon to tell what.

Andy then laughed at the brilliance of her automation. "Yes! Elizabeth, do you see the beauty of what we have created?" She asked the dragon-idol-witch.

"I see that you're on your way to becoming a Mad Scientist, but this does look effective. Now is there something else you need me for? I'm kinda tired."

"No, please, get some rest, but if you can start production on those fireworks, we designed at your earliest convenience, from this point onward you can take your time I just needed to prove we could do it," Andy said, having only _just_ realized she'd basically devoted all of her energy the last few days to doing this, even having skipped her lessons and not really sleeping, though the Fleece in her flesh meant she didn't have to sleep quite as much as before. "And I might ask for more skeletons in the future once I've quality tested the current Stuffys models."

"Okay, good night, for now, Deerlet, this idol is out for now." She said as she left the room.

"Alright, see you later," Andy replied, staying for a bit and admired her work.

She waited until the 10th one of each table got their respective scarves (for the test run, to ensure each could function as needed), and watched as they walked away from the tables and sewed the first rune into each, eager to see if they would work or not. The Stuffys had the manual dexterity required to sew Runes, but she wasn't sure on the semantics involved for them to actually _work_.

Andy picked it up and ran mana through the scarf to see if the Runes worked, only too see them not light up like they should have. Guess she couldn't make a shortcut that way.

Which was fine, of course, magical semantics were always a toss-up for her.

She checked the watch on her armband to see the time. It was basically 'night' time for them already. Andy sighed and figured she'd deal with her instructors in the morning; Leonidas surprisingly had a lot of chill about missing but the others...not so much.

She sighed again and decided to swing by Medea's Workshop on her way, see how she was progressing on the Spellbook. Before she did, she set the Stuffys upon making more of their own kind now that she had quality tested them.

She soon found herself knocking on the door to said Age of God's Magi's Workshop and knocked.

"Come in."

Andy entered to see Medea petting the Fleece, though on the side she saw a rather large book or tome to be more precise.

"Hey, Medea, sorry for coming in so late. Is the Spellbook done?" She asked upon seeing said book.

"It is, was going to give to you in the morning but since you're here, you can establish the Karma link so that you can use it," Medea answered.

"Ah, neat. So, how do I do that with a book, exactly?" Andy asked, not actually having made an already existing thing her familiar before; the Chimera's were transferred over by Medea, and even the Stuffys were powered by a Runic Core she had made.

"The same you did Griffsy, same kind of familiar in their origin." She answered.

"Oh, right, gotcha."

A few minutes later, the connection was established. She didn't feel the same 'expansion' of her visuals she got with the other familiars of seeing through their 'eyes,' likely because it didn't have any.

"So, uh, how do I use it?" Andy asked as the book hovered in front of her.

"Control it with your thoughts," Medea said.

Andy did what she suggested after giving the Caster a brief 'oh really' look as she began sending the book basic direction which it followed. After having it float directly over to her, she opened it and saw spells and information written on the page. Well, sink or swim. Andy chanted one of the spells and when she finished a ball of green was launched from the book that hit the wall and began to eat through the metal wall.

"Woah," Andy said as she looked at what she had done, before looking back through the tome, finding that the page immediately after the one containing that spell was the one with the information about it. She then eagerly flipped to the front of the book and found the appendix, before looking for the section on modifying existing Chimeras and flipping to that section, beginning to read it silently, before remembering where she was. "Oh, right, thanks Medea, this is going to be a _massive_ boon in the future, thank you so much. And, uh, sorry about the wall."

The Greek Magus just snapped her fingers, and it was back to normal. "Think nothing of it, Master. Now it's getting late isn't it?"

"Yeah, I should probably get some sleep…" Andy said as she went towards the door before remembering something. "Oh, wait, Medea, sorry one more thing, did you have more of the Fleece or was the last piece all I'm getting?"

"I have more if you want it, it's over in box over one the third shelf to the right."

"Ah, thanks again Medea," Andy said as she retrieved said box. "I think this'll actually be put towards the Team Scarves this time."

"Yes, you were making that clothes production line with Elizabeth weren't you how did that go?" She asked.

"Oh, the Stuffys are up and running at full capacity," Andy said proudly. "With them handling the bulk of the production, I can put even more time towards the important things, even if they can't activate the Rune parts on their own." Andy said, suddenly having the idea of 'tracing over' the Runes sewn by the Stuffys to give them the needed 'purpose'; she'd have to test that tomorrow. "Do you have any requests?"

"Light blue please."

"Gotcha. Well, goodnight Medea, and thank you again. If you need anything just ask." Andy said as she went for the door once more, Fleece box in hand and her new Spellbook floating behind her.

"Goodnight Andy." Were her words as she left the Workshop.

Xxx

November 6

"So Senpai how has your Stitchcraft been progressing?" Mash asked as she set up the Summoning Circle.

"Oh, things have been progressing _wonderfully_." Andy said, still in her workout clothes and out of breath from the 'make up lessons' she'd been going through for skipping them to make the Stuffys, though she was speaking truthfully. "With the Stuffys up and running and the Spellbook complete now, I've even started modifying one of the Chimera's." Janus's crest was turning out to have all kinds of wonderful surprises inside, now that she could actually use it. He was the asshole gift that just kept on giving.

"That's good to hear, Senpai. So do you have any special projects that you're working on?" She asked trying to fish for knowledge. The act of doing so very deliberate.

"I mean, if you'd like I could make you my assistant, bounce _all_ my ideas off you for anything downright stupid, have you nearby in case something explodes, have a cute assistant, etc.?" Andy teased, not actually answering the question.

"No thank you Senpai, I'm not really a Magus at all. Though how are you and Astolfo been doing? Did you have anymore fantastic dates?"

"I ain't really a Magus either." Andy denied. "A-and, uh, kinda. We had another _date_ -date, and we've hung out when I had free time." She said, blushing as she thought back to what had happened on that second date due to her being shorter for it.

"That's great to hear, you two really work great together," Mash said.

"Y-you think so?" Andy asked, blush deepening somewhat as her mind unwillingly went to the idea of 'working together,' as it were, at Mash's words.

"Yeah, you two are so cute, so did you kiss yet?"

Andy's blush deepened. "Y-yeah." She said, looking away from Mash as she did. It wasn't her first kiss ever or anything, but it was her first kiss as a girl, and for some reason that felt like a big deal. Likely because it was her first one as the 'Andy' Murphy instead of 'Andrew' Murphy.

"You're so adorable when you're embarrassed Senpai. Even after four months, you're still the same Senpai I met in the simulation room."

Andy's blush just deepened as she tried to find the right thing to say to that. "W-well, I wouldn't say the same _exact_ person." She finally said, motioning towards herself.

"On the outside maybe, but on inside who you really are has changed very little, no I would say you're more you than you have ever been. That's how it at least feel to me with how you have behaved." Mash sincerely said.

Mash's words made Andy take a look back at herself, and she realized the Shielder had a point. She only really stuttered now when she was flustered, she was doing something that actually helped people (helped literally _everyone_ in fact), she could use fucking _magic_ which allowed her to finally explore so many of her more 'imaginative' ideas...and she was now, well, a she. "Heh. You know what, I think you're right Kouhai. As always."

"Of course I am Senpai, cause I am the Kouhai. Now, are you going to summon Drake this time around she did give you her hat for that didn't she?"

"Oh. Oh, right! I completely forgot about that!" Andy said as she deployed said hat from her hammerspace. "I kinda feel guilty now for not summoning her sooner…" She said as she approached the circle and summoned forth who would most likely be Drake.

"Are you the new Master? I'm Francis Drake. Well, I hope we can work well together." She announced as the buxom pirate stood in the summoning circle smiling at the both of them.

"It's a pleasure to see you again Captain, thanks for answering the call to save Human History. I'm betting you don't remember us, but I have a recording of little adventure with you that you could watch to get caught up." Andy said as she used her Stat-o-Vision on the newly summoned Drake.

[spoiler=Francis Drake]

True Name: Francis Drake

Class: Rider

Master: Andy Murphy

 **Parameters:**

Strength: D

Endurance: C

Agility: B

Mana: E

Luck: EX

Noble Phantasm: A+

 **Class Skills:**

Magic Resistance: D

Riding: B

 **Personal Skills:**

Voyager of the Storm: A+

Pioneer of the Stars: EX

Golden Rule: B

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Golden Wild Hunt: The Night of the Golden Hind and the Storm(Anti-Army): A+

[/spoiler]

"Well that sounds interesting, though do know that I expect treasure for services rendered." She said.

"Understood, but it's not really like there's anything those treasures are actually useful for right now, considering the only thing that exists right now is Chaldea," Andy said nonchalantly.

"It's more for my Noble Phantasm the more wealth I have, the stronger it is, and it requires me to give it up the more I use it." She explained.

"Ah, gotcha, and what does that Noble Phantasm do, exactly?"

"I'm able to summon my ship and the Wyld Hunt as one of its leaders."

"The 'Wyld Hunt'?" Andy asked, wondering if she was speaking of the fey type.

"The whole King of Storms thing, I apparently share the title with Arthur, Odin, and Cain." She answered.

Andy decided to, _for once_ , not question something, because she was pretty sure she wouldn't like the response since she was pretty sure if she learned literally anything about the 'Real' Cain she'd have a conniption. "Ah, gotcha. And, what do your personal skills do?"

"Voyager is my ability to traverse the sea, Pioneer is just a trophy skill, it symbolizes me having done the impossible and made it possible for others." She answered. "And you probably know what Golden Rule does?"

"More or less lets you accumulate wealth on your own?" Andy asked to confirm.

"Makes it easy for it to come to me if this had been a normal Grail War I would just have gone to the nearest casino and emptied house." She smiled.

"Mhm. I'll look into finding one in the Singularities in the future." Andy said, not wanting to let Drake's Noble Phantasm go unused. "Oh, right, almost forgot, my Kouhai here has an armband for you with a map so you can claim a room and settle in. They can also be used to communicate with the other Servants and staff, and I'll be sending the video files to you on it later."

"Ah, these are interesting my former Master had something similar, so I'll go find the booze and my own room. See you later Master." Drake said as she walked out of the Summoning Chamber.

"Hey, Mash, you wanna see something cool?" Andy asked after Drake had left as said Shielder picked up her shield.

"Hmm… Sure thing Senpai." Mash answered.

"Don't worry, it's not a dead body," Andy said as she led Mash to her Workshop, which was directly above the Production Line. She was waiting on Roman's approval to build a small staircase or elevator leading directly into it so she wouldn't have to walk halfway across Chaldea to get from one to the other. "At least, not anymore." She said as she shooed away the 7 still miniature Chimera's from the covered object in the center of the room.

Mash turned to Andy and just gave her _that_ look.

"Alright, without further ado, may I introduce-" She dramatically pulled the cover away, to reveal a bobcat sized Chimera with a set of full-sized red wyvern wings with some barely visible Runes on them which it unfurled as it stood and roared/bleated/hissed dramatically. "My first Super-Chimera!" Its coloration was different from the other Chimera's, with the scaly portions being the dark red of wyvern scales, the lion's fur being a pumpkin orange, and the goat parts being an autumn yellow while its horns glowed red faintly. There were no visible stitch marks because Andy wasn't an _amateur_ , but it was clear where one ended, and the next began.

"I take you put that Grimoire to good use," Mash said.

"Yeah, there is a _lot_ of stuff in here." She said, motioning to said book which was floating just behind her, closed for now. "I managed to put some of the dragon parts to good use, and I got a little bit of extra material from Liz. Autumn here can actually do some pretty crazy stuff by normal standards due to the high-quality materials, and I even managed to incorporate a few Runic arrays to make her even crazier." She said, flinching slightly at what had happened to the first one she had done tried it on; that's why she had Autumn the size of a bobcat for working on it. RIP Chimera 5; it had not been fun watching the tiny chimera die and then explode into full size right in her face as the shrinking potion wore off.

"Wow, Senpai you somehow made one of the deadliest Magus creations even deadlier… Don't even know what to say to that, but… That's adorable its so cute." Mash screamed as she hugged Autumn.

"Careful, she may be small and cute right now, but we're going to be combat testing her later, so you'll be able to see her at full size," Andy said, silently taking pride in her work. "Actually, do you wanna be with for that? I don't know actually know yet how well she'll hold together under stress, so I was going to do that in a few minutes since I'm finally free from remedial lessons."

"That be fun to watch," Mash said accepting the proposal.

"Alrighty then, let's head down to the training room," Andy said excitedly.


	53. Talky Talky Prank

November 7

Andy, after the testament to her prowess that was Autumn was tested out (she would be a terror to Mooks, and a pesky fly to Servants), had promptly realized that she had been neglecting the vast majority of her Servants for the last week in one way or another, which was definitely an issue considering the newest occupants of Chaldea. Because of this, she was at the moment seeking out the most likely to be at the center of an issue of the new group-Dracula. She still wasn't sure if he and Vlad had come to some sort of agreement or she had used a Command Seal in her drunken stupor that night, and as such was rather worried.

She followed the map to where both of them were, and as she walked to them, where they were sitting in the lounge, with Dracula knitting and Vlad reading, the two them sat in very comfortable looking recliners.

"Ah, hello Vlad, and, uh...Vlad?" Andy asked, not sure if calling him Dracula out loud in the presence of the non-Dracula one would be insulting or not. "I, uh, take it you two are getting along relatively well?" She asked, legitimately not sure how Vlad wasn't trying to kill Dracula considering he needed _EX-Rank_ Mad Enhancement to _accept_ being Dracula.

"If you wish to differentiate between us, via names, please call me either Drac or Tepes," Dracula said.

"Alright, Drac, I'll keep that in mind," Andy said.

"Yes, relatively is the word, we have come to a form of agreement," Vlad said.

"We might hate each other, but we hate Bram Stoker even more for what he did."

"And for your sake to Master, we have a cease-fire going on, so long as your our Master."

"Which will be a long time for the foreseeable future." Drac finished their little twin talk.

"Oh, well, it's great the two of you could come to an agreement on your own," Andy said. "And, on that note, my apologies Drac for contacting you and then ignoring you for a week, it was rather rude of me."

"You have nothing to apologize for Master, your busy and have many Servants to attend to, and besides you spend many days with little Elizabeth," Drac answered.

"Yes, that is one of the few things we have in common, our love for little Liz," Vlad added.

"So, do not feel sorry Master, we have ways to keep ourselves occupied."

"If you say so," Andy said.

"Is there anything else you wish to discuss with us, or do you wish to 'hang out' as you modern teenagers say?" Asked Vlad.

"Sure, why not," Andy said, sitting in one of the other chairs in the lounge.

Xxx

November 8

Andy decided to go find Carmilla the moment she had the free time to do so and was now looking for the other Vampiric Servant that could potentially prove problematic. Her schedule was basically packed now with barely an hour of real 'free time' given the large block she had devoted to 'individual studies' and the large swathes of time taken up by the lessons she was getting from Chiron, Waver, Leonidas and the Cu Chulainns, so she decided to use it wisely and go for the next Servant most likely to cause trouble.

The female older vampiric form of Elizabeth was inside the room that she had chosen. Andy gave the door a slight knock, and Carmilla responded. "The door is open."

Andy entered to see her no longer wearing her dominatrix Servant clothing, but way more casual ones. Andy would call 'Anime Housewife' she didn't have her mask and horns on which, unlike Elizabeth's were detachable and laying on the table where was painting her nails.

"Oh, hello Andy."

"Hello, Carmilla. Sorry for bothering you, I'm just dropping in to see how well you're adjusting to life here in Chaldea, and to apologize for basically ignoring you since we got back." Andy apologized.

"That you should, it felt rather embarrassing to be ignored." She answered, ending it with a sound only an aristocrat could produce.

"Yeah, sorry, I kinda get swept up in my ideas sometimes…" Andy apologized further. "If you'd like, I could make you some clothes with the new production line to make it up to you?"

"Really? Then if your able, I have seen some of those modern clothes magazines, and I would like some of those." She answered as she threw said magazine at Andy, who easily caught it.

"Will do, I'll just need your measurements then, but we can do that later. How are you adjusting to life here at Chaldea?" Andy asked.

"It is... relaxing for lack of a better word. Even with all those kings wandering the halls, I do not feel the atmosphere of the nobles that surrounded me in life." She answered.

"Yeah, despite all the demigods and actual greek goddesses and kings and such, everyone here is pretty chill outside of combat," Andy said.

"Yes, there is an air of relaxation here, though that is more due to us Servants being unified under a single cause, you'd probably never experience such a thing in a Holy Grail War." She said.

"True," Andy said, before being distracted by a thought that she should have likely also asked Dracula. "Hey, uh, Carmilla, since you're kinda…'vampirey,' does that mean you have to drink blood?"

"I do not, I am a Vampire, but unlike Dead Apostle, I do not need to drink a hotel full of people every week to continue my existence." She said. "Though I am not opposed to partaking in the blood of young girls, it is a part of me. Would you be willing to share?" She said ending with a laugh that sounded like a cross between a psychopath and an oujo.

"...Would it make you stronger?" Andy asked, expression and voice neutral.

"It just allows me to regain mana quicker without relying on your reserves though if I be drinking from you, it would be rather redundant wouldn't it?"

"I suppose. Does it have to be fresh blood?"

"Yes, the energy leaves blood rather quickly."

"Understood," Andy said, before shaking her head. "So, uhm, how does your Noble Phantasm work?"

"My Phantom Maiden is an extension of myself that allows me to heal and increase my strength, by trapping my opponent within the Iron Maiden. It is more effective against females naturally." She answered.

"Mhm, I see. I'll keep that in mind for future enemies." Andy said, already thinking of a potential combo move with it. "So, uhm, was there anything you wanted to talk to me about, any questions about the saving Human History?" She asked, unsure where else to take the conversation.

"A worthwhile endeavor to assist. As for you Andy would you like to try and have nails painted?" She asked her tone changing from sinister to cheerful in a heartbeat.

"Ooh, yeah I haven't had my nails painted since I came to Chaldea, that seems like fun," Andy said.

"While you were a man? My how times have progressed to think you would engage in such feminine behavior." Carmilla's voice was easy to recognize as teasing.

"Eh," Andy shrugged. "I had... _have_ a little sister, I've been a guinea pig for all kinds of 'beauty' products. And the times progress and regress constantly." Andy said, thinking back to the rather hostile climate of her U.S. before she got wrapped up in all this.

"Don't know that feeling, having your younger-self walking around doesn't really count does it?"

"I mean, you're technically different enough people at this point that...maybe?" Andy speculated, unsure herself. "Servant semantics are weird, but like...she's a Halloween-dragon-princess-idol, which you never really were, and has had a lot of experiences that you technically never had? I'd say she's closer to like, a younger kinda-twin at this point."

"Yeah, I don't get her either we are too far removed from each other, we barely count as the same person anymore." She said.

"In that case, she kinda is like your annoying little sister then," Andy said as she sat down on the bed next to Carmilla.

"Ah, that she is and to make it worse I can't even truly hate her, like Uncle Dracula and Uncle Vlad does each other."

"So she really is like a younger sibling!" Andy said jokingly.

"Yes, yes she is." Carmilla sighed. "Now what color would you like?"

"Mhm, let's go with red."

"Good choice."

Xxx

November 9

"Nyah, Master want something to eat?" Tamamo Cat asked Andy as the Berserker had joined Emiya and Boudica in the kitchen, to assist the Brownies with the growing number of mouths they had to feed. Now while Servants didn't need food, it kept most of them emotionally stable, being able to act like when they were alive. A certain pair of Sabers more than others.

"Uhm, don't you need like, a hair net or gloves or something?" Andy asked, only having just now realized Tamamo Cat was, _somehow_ , cooking with those oversized paws, which couldn't have been sanitary.

"Don't worry Master, no hair comes in the food, that would not be sanitary at all and ruin it." She answered.

Andy gave her a skeptical look but decided to just, accept it, and move on in order to preserve what little remained of her sanity. "So, Cat, how are you adjusting to Chaldea?" She asked, doing her damnedest to not think about the logistics of how Cat was doing _anything_ she was doing.

"I really like lots of fun people, and Mr. Emiya knows how to cook good food, the same with Ms. Boudica. And I make a lot of people really happy, I like Chaldea a lot."

Andy smiled at her enthusiasm. "That's good to hear, Cat." Andy then noticed that Cat had stopped in preparing to talk with her. "Hey, do you want me to help with the food, and we can talk while we cook?"

"Yes, Yes Master, go through the door," Cat said.

Andy followed Cat's instruction and entered the kitchen, she had been inside of it a few times when she had been cooking with Emiya and as always it as busy as the Brownies sped around the kitchen, the contracted fey preparing for the next meal of the day.

Andy greeted them all and got prepared to prepare food. "So, Cat, what's the extent of your Shapeshifting?" She asked as she finished washing her hands.

"I can look like anyone you want me to be. And hide this if you want." She said pointing at her more animalistic parts.

"Uh, yeah if you could that would be great," Andy said to the latter half, the remaining rational parts of her brain yelling at her that animals had no place in the kitchen. "And when you say anything, do you mean anything-anything?"

Andy watched as Cat's hands became human looking along with feet and tail, the ears staying. "Nyah, anyone Master, anyone, nyah."

"...Could you demonstrate by, I dunno, turning into...me?" Andy asked, curious to if she could and to just how weird it would be seeing someone with her face.

Cat nodded, and a few seconds later a copy of Andy stood in front of her. The form of Cat had kinda molded into hers. Though she was still wearing that maid uniform of hers, which did not fit the size of Cat's new body. Meaning she was currently flashing everybody who was looking at her.

Which was apparent by the fact that even the back of Emiya's head was red.

Andy, too, was very red in the face as she quickly deployed her white dress and practically forced it onto the immodest Cat wearing her face, instead of doing the 'smart' thing and telling her to change back. " _Youshouldhavesaidtheclothesdidn'tshiftwithyou!"_ She said very rapidly at Cat from the second-hand (first hand? Shapeshifting made semantics hard) embarrassment.

"Oopsie sorry Master." She said as she changed back to her normal appearance, and quickly fixing up her clothes.

"This is what I get for asking…" Andy muttered to herself as she stored away her dress that Tamamo handed back. "Sorry, Cat, that was my fault for telling you to increase your size like that, I should have expected your clothes wouldn't change too." She apologized since while it was technically her form which had been on display, it was Cat's 'body.'

"It's fine Master, nyah. Your Servant should have known better."

"That's good now please don't do that in the kitchen again." Said Emiya as he was now looking at the two of them.

Andy's formerly fading blush restored itself at the fact that, yes, Emiya had basically just seen her naked body. "Y-you saw nothing, understood?" She asked/ordered, ignoring his statement since _of course,_ she wasn't going to do that again.

"Rin's is better." Was all he said as he turned around.

"What, are you into washboards?" Andy asked indignantly.

"Size is not everything Master, they have a certain firmness to them that you lack." Andy could hear the grin had on his face, even if she couldn't see it. She truly had summoned Actually Satan hadn't she?

"How the fuck would you know that from just _seeing_ them?" She asked indignantly, unsure how insulted she should truly be considering the... _origins_ of his novel.

"Eyes of a Hawk Master."

"Yeah, he is right Master, you felt kinda jiggly." Commented Cat.

"Et tu, Cat?" Andy asked, betrayed.

"We speak to you nothing butt the truth Master. Okay, that one kinda hurt." Archer said after he done his pun.

"At least I didn't have to take Counterforce steroids to get my body." She said heatedly, reaching for anything to throw back.

"Of the mark by fifty percent, I grew my height in after the fifth war, the hair and skin came after my contract."

"That's not what I meant, and you know it, you were _not_ a beefcake before you hit the magic steroids."

"It's called using Reinforcement when working out Master you should try it." He answered ignoring the beefcake comment.

"I mean, if you're willing to teach me Reinforcement, I'm down," Andy said, latching on to the opportunity both to learn a potentially useful new skill and to get swole, the potential outweighing her current embarrassment.

"Wait? You haven't been using that method?" He asked.

"What, your Reinforcement method? I've just been working out like a normal human." Andy said, purposefully ignoring that with Leonidas's physical training she was most definitely _not_ working out like a normal human, though it was still within the realm of 'non-magical' human.

"Bollocks spartan training is not human training, and haven't you been taught Self-Reinforcement?"

"No, the only 'Reinforcement' I can use is 'Instant Reinforcement' and that's part of the Chaldea Uniform," Andy said.

"Just bring it up with Waver along with Structural Analysis to help you out with it, cause you shouldn't be taking lessons from me." He said.

"I mean, you're kind of the expert on those, but I suppose you're right." Andy acquiesced, now latched on to the idea of Reinforcement, the previous issue almost completely forgotten. "Oh, uh, Cat, there's something I want to talk to you about doing later then if that's alright?"

"Surething Master, what do you need to do?"

"Oh, I don't _need_ to do anything, there's just a few things I kind of _want_ to do," Andy said, grinning.

Xxx

Andy opened her door to let Tamamo Cat into her room, which was now _filled_ with plushies of all kinds, and there were some folded clothes laying on the bed. "Come on in, Tamamo. Sorry about the mess."

"So Master are we going to do lewd things now?"

"What? Nonono, if it were an actual copy of me definitely but your another person, I wanted to mess with Mash by there being two of me." Andy denied, blushing at the not-so-subtle insinuation. "I even made multiples of the same outfit so we could do it convincingly." She said, motioning towards the folded clothing laid on her bed.

"So, we're going to be doing some pranks?" Cat asked, a devious grin on her face.

"Exactly. Now, let's go over the plan…"

Xxx

"Hey, Kouhai!" Andy, currently wearing a black t-shirt that said in bold white lettering 'If lost, return to Kouhai', short shorts, and white knee-highs, said enthusiastically, practically skipping over to Mash who was currently walking down the hallway holding a book. "Whatcha readin'?"

"I was just picked up a fairy tale book from Doctor Roman." She answered.

"Ooh, which one?"

"The collective work of Hans Christian Andersen. He is my favorite author. And I wanted to go through reading them again."

"Ooh, yeah, he's the one who did those really sad ones like Little Match Girl right?" Andy asked.

Before Mash could answer, another voice chimed in from nearby.

"Hey, Kouhai, I was looking for you…" Andy said as she turned the corner to face the two, wearing the exact same outfit as the Andy next to Mash. "What? Kouhai, are you cheating on me with another Senpai?" The second Andy asked, a betrayed look on her face.

"Wha, huh, wah? There… are… two… Senpais?" The girl stammered out as she looked back and forth between the two Andys.

"No, there's only one! I'm the real Andy!" The first one proclaimed, grabbing onto Mash's left arm. " _I'm_ the real Senpai!"

"What? What are talking about, _I'm_ the real Andy!" The second said, grabbing onto Mash's right arm. "I'm the _real_ Senpai!"

"Wha!"

"Kouhai!" They said at the exact same time. "Tell her I'm the real Senpai! No, not you, me! Stop doing that!" The Andy's said to Mash and then each other.

"Four soft melons." Was all Mash said as her face was practically steaming.

The two Andy's looked at each other at that, and both let Mash go in sync, glaring at each other, before moving to be in front of the blushing and bewildered Mash. "Well, I won't stand an imposter trying to hog my cute Kouhai." The Andy on Mash's left side said, crossing her arms.

"Says the faker trying to steal my precious Kouhai!" The Andy on Mash's right side said, pointing furiously at the left Andy.

"Oh- _ho_ , them's fighting words, imposter!"

"Bring it on you faker!"

The seemingly imminent catfight was too much for the poor Shielder as lost consciousness with blood streaming from her nostrils. Though comically she did it with her arm standing straight up with a thumbs up, as she layed on the ground.

"Uh-oh." Said the left Andy.

"I think we might have overdone it a little." Said the right Andy before, still in-sync, they carefully picked Mash up and brought her to the infirmary just in case, which was thankfully just a few doors away.

Roman didn't even _flinch_ as the two Andy's walked through the doors until he noticed who they were carrying.

"Okay, what happened here you two?" He asked.

"Sorry boss, I had a fun idea, and I guess it went a bit too far." Said the Andy in the front.

"You played a prank on her didn't you so, who did you get to shapeshift as you?"

The Andy in the back raised her hand, not bothering with transforming back. "I did, nyah." She said, giving it away anyway.

"Okay place her on the bed I'll get the smelling salt," Roman said as he went over to a cabinet.

The two did so, before looking at each other, nodding, and switching places a few times to make sure no one knew who was who. It was integral to their little 'plan,' after all.

Roman quickly returned and held the bottle under Mash's nose who quickly woke up. Her eyes widened as her blush fully returned as she looked sheepishly at the correct Andy.

"That was mean Senpai." She pouted.

"Aww, c'mon don't be like that Kouhai, you gotta admit it was at least kinda funny right?" The real Andy asked, before shaking her head. "But, ah, sorry Mash. It was just meant to be a funny little moment, I never intended for you to pass out."

"I just got overwhelmed, by there suddenly being two Senpais."

"Well, just so we're clear, this was all Master's idea, nyah," Tamamo said, still in Andy's shape.

"Quiet, kitty," Andy said half-jokingly, before turning back to Mash. "But, seriously though, are you okay Mash?"

"I'm fine." She said as she stood back up.

"Well, you two just don't do it again, think about poor Mash's health," Roman said having returned to his stool.

"Yeah, I won't do it again (to Mash)," Andy added quietly at the end of her promise, considering she still had at least one other target she wanted to try that trick on.

"Now of all three of you."

And then the three left the infirmary. "Hey, Kouhai, I don't know if you noticed the shirt with what happened, but-" Andy pulled a folded black t-shirt out of her Hammerspace. "Here's the matching one."

"That's cute Senpai. Now I want to read my book." She said, taking the shirt.

"Alright, sorry for bothering you Kouhai, have a nice night," Andy said as Mash parted ways with the two, before turning to Tamamo. "So, you up for the other target tonight while no one suspects a thing?" She asked of the Berserker doppelganger.

"Yep, though I think we should keep it to the females, cause Mash smelled really funny afterward." Cat commented.

"Aww, I wanted to do this to Astolfo…" Andy said, disappointed. "Also, ew _www_ , TMI, Tamamo."

Xxx

November 13

"Gotta cash in my ticket." Andy sang tunelessly out of anticipation as Mash prepared the Summoning Circle, she was becoming very efficient at it as within a few seconds she was standing beside her.

"Who do you think it'll be this time, Kouhai?" Andy asked as she approached the Circle, ticket in hand. Even in the short time since she had learned Self-Reinforcement from Waver, combined with her existing training the results were already starting to make themselves evident as her body was much more...defined, was the nicest way to put it, then it had been before.

"Probably some of our enemies we faced before." Mash speculated, with them both still a little embarrassed from the prank three days ago.

"Yeah, probably. Hopefully, we get one of the stronger ones." Andy said as she summoned the latest addition to Chaldea's roster.

"Mikon! Your Shrine Maiden Tamamo-no-Mae has arrived." The fox Servant announced herself.

Andy was confused for a moment before remembering Tamamo Cat's origin story and had the sinking feeling her next seven summons after this one would be the rest of the 'Nine' she had said about. "Thank you for answering the call to save Human History, Tamamo-no-Mae. I am Andy Murphy, Master of Chaldea." She introduced herself, using the introduction to hide the growing feeling of dread at the inevitable nine fox girls running around.

"My so polite," Tamamo responded. "It is my pleasure to."

"I must inform you that one of your other tails, the one calling herself 'Tamamo Cat,' has already been summoned, Tamamo-no-Mae," Andy said, using her Stat-o-Vision as she spoke.

[spoiler=Tamamo-no-Mae's Stat Sheet]

True Name: Tamamo-no-Mae

Class: Caster

Master: Andy Murphy

 **Parameters:**

Strength: E

Endurance: E

Agility: B

Mana: A

Luck: D

Noble Phantasm: EX

 **Class Skills:**

Territory Creation: C

 **Personal Skills:**

Curse: EX

Shapeshift: A

Fox's Wedding: EX

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Eightfold Blessings of Amaterasu on the Weight Stone under the Sunlit Watery Heavens(Anti-Army): D (Ranked down from EX)

[/spoiler]

"Urgh, well I hope the others won't come then. Cat is already a handful, I hope she hasn't been bothering you, Master?" Tamamo asked.

"Other than making me question my sanity, she's been mostly helpful so far," Andy said. "The only kinda-bad thing that happened with her was my fault." She said, also hoping the same thing as Tamamo-no-Mae, apparently.

"That is good to hear, Mikon."

"So, Tamamo-no-Mae, what can you do? I see you have an EX rank Curse skill and your other personal skill that I have literally no idea what it would do." Andy asked, silently praying she wasn't another yandere with the name of that skill.

"Well I am s purely combat focused Caster that fights with my Talismans that bypass the effect of Magic Resistance, such is the power of my curses. I don't like to use Shapeshift at all because of personal reasons, except in emergencies, my Fox's Wedding is just something I have that can be used to bless wedding couples. Due to my progenitor's position as a wedding Kami. My Noble Phantasm allows me to use magic at no cost." She quickly explained.

"No cost whatsoever? And your Curses completely bypass Magic Resistance?" Andy asked for confirmation, to make sure she was comprehending what sounded like a completely broken combo.

"Yep, though the cost thing is temporary, and the cost of doing so is steep. But not in the magical power sense, more like divine retribution."

"What _kind_ of 'divine retribution'?"

"Temporary de-powerment for overuse by Lady Izanami." She explained.

"Ah, gotcha. Well, you can at least still lay some nasty curses on the enemy without using it right?"

"Yep."

"Nice. If we come across an enemy with super high resistances, I'll be sure to bring you in." Andy said, already thinking of how best to use the newest Servant's abilities in combat. "Oh, right, my Kouhai here has an armband for you with a map feature so you can pick a room and get settled in."

"Mikon, that is super neat," Tamamo said as she took the armband from Mash.

"Uh, what does that mean, 'Mikon'? It's not being translated by my translator." Andy asked.

"It's just noise foxes make then they are happy."

"So _that's_ what the fox says!" Andy said, instantly disappointed in herself for making the joke, Mash giving her a look.

"Well, I wanna go meet the other Servants."

"Alright, go ahead. You're free to explore at your whim."

"Thank you."

Xxx


	54. GudaGuda

November 14

Andy was walking through one of the many hallways of Chadea together with Mash as Andy was on her way down to her library to pick up the next book for her research.

"Hey, Mash, and Andy." Said Roman as his face was suddenly projected from Andy's armband.

"Boss, is something wrong?" Andy asked, instantly worried about another 'situation' like the festival and more recently Halloween.

"You remember after Artemis pulled her stunt, that I said that another way we could be invaded so to speak if we collided with another phase space. Well, we've got intruders."

"Shit." Andy cursed as she deployed Tenfold Shields, Mash going into Servant form in the same moment. "Where's the majority of them? And how many, if any, Servants are there?"

"I'm sensing one weird entity and two Servants that are not on our list. And for the weird thing, it's coming up behind you." Roman said.

Andy and Mash turned around to see…

"Nobu!" It shouted.

"What… the fuck?" Said, Mash.

"Is...is that chibi?" Andy asked.

"Nobu, Nobu!"

"Andy that thing might look like a joke, but it seems to have high combat capabilities." Da Vinci said as she overtook Roman on the screen.

And a second later it was cut in half.

"Where I cut the monster down. Hello, there I'm… Just call me Sakura Saber." Said the pink samurai that suddenly appeared.

"Sakura Saber?" Mash asked.

"Yes, I was tracking that creature, down since it escaped from us." She said.

Andy quickly confirmed with her Stat-o-Vision, which turned up little information, on the off chance 'Sakura Saber' had been her real name. She had A+ Agility, but an E in Endurance so she seemed like a glass cannon, which would be good if she was an enemy. "I take it you have some companions as you referred to an 'us'?" Andy asked, trying to assess the situation.

"Hey, Man-Slayer don't leave me behind." Shouted a boisterous female voice. And quickly another unknown Servant appeared.

"And who are you?" Mash asked the other woman, who looked like the non-chibi version of the creature.

"Me? I am Demon Archer!"

"Demon Archer and Sakura Saber?"

"So you two and that creature must be from the phase space that collided with Chaldea. Anyway Mash, Andy I have the coordinates for it so you can Rayshift to it and solve the problem before Chaldea is destroyed by the space and the creatures." Said Da Vinci.

"And we'll be joining you, for this is kinda our problem, and you've become a part of." Said Demon Archer.

"Uhm, was that thing like, your kid or something?" Andy asked in bewilderment the Demon Archer due to the similarities in appearance.

"Kinda I'll explain it better when we get back to our space."

"Okay, all of you come to the Command Room quickly." Da Vinci said.

"Yes, ma'am."

They did just that, booking it to the Command Room, Autumn meeting up with them on the way since Andy figured those Chibi's would be basically mooks.

"Rayshift complete." Said Mash as they appeared in a large grassy field, Sakura Saber and Demon Archer having gained temporary Rayshift permission by Da Vinci to be able to go with them. Along with having taken Gilles, Jeanne, Ushi, and Boudicca with them.

"Hmm, The Imperial Holy Grail must have gone completely out of control, creating this separate dimension we are now finding ourselves in." Demon Archer said.

"Imperial Holy Grail?" Andy asked, happy for the chance at another Grail and worried about another Grail-holder; after Okeanos made it more than a coincidence, it seemed that whoever held the Grail would turn into a giant tentacle monster of some kind.

"Let's talk after, we are being attacked!" Announced Sakura Saber as they saw seemingly a hoard of Chibi Demon Archers all screaming. "NOBU!" Some were even in different colors, being silver, gold and taller some even towering over Asterios if he had been here.

"Ushi, decapitate with impunity!" Andy ordered, figuring now would probably be the best chance for her to finally do so as she seemed to crave it. "Everyone else, get 'em!" She said, pointing at the Nobu's (it was all they said, they were like Pokemon, and she needed a name for them) and everyone attacking.

Andy engaged in the fight too, summoning the Claws and began to pummel the Nobu's at least the smaller ones that got close. Along with Autumn the now fully sized Chimera clawing, biting and burning them. And as they killed them, they seemed to poof out of existence like Servants did.

She also got a look at how Sakura Saber and Demon Archer thought. The Saber speed around the field delivering swift cuts, and Archer she summoned Muskets constantly discarding them after firing a single shot.

They all quickly eliminated the Nobus with Ushi finally getting her fill of decapitation.

"Oh okay now that, that is over can the two you please in the name of the Lord explain what is going on and what those things that look you Miss Demon Archer are?" Jeanne said in a passive aggressive tone.

"Yeah, you said you'd explain later, twice, so I'd say do it now before we get attacked again," Andy said, petting Autumn's main heads as she spoke.

"Okay, in our world we were in the middle of a Holy Grail War, but someone decided to mess with the Grail with strange technology which caused it to run amok." Sakura Saber began saying.

"Which is where I come in, I got in involved in the accident which caused my subconsciousness to manifest, and start corrupting reality, but then something else happened like everything was suddenly on fire and then normal. And were in this space with my subconsciousness and power running about causing chaos in the form of those Mini-Nobus. Which sucks cause I'm like supposed to be OP like a last boss, but I'm now like a 0.5 Star Servant." Demon Archer finished. "In short, I got nerfed to a noob."

"Okay, I understood the Grail part, mostly, but, two things. First, if those were Mini-Nobu's, that means that you are the Nobu-Nobu?" Andy said, questioning her sanity everytime she said 'Nobu.' "And second, what in the fuck do you mean by 0.5 Stars?"

"Right sorry this isn't the game no more breaking the fourth by me, I apologize." Demon Archer explained?

"Wait, hold up, this is a game?" Andy asked. "Or were you from a game in the Fate Franchise?" Andy asked, realizing 'Nobu' here was most likely the Fate version of Deadpool, with the color scheme, weapon choice, and apparent fourth wall breaking that everyone else kind of ignored.

"Nah, nah, nah, nah, not hearing you. Oh, I can feel more Mini-Nobus in that direction." She said pointing at a forest. Oh, god, she really was Deadpool, not giving a fuck about the main character.

"This is getting weird." Came the comment from Boudicca as her eyes darted between the two.

Andy stared at Nobu for a moment before deciding to just wait and hope something would be explained later. "Alright, for now, we head to the forest and help clear out the Nobu's, I guess. Jeanne, please pray for my sanity. I think I'm going to need it." Andy said, sounding defeated.

"Sorry, Andy but I'm already doing that for myself." She said as they entered the forest, they didn't find any inside it, but as they went through it, they saw a large army of them, being seemingly lead by another Ushi and what looked to be a Lancer. They could hear them talking, and the Ushi down there did not talk like hers did, and the Lancer referred to her as 'Imagawa Yoshitsune.'

"Ah, I think I've figured out what is happening with those two Servants down there and why that Lord Yoshitsune is different from yours." Sakura Saber said.

"Please, feel free to share with the class," Andy said, eager for any explanation she could get for literally anything going on at the moment.

"Well from what I've can tell with the Grail going crazy it started summoning Servants at random, but those two seemed to have been infected with Archer's subconsciousness, specifically the memories of her enemies."

"Saber is correct Imagawa was one of my enemies." She stated.

"Mhm. So they'll probably attack us on sight, yeah? And I take it they aren't attacking the Nobus because they're also from the Grail?" Andy asked.

"More like they subjugated them," Nobu said.

"Yes, let's attack quickly before they realize we are-." Sakura stopped speaking as she suddenly coughed up blood, lots of it.

"Ah, Medic!" Mash yelled.

"Sorry, don't worry it's a Skill of mine. We can't fix that." Sakura Saber said as she whipped the blood away from her mouth. "It really sucks it makes me unable to fight for a short period of time."

"Well, if you'd like we can wait till that period passes before we take on Imagawa and their forces," Andy said. "Since I have no doubt that's what we'll have to do, based on Nobu's explanation earlier."

"Hey, who is making a fuss over here." Said a familiar voice.

"Great you made so much noise with that yell shieldy that they found us," Nobu said.

"Hey, don't talk to my Kouhai like that!" Andy said to the so-called Demon Archer.

That was when Arash stepped through the trees. "You insolent bunch are you after Lord Imagawa. If so I Matsudaira Arash shall rain punishment on you, as the greatest Archer of the Orient!"

"I am so confused" Mash stated.

"Quick kill him before he can Stella!" Andy shouted at her Servants upon realizing, regardless of the name, this was an _enemy Arash_ who could very well _nuke them out of existence._

Gilles struck quickly with his sword trying to run the enemy Arash through but was stopped to avoid being hit by an arrow that fell from the sky and soon they were bombarded by a barrage of them.

"I already fired those arrows into the sky, my Clairvoyance told me so, and I see now why. If you know of my power, you shall feel it." He stated.

"Wow he is building up a lot of power, I think we should start running," Nobu said as she blocked the rain of Arrows while Andy was under Mash's shield protecting them both.

"It's impossible to run from my bow. Its range is 2500 kilometers!"

"That's not a bow anymore!" Nobu shouted as she started running away from them.

"If he's about to Stella, runnings going to do all of jack and shit, Mash, Jeanne, get ready to use your Noble Phantasms! Boudicca, try and distract him a bit with the sword beams! Sakura, do you have sword beams perchance?" Andy asked, figuring the unlikely scenario likely considering a good deal of Sabers had some kind of beam attack or at least the ones that looked like a certain King.

"Nope, but Nobu has the right idea look where she is running too?" Sakura Saber said pointing to the fact that Nobu was running towards the Army.

"Oh. Oh, yeah! He can't use Stella if his commander's in the way, good thinking. Everyone, follow Nobu!" Andy said, changing her plan to the tried and true Joestar technique.

All of them quickly ran after Nobu running right past the two enemy Servants at full speed. Andy saw the bewildered look on their faces. But the word she heard made her heart stop.

"STELLA!"

"MASH, JEANNE, NOW!" Andy shouted in terror and panic, two Command Seals flashing away even under her armor as she heard the Noble Phantasm activate.

" **LORD CAMELOT!** "

" **Luminosité Eternelle**!"

The two of them slammed their respective weapons into the ground, unleashing their Noble Phantasms and both barriers were raised in front of them.

If Andy hadn't been wearing Tenfold Shields, the boom she heard would have resulted in the immediate loss of hearing.

But thankfully that wasn't the case, as the two Noble Phantasm ceased their effects leave them standing on a small patch of grass, with the surroundings now looking like Fallout.

"Hmm. All enemy signatures have disappeared." Mash stated.

"Ahha, my strategy was perfect was it not? Took out three birds with a single explosion." Nobu stated.

Andy nodded dumbly as she tried to bring her heart rate under control with the breathing exercises taught to her by Leonidas. The imminent threat of a nuke going off and then _actually going off_ just a short ways away was probably more terrifying than any of the monsters they'd encountered, considering you can't really 'kill' a nuke. Once she got it down to a reasonable level, she turned to Nobu. "Alright, Nobu, everyone's dead, your plan worked, and you nearly gave me a heart attack, yay, what now?" Andy asked, rather _eager_ now to get the hell out of here if _this_ was the kind of madness she'd have to deal with today.

"Well, I can still sense more Mini-Nobu so let's go in the direction of them." She said.

"Fine. I need to work out some anger towards Nobu-shaped things right now anyway." Andy said, since interacting with an actual Deadpool-type was _not fun_ when it led to things like getting _nuked_ , and this was all Nobu's fault anyway.

Xxx

"▂▂▃▃▄▄▅▅."

"Finally the time has come to settle the score, Fool of Owari! ...So my boss says." Said Sanada Medusa as she translated the words of Takeda Darius. They had come upon the next army of Nobus lead by two more Nobu infected Servants.

"▂▂▃▃▄▄▅▅."

"Bare your corpses before the Takeda Cavalry. ...So my boss says."

"But it just looks like you're an elephant." Said Nobu.

"▂▂▃▃▄▄▅▅."

"Don't worry about the details It'll make you go bald! …So my boss says."

Andy honestly thought it was kind of funny, but it did little to alleviate her mood.

"Your the one that should be concerned let's take the two of them down everybody!" Nobu shouted as they were faced with Darius on his elephant, plus Medusa and the Army of Nobus. "And thanks to the death of those earlier Nobus I have enough power to use my Noble Phantasm once again!" Nobu shouted. " **Three Thousand Worlds!"**

And all around her, a shit ton of muskets manifested themselves as they fired upon the army with murderous force, destroying most of them pretty hard.

"▂▂▃▃▄▄▅▅."

"Let's plant our flag in Persia. … So my boss says." Medusa translated as Darius vanished. "And I'm done here. ... Yay." She finished as she too disappeared.

"Haha, I'm invincible, now go and take care of the remaining Nobus," Nobu said.

"Well, that seemed easy, though it seemed like Medusa wasn't that interested in all of this." Mash stated.

"Big same," Andy said, as she also wanted to get out of there as soon as possible, before shooting one of the remaining Chibi-Nobu's with a Runestone and watching it combust before it disappeared as it burned alive. "Though I'm fine with this part."

They quickly cleared them up, as Nobu said she could feel one last group of them in the Singularity.

"Behold! I am the true god of war, Uesugi Arturia. Takeda Darius, it's time for our fated duel!" Said the OG Blue Arturia as she appeared in front of the group. Andy felt anger well up inside of her that the first time she saw the 'real' Saber was in _this_ event.

"What? Uesugi? … Wait, you're a girl? The Dragon of Echigo can't be a girl! Go back and start over!" Nobu said.

"Nobu I don't think we can complain about that?" Sakura Saber said.

"Well, there are theories that I could be a girl. Now then where is my fated rival?"

"We just eliminated him." Said Boudicca.

"What why he was my fight, and afterward I would have stolen all of his food." The Fakey fake Saber said.

"Hey, Uesugi, I can promise you the chance to fight… a version of him if you come back with me and become my Servant!" Andy said to 'Uesugi,' eager for the opportunity to gain _literally anything_ from this whole ordeal other than a headache. "And lots of food."

"To work with the ones who denied me my fight and food! Ne-" Her shout was stopped as her head left her body with Ushi standing behind the fading body.

Well at least she was getting Quartz out of the ordeal she had seven in total now.

"Sorry my Lord, she was getting on my Nerves," Ushi stated.

"Ushi, come here for a moment. Bring the Quartz with you." Andy said neutrally.

"Yes, my Lord." Within a second she was standing in front of Andy.

Andy took off her gauntlet and patted the samurai's head. "Good Ushi."

"Please praise me more my Lord," Her face was blushing.

"Best samurai. Best executioner, able to decapitate even the mighty King Arthur. Cute. Ultimate Tengu Warrior. Good Ushi."

Ushi just smiled harder, as they went on.

Xxx

"I'm getting really tired of this," Nobu said.

They had just come out of a fight with an infected Cu, Emiya, and Medea on the way to the last Nobus. With the only thing of note being that Andy at the moment couldn't communicate with Chaldea, and switch out servants. But that would probably fix itself like it had done with the Moon Festival. Though she learned the true name of Sakura Saber, after an accidental blurb of Nobu's part. She was apparently Okita Souji the first Captain of the Shinsengumi, a police force of the Tokugawa. As Mash had told her.

"Welcome to my world," Andy replied, having been fed up with this from the moment she had seen Arash. It didn't help that they then had to kill doppelgangers of the Servants she had been bonding with the last few months while Nobu explained _absolutely nothing_.

"Well, at least we're getting close to the end," Nobu answered her.

"Oh, lemme guess, we gotta face down Ieyasu Heracles with your Holy Grail or something," Andy said sarcastically, throwing out one of the three historical Japanese figures she knew.

"I hope not."

"Say, Okita, what is your relationship with Nobu like in your homeworld, cause you seem very familiar with each other despite being summoned for a Holy Grail War," Mash asked.

"Well its kinda complicated, but we kinda like and annoy each other, and she constantly gets into trouble that I have to bail her out of, like we wouldn't be in this situation if she hadn't tried to convert the grail into a bomb."

"OKITA!"

"I _fucking knew it_ ," Andy said, angry yet satisfied since _all_ of the non-Servants were Nobus, all the Servants were altered with people from Nobu's life, she even said her subconscious was going wild before the incineration kicked in. "Lemme guess, once we defeated the last Nobu you were going to pull a One-Winged Angel and become the 'Final Boss'?" She asked, going off how Nobu was in some way from a video game, whether that meant her home world or the one they were in now.

"What no! This was an accident I kinda fell into the core, and all of this happened, and I'm sorry okay? I'm trying to fix it now." She sounded like she very much meant that.

"...Fuck, _I'm_ the bad guy in this, aren't I." Andy realized, with how she had been acting. She had just...instantly gotten fed up with the madness and had decided to be angry instead of actually trying to fix the situation.

It didn't help that she had seriously entertained the idea of just killing Nobu to see if that would fix things.

"No, you're aren't Andy were all getting fed up with this bullshit." Said, Okita. "Now here we are this here the largest amount of Nobu's power is. The heart of the Singularity, Osaka."

"Yeah, but it kinda looks like some shitty European town," Nobu said.

"So, what, do we have to destroy it or something?" Andy asked, following the trend of the other enemies so far, somewhat happy Nobu had just moved on from her accusation it seemed. Likely cause of Okita.

"Fwhahaha, Hello Mongrels!" Said the golden armored Gilgamesh. "I am Toyotomi Gilyoshi, king of all that is gold and teapots. I have what you come to collect." Gilyoshi laughed.

"Wow, he reminds of Monkey." Said Nobu. "Oh well let's take him down, everybody. He has been nerfed."

"Oh thank god," Andy said to Nobu's later statement. "Well, um, since you are (probably) the main character, how about you have the honors, Nobu?"

"Three Thousand Worlds!" She announced again and fired at Gilyoshi who retaliated with weapons from the Gate.

"Mumyō Sandan-dzuki!" Okita announced as she seemingly vanished from sight until she appeared right in front of Gilyoshi. And in second blood spurted from his chest as a massive hole was now in his armor, and he quickly dispersed.

"It seems the dreamer is waking," he stated as he vanished.

"Hey, he dropped something besides the Quartz," Nobu said as she went over quickly and picked up what looked like a black teapot. "I see this is the transformed core of the Grail, and now all my power has returned."

"Nobu?" Asked Okita.

"Yes, everything has gone exactly to Keikaku." She stated with an evil grin.

"I swear to god Nobu if you turn yourself into a final boss after that emotional bit earlier we _will_ kick your ass back to the Throne of Heroes, and it will be neither a fun nor satisfying fight on your end." Andy threatened upon hearing the word 'Keikaku.'

"I Kinda saw this coming," Mash said.

"You fell for my trap with the power of the Grail I can take over this world and yours. I shall announce my True Name. I am Oda Nobunaga, Demon King of the Sixth Heaven!"

"So you have finally shown yourself, villain." Said Nobunaga's voice from behind them.

"Eh two Nobunagas?" Mash asked as a second Nobu appeared beside them.

"I don't even care if one's good and one's bad _two of them is a bad thing,_ " Andy said, internally berating herself for not figuring out Nobunaga's identity considering it was one of the _three_ Japanese historical figures she knew, and she _still_ didn't figure it out after getting half her name. "At least tell me the climactic battle will be now and not later?"

"Hey, I'm the good one, let's defeat her so that this mess is over." Said the good Nobu.

"Tech, very well then you managed to escape your bonds good Nobu after took you down while nobody was looking. But I'm still the one with the most power of the two of us. Feel the power of the **Demon King of the Sixth Heaven!** "

With that, the world turned to fire, and they all found themselves in a burning hellscape.

"Crap she used our Reality Marble against us." Good Nobu said.

"Oh, great, now we're in a Reality Marble." Andy gripped. "Good Nobu, you know what she can do right? What does this place do, just set everything on fire, or?"

"Deals more damage against Divine enemies, but none of you are so I guess she just wants an epic battle stage I would do that." Good Nobu said.

"Mhm. Well then, Gilles, go Super Saint France or whatever and go ham on Evil Nobunaga." Andy said, turning to the Servant most likely to be able to just mutilate her by going up close, on some level despising the words coming out of her mouth. _"Ushi, wait for an opening for another decapitation if you can._ " She added telepathically to the Rider.

" **SAINT WAR ORDER!"** Gilles roared as he charged at Bad Nobu who looked rather surprised for a single second as she went full Gun Kata trying to defend herself. But with the boosts, Gilles was currently under, and the apparent horrible match up of Gilles being not Divine. Led to Bad Nobu being easily overwhelmed and taken down as went full kebab and thrusted his sword into her chest.

"Damn that was a curb stomp, I love it." Said Good Nobu.

"Crap I lost." Said Bad Nobu as she vanished the golden motes flying into Good Nobu.

"Great I'm whole again, thank you, Andy, for the help." She said.

"Yeah, no problem," Andy said, purposefully ignoring the whole event had been a massive headache, and she'd had to burn through two Command Seals. "So, are you okay with us taking the Grail then? I think we kinda need it, so Chaldea doesn't explode." Andy said, not actually sure of the specifics.

"Great I'm through again, guys whatever you did it's causing the Singularity to disappear, so I'm going to Rayshift you out now," Roman said as he appeared on the holograph.

"Yes, _please_ , thank you, Boss, thank you god," Andy said to Roman at finally leaving this place.

"Well, it kinda empty so no real use for it now, after I caused this place to fix itself. So we shall be returning to the Throne." Nobunaga said. "But you've really impressed me Andy so if you summon me, you will have all the powers of the Demon King at your disposal. Isn't that right Okita."

"Yeah, if probability allows for it." She answered.

"Oh god, this was a gacha game wasn't it?" Andy asked, horrified, as the pieces clicked into place.

"Hey, no breaking the fourth wall, Mr. Insert, only I and B.B are allowed to do that," Nobunaga said as she and Okita vanished.

Andy picked up their quartz and stored them, bringing her new total to 12. "Wait, Insert? Is that me? Is there another me doing this on purpose to me? I'll fucking kill me!"

Andy found herself back in Chaldea and back to her new normality, for now at least.

"Hey, are all of you okay were really worried then we lost contact with you," Roman said as he came up to them.

"No. No, we are not." Andy said, her head pounding. The headache had only gotten worse after returning back to Chaldea, and now she was having a bit of trouble remembering what had just happened. She did remember Nobu saying something about...another one like her called B.B? For some reason, that part, in particular, was fuzzy.

"How, long did you spend in the Singularity?"

"I think it's been a few hours at most," Mash answered.

"Well, that confirms that theory. It's been two weeks on our end. So a bit of time dilation there. After you, Rayshited in the Singularity and Chaldea must have disconnected from each other on a temporal level that, but that got fixed at the end. Don't worry about your trainers they fully understand the situation. Probably even more now, as it has only been a few hours on your end." Roman explained.

"Two weeks?" Andy asked quietly, voice neutral. "Two whole weeks, just, gone, just like that?"

"Calm down Andy, breathe," Jeanne said as she patted her on the back.

"Two weeks of potential progress, just gone, wasted, nothing to show for it." She continued regardless. "I...I think I'm going to use these Quartz, and then go to my Workshop and scream for a few hours." She said after a moment of deep breaths.

"Nope, you're going straight to bed Senpai, it's late, and you need sleep. You're not thinking straight right now." Mash said as she grabbed her arm.

"I never think straight, Kouhai," Andy said out of reflex. "But I think I might be a bit too tired to fall asleep right now."

"Andy drink this." Said, Da Vinci, as she appeared with a plastic cup in hand.

Andy took the cup and drowned the whole thing with zero hesitation. "Was that a sleep aid or alcohol?" She asked as she shakily handed the cup back to Da Vinci, not actually having tasted or really felt it go down.

"Sleeping potion I use it on the doctor sometimes."

"Oh, okay, thank," Andy said as blissful Darkness took her mind to the Sandman's realm.


	55. How to Summon 2: Summon Harder

November 29

After waking up and screaming out the rest of her rage, Andy had decided to use all her Quartz first thing after breakfast and then try to catch up the lost two weeks of progress.

As such, she was now in her white dress waiting for Mash to finish setting up the circle, the bag of Saint Quartz carried by a Stuffy and holding the Summoning Ticket herself. At least the Stuffys had kept working and had finished the next wave of their own kind.

"Hey, Kouhai, how're you dealing with the lost time?" Andy asked.

"I'm fine time dilation stuff seems common when dealing with time and pocket spaces, we just got reversed Time Chambered if the reference fits." She answered.

"I suppose. The Hyperbolic Time Chamber would actually be really nice to have considering…" Andy speculated.

"Well Time Manipulation Magcraft does exist but to make it on such a large scale is… Hard to say the least and amount of power necessary to sustain such a powerful spell." Mash began to mutter.

"Hm, yeah I suppose that's true," Andy said. "Oh, right, that reminds me, this might be an odd question Kouhai, but are able to perform any Magecraft?"

"I have never been formally trained in the arts, but I do know a lot of theory, my Magic Circuits are geared towards my existence as a Demi-Servant." She responded.

"Mhm. Well, I was kind of thinking, since you're a Shielder maybe you could learn how to do barriers like the ones Da Vinci built into Tenfold Shields for when you need to shield someone from farther away."

"My Skills already do something similar you know Senpai, by raising their physical endurance so that they won't be harmed. Especially now that I can fully utilize the power that Galahad gave me. Though now that I, and pretty much everybody knows it now. Lancelot has been avoiding looking at me when we've passed each other by." Mash said.

"M _hm_. I suppose I need to have a talk with him later. But, ah, if you think you're current level of abilities is enough, then I'll take your word for it." Andy said.

"Don't be mean to him Senpai he is probably embarrassed," Mash said. "And the circle is yours to use Master."

"Right, thank you Kouhai," Andy said as she approached the circle. "Alright, C'mon, author Servant." She said as she channeled her Prana through the ticket.

"Haha, I Oda Nobunaga, Demon King of the Sixth Heaven have come to lend you all her magnificent power use me responsibly Master," Nobu announced herself.

"Welcome back, Nobu. I take it you're the same one from before?" Andy asked, unsure as she used her Stat-o-Vision whether this one had the memories of the one who had made her lose two weeks.

[spoiler= Nobu's Stat Sheet]

Name: Oda Nobunaga

Class: Archer

Master: Andy Murphy

 **Parameters:**

Strength: C

Endurance: B

Agility: C

Mana: B

Luck: B

Noble Phantasm: EX

 **Class Skills:**

Magic Resistance: B

Independent Action: B

 **Personal Skills:**

Military Tactics: B

Charisma: B-

Demon King: A

Tenka Fubu: A

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Three Thousand Worlds: Three Line Formation(Anti-Army): A

Demon King of The Sixth Heaven(Anti-Divine): E~EX

[/spoiler]

"You look familiar we did something together with Okita didn't we?" She asked.

"...Yeah. Something like that." Andy said, she herself being a bit fuzzy on the details herself. Likely due to the frustration. "So, in that case, I suppose I should reintroduce myself. I am Andy Murphy, Master of Chaldea. Thank you for joining us in our fight to save Human History."

"Your welcome Master hope I will be of use to you in filling your enemies with lead." She said with a smile.

"I hope so too. On that note, what does exactly does your other Noble Phantasm do, the 'Demon King of the Sixth Heaven'?" Andy asked.

"It's my Reality Marble where I set those with Divinity and Mystery on all the fire." She answered. "And I'm able to also manifest it as a giant skeleton for a limited amount of time that can attack. Though the heat of it is also able to affect me. So out to long and I to get burned, so a bit of a double-edged sword."

"Ah, so you have a Stand, nice," Andy said, noticing that Nobu's abilities were very much so aligned with what she liked, and considering this Nobu didn't seem to have all the memories of the other one she might be able to get over her frustration at the other Nobu quicker than she thought. Maybe.

"Yep, I've got the punch ghost power. So is there a place I can chill here?" She asked.

"Here Miss Oda, this armband here will allow you to interact with Chaldea and guide you through the facility and to an empty room of your choosing," Mash said as she handed Nobu the armband.

"Thanks. Tots Master, I see you later and remember to call if you need some Divine enemies skullfucked." She said as she left.

"Language." Responded Mash.

Andy sighed as Nobu left. "If she had remembered even a _little bit_ more I think I might have flipped on her." She muttered.

"It's okay Senpai, the weirdness of what happened in that place will probably be replaced soon by something new," Mash said.

"...Oh god, you're right." Andy said, putting her face in her hands for a moment before taking a few deep breaths. "Okay, okay, need to focus on the weirdness of now. Number 35?" She said, and the Stuffy holding the Quartz held out the open bag to her. "Thank you." She said as she took three. "Alright, this one's probably going to be Okita now right? That's how this works usually." She said as she summoned the newest Servant.

"Okita Souji Captain of the Shinsengumi has answered your call Master in the Saber Class," Okita Announced herself as the smoke dissipated.

"Welcome back to Chaldea, Okita. I'm guessing you only have vague recollections of our previous meeting?" Andy asked as she used her Stat-o-Vision.

[spoiler=Okita Souji's Stat Sheet]

True Name: Okita Souji

Class: Saber

Master: Andy Murphy

 **Parameters:**

Strength: C

Endurance: E

Agility: A+

Mana: E

Luck: D

Noble Phantasm: B

 **Class Skills:**

Magic Resistance: E

Riding: E

 **Personal Skills:**

Eye of the Mind(False): A

Weak Constitution: A

Reduced Earth: B

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Mumyō Sandan-dzuki(Anti-Unit): -

Coat of Oaths(Anti-Unit): C

Flag of Sincerity(Anti-Army): B

[/spoiler]

"Somewhat Nobu did something stupid, which we solved and returned to the Throne as our Timeline has apparently been burnt to ashes. Who would have thunk." She said sarcastically.

"Seems about right, Nobu basically said the same thing in fewer words…" Andy said. "Oh, right, Okita, what do your Noble Phantasms do?"

"My first is sword technique I developed based on the tale of Sasaki Kojiro and his legendary technique, which I have accomplished with my own version. The second is my outfit which boosts my parameters by one and makes my katana able to stand up against Noble Phantasms. The third is the flag banner of the Shinsengumi, allowing me to summon my police force as low-rank Servants without their Noble Phantasms." Okita explained.

"Oh, wow that sounds incredibly useful," Andy said. "But, if I remember correctly, your Weak Constitution means every now, and then you'll be incapacitated?"

"Yes, it seems my Tuberculosis has followed me even in death as that is one of my most well-known things about me. And the summoning is more based on the fact I supposedly summoned Demons to cure myself. Though merged with my role as Captain of the Royal Police Force." She answered.

"Mhm, I see. I'll look into a way of negating the illness in the future then." Andy said, not looking forward to having a servant just randomly be useless in battle.

"Good luck with that, so is there someplace I can stay in Chaldea?"

That prompted Mash to do her thing, and Okita left with her new armband.

"Well, onto the next. Hopefully, it's an Author this time for ya, Kouhai." Andy said as she took the next three Quartz from Stuffy 35 and summoned the next Servant.

"I came, I saw, and here I am!" Caesar announced his fat self.

"Welcome to Chaldea, Caesar. It's an honor to have you with us in our quest to save Human History." Andy greeted the First Emperor of Rome, going for a handshake.

Caesar responded in kind. "I am too, a much more worthwhile endeavor of my proves than being commanded by that buffon. Though to see the Divine Ancestor of Rome was worth it, tell me is he here along with Nero, I do think I owe her an apology even if she can't remember it."

"Indeed, both are here. But before you go off to meet with them, I just wanted to know about your Incitement Skill and the specifics of Crocea Mors." Andy said.

"I approve of your curiosity Master, to know your troops is a good sign of good general. My Crocea Mors is not a beam like so many other Saber's, but a string of rapid slashes that are unavoidable if the first manage to connect. Incitement is in simple terms a buff of power I can apply to myself and others to make them stronger, for me, it makes me temporarily 'thin' again."

"Ah, I see. I'll be sure to keep that in mind for battle, but most likely you'll be part of the strategy team here in Chaldea." Andy said.

"Yes, that would be my most optimal position wouldn't it?" He answered.

"I mean, your stats are far from lackluster, but we have a _lot_ of powerhouses now in Chaldea," Andy admitted.

"True, but I don't actually like fighting that much, more suited to that as a Rider, I'm more into bureaucracy and business." He said.

"Hm, I see. Well, I'll let you get to it then, my Kouhai here has an armband for you that will allow you to navigate and communicate, you can use it to find Romulus and Nero then." Andy said.

"Ah thank you. I shall be talking to you later then Master," Caesar said as he left.

"Didn't expect him to be that polite." Mash commented.

"I mean, he was the proto-emperor, you don't get that kind of following by being obnoxious or rude," Andy said.

"I expect more boasting and loudness with how he acted when we fought him in Rome." She responded.

"I think that might have been the situation more than his normal personality," Andy said as she took the bag of Quartz from Stuffy 35 and approached the circle. "Hey, Kouhai, do you think I should do another double-summon?"

"Sure thing Senpai, we might get a matching pair of Servants." Mash theorized.

"That we might, but last time we got Robin and Siegfried so who knows," Andy said as she used up the remaining six quartz and summoned the two newest additions to Chaldea.

"Servant Lancer Diarmuid Ua Duibhne at your Service."

"Nice to meet you Lady Master, Fergus mac Roich as Saber."

Both Servants introduced themselves.

"Welcome both of you to Chaldea. I, am Andy Murphy, sole Master of Chaldea. Thank you for answering the call to save Human History." Andy greeted them.

"Greeting you to Master Andy, I shall accomplish any task you give," Diarmuid responded.

"Yes, can't let the world get thrown into manure, I rather like it," Fergus answered.

"That's good to hear," Andy said somewhat distractedly as she used her Stat-o-Vision on the two, which was the only reason she was staring at them, yes.

[spoiler= Fergus' Stat Sheet]

True Name: Fergus mac Roich

Class: Saber

Master: Andy Murphy

 **Parameters:**

Strength: A

Endurance: A

Agility: B

Mana: E

Luck: C

Noble Phantasm: A++

 **Class Skills:**

Magic Resistance: B

Riding: B

 **Personal Skills:**

Bravery: A

Nature of a Rebellious Spirit: B

Eye of the Mind(True): A

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Caladbolg: The Spiral Rainbow Sword(Anti-Army/Anti-Terrain): A+/A++

[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Diarmuid's Stat Sheet]

True Name: Diarmuid Ua Duibhne

Class: Lancer

Master: Andy Murphy

 **Parameters:**

Strength: B

Endurance: C

Agility: A+

Mana: D

Luck: E

Noble Phantasm: B+

 **Class Skills:**

Magic Resistance: B

 **Personal Skills:**

Eye of the Mind(True): B

Love Spot: C

Knight Tactics: B

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Gáe Buidhe: Yellow Rose of Mortality(Anti-Unit): B+

Gáe Dearg: Crimson Rose of Exorcism(Anti-Unit): B+

[/spoiler]

"Baah, Diarmuid you better cover up that mole of yours or our dear Master is looking like she is going to drag you into her bed." Fergus laughed.

Andy's face reddened. "W-wha-No I'm not!" Andy denied. Damn Irish spandex.

"No she isn't, she _seems_ to be immune Lord Fergus, she just has a healthy appreciation for bodies most women and men have," Diarmuid said.

"Y-yeah, sure, that," Andy said, internally rejoicing to know Cu Chulainn was the exception and not the rule in regards to Irish Servants. "B-but, back to more important topics, what do your Noble Phantasms all do?"

"Well mine works best with terrain destruction, but it can shoot a beam if I want to," Fergus answered.

"My red spear Gae Dearg pierces all forms of magic, and my golden spear Gae Buidhe deals wounds that can not heal," Diarmuid responded in a much more polite manner.

"I see. And when you say 'pierce,' do you mean it just ignores magic or does it actually negate it?" Andy asked.

"It ignores it, it does not negate the magic itself. My usual strategy is to make my opponent discard their magical protection then they realize it does not block my red spear, and then deal the fatal blow with Gae Buidhe when their defense is down." Diarmuid explained.

"I just bash their heads in." Fergus added his 'Fighting Style.'

"Noted. And then, what does your Nature of a Rebellious Spirit skill do Fergus?" Andy asked.

"Well I just have trouble listening to what people tell me to do, but I try to suppress it for your sake Lady Master," Fergus answered.

"Oh, ok, noted," Andy said, noticing how there were a surprising amount (i.e., more than 1) of Servants with skills that were basically just drawbacks, though she supposed it made sense. "Well, my Kouhai here has armbands for you so you can navigate and communicate. Oh, and I almost forgot, there are two Cu Chulainn's here, I don't know if that matters or not."

"Ah, my boy is here. A few more and we could have a Celtic hero party. But why are there two of him? Got one as Berserker and one as a Lancer?" He asked.

"Half right. One's a Caster, one's a Lancer." Andy corrected him.

"Wait, Caster? Ha, I'm so going to make fun of him about that, the poor dog probably doesn't have his precious spear or other weapons doesn't he?"

"He has a staff, but to make up for it, he has Primordial Runes and a higher Luck, so I think it's a fair trade," Andy said. "He even taught me how to do Runes, so really he's a lot more useful as a Caster than a Berserker."

"Bah, you haven't seen him Warp Spasm if you believe that. Still, at least the boy is making himself useful. Runes are a stable combat augmentation for the Red Branch, without them, we wouldn't be able to have our one-on-one deathmatches."

"I haven't, but I could make the Lancer one do it if I really wanted to with my Command Seals, but I feel like its a last resort kinda thing," Andy said with a shrug.

"Just show him your tits, and he calms down and jumps in a barrel to hide, he might boast, but he is embarrassed by the female body in all its glory," Fergus said.

Andy blinked owlishly at his statement, somewhat unsure how to take it. "Uhm, n _o_. Not going to do that."

"Well, that's your choice now I be off to bully my step-son," Fergus said as he grabbed an armband from Mash.

"Lord Fergus has quite the Personality doesn't he my Lady," Diarmuid commented.

"Yeah, seems like," Andy said. "You're politeness is very nice though."

"Of course as a Knight of Chivalry, I must be. And a smile comes a long way to improve the mood around others." Diarmuid said.

"Well, I'm happy to have such a nice knight join our team," Andy said, smiling.

"Then perhaps you can introduce me to Chaldea proper, my Lady, I would like to know about this place more than my summoning has informed me."

"I'd be happy to, Diarmuid," Andy said.

"Be careful Senpai, or you'll make Astolfo jealous." Came the jokey tone from Mash.

Andy's eyes widened as she realized what had been happening. "O _h_. Yeah. Good point Kouhai." Andy said, deciding to talk with Astolfo once she was done giving Diarmuid a tour.


	56. We Don't Even Anymore

Andy had finished giving Diarmuid a tour that finished with a quick lunch, and after parting ways with the Lancer found herself standing in front of Astolfo's door. She took a deep breath to calm herself before knocking. It was Astolfo, not her ex, he'd probably be okay after the lost time. Probably.

"Come in!" Astolfo responded.

Andy did so, entering into the rather plain room, Astolfo sitting on his bed in the Trifas outfit. "Hey, Astolfo." She said lamely as the door closed behind her.

"Hey, Andy what got you looking like somebody stole your cake?" He asked.

"Well, uhm, I was just wondering how you've been, with the lost time, and how you'd...y'know, take it," Andy said, knowing full well the Fleece was the only reason her voice wasn't completely shot after her own reaction that morning. It didn't help that she had never dealt with something like this.

"I'm fine, but I was really worried about you, but I could still feel the contract even if it was wonky so I knew you were okay. The whole thing gave the other Servants quite a scare. But now you're back, so everything is a-okay." Astolfo closed one eye and gave a smile with a thumbs up.

"Oh. Well, that's good then." Andy said, his cheery attitude strengthening her resolve for what she was about to do. "So, Astolfo, I've, uh, kinda been wondering, if, uh, since, y'know, we're both adults here, if, uh…" Andy said nervously, face reddening as she spoke.

"You want to have sex? sure," He answered.

Andy's face reddened more. "Y...yes. And, I wanted you to be my f-first."

"Didn't expect you to be that forward Andy, I expected this to happen like six months from now or something like that with how prudish you are. Oh, how you deny the Harem route and just go for little old me." He said teasingly with a grin.

"H-hey, I'm not…" Andy was about to deny being prudish, before realizing Astoflo was exactly right about it and let out a little laugh. "Ok, I guess I am that prudish. B-but, I still want to do this now, if you're down."

"I am Andy, and don't worry I might not have been in a 'Relationship,' but that does not mean I'm not experienced when it comes to the art of pleasure. So how do you want it?"

"It's my first time, so b-be gentle?" Andy said, unsure how this was supposed to go.

"I meant you to do this as a woman or a man?"

"W-well, I can't really change back right now without messing up the Fleece tattoo, so...I guess you'll get to de-deflower me twice, r-right?" She joked nervously.

"Very well then, lay down on the bed Master and I show you," Astolfo said.

"R-right," Andy said nervously.

xxx

November 30

Andy, clad fully in Tenfold Shields and wings deployed, was power-floating through the hallways back to her room, hoping since everyone else would be at breakfast she could avoid everyone. She was also very happy she'd had the presence of mind to set up a basic Bounded Field to block outgoing sound a little after they had gotten started.

And boy had they gotten started to say the least, and it had felt very good to board the S.S Astolfo Jr. as it were. Though at some point they had both lost steam as it were and fallen asleep, with Andy waking up with Astolfo cuddling her. So, she had escaped his grasp and was now literally rocketing towards her room to clean up last nights fun.

She landed in front of her door and rushed inside and… "You will say _nothing_." She said pointedly at Fou having occupied her empty bed.

Andy grabbed her clothes as she left the room and flew to the baths and thankfully they were empty at the moment so nobody could see that. After a thorough shower, she left feeling mostly fine. And thanks to the Fleece in her body she was not walking wobbly, so that lessened the fact that she basically just participated in a Doujinshi featuring Astolfo.

"Ah, there you are Senpai," Mash said as she walked over to Andy. "I was just in your room to go and wake you, but you weren't there, so I guessed you woke up early?" She asked.

"Yeah, that," Andy said plainly, hoping her poker face was good enough.

"So, you hungry?" She asked.

"Uh, yeah. I ended up skipping dinner without realizing because of something I was working on, so I'm starving." Andy said, telling a half-truth. "Did you eat yet, Kouhai?"

"No I haven't and did you get to talk with Astolfo after showing Diarmuid around yesterday, that was rather fun, especially when he met Lily and Gil, that face he made." She gave a quick laugh.

"Hehe, yeah, that was pretty funny," Andy said, not mentioning she had recorded the whole thing. "And, uh, yeah, I had a...talk with Astolfo yesterday."

"I hope it made you feel better talking with your boyfriend after the event with Nobu and Okita, you got rather mad. With the whole time thing." She said.

"Yeah, we uh, talked it out a bit, he helped me work through some of that aggression. It was really...therapeutic." Andy said, face reddening a bit as her mind went back to their 'talk.'

"That's nice to hear. Let's go get some breakfast and get back to our training Senpai, and I guess you're going to do some of your walk and talks with your Servants?" Mash asked.

"Yeah, that sounds good to me," Andy said. "I should probably talk to Atalanta, I don't think we've talked much at all…"

Xxx

"So, Atalanta, how are you adjusting to Chaldea?" Andy asked the Greek Archer as she ran alongside her on the facility's track; Atalanta was obviously slowing down so Andy could keep up with her, but nowhere near as much as she would have had to 5 months ago. And with Leonidas involved she'd gotten a _lot_ better at running more recently.

"It is adjustable to be here, so the place is fine, there are some faces that I never expected to see once again of my fellow teammates of Red and those of Black." She answered.

"Ah, yeah, Chaldea's kinda the place for all sorts of Heroic Spirits to gather, and not kill each other," Andy said. "And all sorts of variations of them too."

"That it is, for example, I wish that Spartacus had been summoned as a Saber and not that brat instead, I didn't expect him to be such a sparkling conversationalist," Atalanta said.

"Yeah, without the cloud of Mad Enhancement Spartacus is brilliant," Andy said. "But, ah, speaking about Madness, I've been wondering about something Atalanta."

"What is it, Master?"

"The pelt of the Calydonian Boar, Agrius Metamorphosis. Among other things, I was wondering if there were any limitations on its use, or if you just prefer not to use it." Andy said.

"I do not like using it, the grip of Madness is… I will resort to it if the situation is truly dire, but afterward please use a Command Seal to revert the effects of it Master." She said.

"Mhm, understood." They continued to run in silence for a moment. "Can I see it? N-not you using it, but just manifest it?"

"I can do that." She held up her hand a second later the black and purple belt of the boar appeared in Atalanta's hand.

Andy could feel the malice of the demonic pelt, and she understood why Atalanta did not like using it.

"Can...I hold it?" Andy asked as she stared at the pelt, silently praising her years of practice running without looking forward to allow this.

"... You can touch it." She answered after a few seconds of hesitation.

Andy slowly reached out to touch the demonic pelt. When her hand wasn't immediately disintegrated by concentrated evil or something, though it was rather coarse of course, she had an idea as she continued to stare at the pelt. "Hey, uhm, Atalanta, since you don't actually want to use this...would it be okay if I use it?"

"No Master, that is a definite no, and even if you could still a no." She said as the menacing pelt vanished and their run came to a stop.

"Aww, I could have made such a strong familiar with it though," Andy said, whiningly but acceptingly.

"It's my Noble Phantasm, and unlike the tiny King of Heroes, and Achilles I cannot give mine out, maybe Lady Artemis could take it back if she was not hijacking Lord Orion's Saint Graph." She said.

"Ah. Sorry for being forceful about it." Andy said, not mentioning that Medea could probably Sever the connection pretty easily; it was obvious Atalanta didn't want her to have it. "I've just taken to exploring every window of opportunity, but it was your choice either way."

"Thank you, Master, now do you wish to continue running with me?"

"Yeah, sure," Andy said as she deployed Tenfold Shields. "I wanna see how fast you are with my own two eyes."

"Then take your head start then Master, if you wish to see," Atalanta said.

"Right," Andy said as she shot off at her top speed with no warning, which was still an exhilarating feeling even now. It wasn't every day you could move 200 mph an hour on foot.

And then Atalanta shot well past her, barely seeming to be exerting herself.

It was honestly a sight to behold as she burst forward like a comet to Andy's eyes. Such a sight that she got distracted and tripped into a turn and was sent hurtling off into the wall at 200 mph.

What followed was the gut breaking laughter of Atalanta at the sight of Andy Looney Tooning herself into the wall.

Xxx

December 1

Andy knocked on the door to Artemis and Orion's room, a few Stuffys pulling a large covered box behind her on a cart. "Hello? Can I come in?" She asked after a moment when there was no response.

"Ah, the door is open Master." She heard Artemis' voice.

Andy opened the door to see Artemis and Orion thankfully not doing the thing she had done a few days prior, but instead, a small pair of headphones were on Orion's head as he lay on Artemis' stomach listening to music while the Lunar Goddess was reading a book, that being Artemis Fowl.

"Sorry to intrude, Artemis," Andy said as she entered, the Stuffys carting in the box behind her. "Seems you two are adjusting to Chaldea well."

"Hmm, we are such a nice and homey place, a bit spartan in terms of decoration as it were, but it is nice to hang out with so many heroes, it like being home."

"And men that share my trouble with troublesome women," Orion said from his position, having removed his headphones.

"Darling."

"You do get into a lot of trouble woman that Apollo has to bail you out of, I remember then-."

"We, shouldn't bother telling Master about such old stories, now I guess you want to talk to us about something?" Artemis asked.

"Ah, yeah. I was wondering if you'd be fine if I vivisected Orion a bit." Andy said nonchalantly, amused at their couples antics but having her point to get to.

"What why would you do something like that to me."

"Well, I figured you might want a better body, and since you're a stuffed animal, I figured I could put you in as the core of a body like a Stuffy for right now, so it's a little closer to human. I haven't gotten good enough at Alchemy to create fleshy bits yet, but it would be more like piloting a mech that you'd have to 'plug in' to use. That's what's in the box, along with the equipment I'd need to make it closer to your actual body." Andy elaborated as she patted the box of materials.

"That sounds like a great idea then Darling could… hehe." Came Artemis' perverted laugh, Andy watched as the Goddess' face turned crimson.

"It'll be like a dildo for right now until I figure out flesh, so how long?" Andy asked, having completely expected this.

"Hey, hey, don't talk like I'm not here don't I get to have a say in this before Miss Asclepius here, puts me on the dissection table." Orion objected.

"Well, I just need to open up like one seem and figure out where to put the plug, in so you can actually control the body and feel through it. I won't have to actually vivisect you-vivisect you unless you want me to completely and permanently make you part of it, I was just using the term as a joke." Andy said. "Also, thank you for the compliment."

"A compliment for the fact that you're both equally crazy. Well, it would be nice to have a proper body wink, wink, and not be the Luna to Sailor Moon here." Orion said.

"Alright, then Orion, _get in the giant puppet_ ," Andy said.

A few hours of SCIENCE! Later, Orion's interface was complete, and they had finished modifying the new body to look more-or-less like Orion's original, though unfortunately, it was still rather evident his 'skin' was cloth. Regardless, Orion was now slotting himself into the port in the stomach, the wire connecting the back of his small head, before Orion did his first act by closing the hatch before standing up and looking himself over. The body was currently naked, though that wasn't really an issue considering the 'genitalia' weren't attached. The new body had brown 'hair,' and a beard that Orion had said was 'the closest her mortal hands could get to his divine epicness,' and had two functioning brown feathered wings that definitely weren't repurposed wyvern wings with fake feathers, nope.

It was also, at Orion's request, a mere 150 cm tall, the perfect height that Artemis could easily smother him in her cleavage.

"Well Andy you've certainly done a good job of this with it not being flesh, I can even feel through my fingers, its like my Spirit Origin has spread over the body and recognizes it as an extension of me."

"Well, that might be because I took the stuffing I removed from your body and put it in first," Andy said nonchalantly as she proudly saw him get a feel for her greatest creation yet.

"Well, I'm certainly impressed, you have certainly improved at an unprecedented rate Andy, being able to make something like this after only having been a newbie and known about magic for five months. From what I know of the modern area even Magi who has trained their entire lives in this field of study would hard pressed to make something even close to this. Perhaps it has something to so with your Origin, allowing you to cheat." Artemis said as she looked over Orion's larger body. "And he is still cuddly~." She said as she pressed him into her bosom.

"Eh, maybe. I've been thinking it might be because of a combination of my Teachers all being Servants, and that we're the only ones left, so there's more Mystery to go around or something." Andy said dismissively. "But, I'm happy you're enjoying the fruits of my labor, this is actually the prototype for another project I've been working on, so I'm glad to see it works for this."

"Yes, so are you going to attach that?" Orion asked.

"Right, what size did you want?" Andy asked, taking out a smaller box out of the larger box which had had the rest of its contents strewn about the room.

"Why do you have a box with that at the ready?" He asked.

"Well, I figured since you don't really have a tongue you'd need _something_ , right?" Andy said, completely straightfaced. "Don't worry, they're all completely unused, I don't use these types of things."

"I take the biggest one, believe me, she is a size queen."

"Hey," Said Size Queen bemoaned. "Oh, my Darling and Master you are naughty."

"Oi, do you want the 16 inch one or not?" Andy said, taking slight 'offense.'

"Compares closely to my own, so do you want to join Andy," Orion said with a grin.

"No thank you, vanilla only for this girl, no threesomes (yet)." Andy said, before picking up the 16-inch dildo and 'accidentally' smacking Orion across the face with it as she turned towards him. "Whoops." She said. "Oh, and you might wanna get out for this part, this thing does have pain receptors you know."

"Understood. And please never do that again." Orion said.

"Why, it's your dick. Also, unrelated, your new body is flexible enough." Andy said vaguely.

"Man, Astolfo really brought you over to the Pervert Side didn't he?" Orion asked.

Andy's face reddened. "W-what? What are you t-talking about? J-just get out unless you want to feel me open up your groin and stick this in."

"Please everybody knows, except poor Mash, she is so sweetly naive," Artemis said.

"...Oh. Was it really that obvious?" Andy asked, face reddening further.

"Yes." Artemis and Orion answered at the same time.

"H-how?" Andy asked, genuinely curious. She figured it would probably be known eventually, with Evaporation of Sanity and all, but not this quickly.

"You walking around with that 'I just got laid face,' and _that_ smell is rather distinct, and hard to get rid of for us with more experienced noses," Orion said now out of his Mecha cloth body.

Andy let out a short groan, and her arms moved towards her face before stopping. "Oh god, I am so lucky Kiyohime's not yandere anymore…" She mumbled before shaking her head and focused on the fact she had almost put the dildo to her face when she instinctively went to bury her face in her hands. "Alright, gonna give ya a dick and then I'm leaving you two to it."

"Sure thing, though can you put up anti-sound Bounded Field cause, the screams of a virgin is going to be heard." He paused. "And yes, we never got around to it, got cockblocked by Scorpio."

"Oh," Andy said, actually thrown off a bit by that. "Well...good luck." She said before getting to work.

Xxx

December 2

"Lily? Can I come in?" Andy asked as she knocked on said Saber's door.

"Sure thing come inside Master," Lily responded Andy stepped inside and saw the Saber in the middle of painting a large canvas that was starting to take the shape of a castle.

"Oh, wow, is that Camelot?" Andy asked upon seeing the painting.

"It is in all of its splendid glory." She responded.

"Wow, and you don't even need a model?" Andy asked jokingly.

"I have no need, the image is crystal clear in my mind."

"Ah, of course," Andy said with a smile. "I hope you don't mind if we talk while you paint?"

"Of course not Master, I'm always open to conversation with you at any time." She answered.

"That's good to hear. But, ah, this is about a...touchy subject that I really should have talked to you about earlier." Andy said solemnly. "So, I just want to ask again if you're fine talking about this right now."

"Hmm? What is it, Master?" She asked.

Andy sighed. "Lily, do you have a crush on me?" She asked, getting straight to the point.

Her face immediately went red. "Yes," Lily answered.

"I see," Andy said, unsure how to actually deal with this and playing it by ear. "Well, there's nothing wrong with a crush, but it's probably puppy love. And even if it isn't… you may be a Heroic Spirit, but you're still a _child_ , y'know? That doesn't mean you can't pursue happiness, by all means, go ahead with that, but I'm not going to be able to be _that_ person. I'm sorry."

"Hah, rationally I know that you and Astolfo got your thing. But I want to experience that, I wanted to know what a relationship felt like, how it would feel to be an actual woman. And well you're one of four people that I actually know in my current state of being as a Lily. For this me is one spot in my timeline where I got to behave like a girl for a limited amount of time. And I didn't get to experience everything. And I hoped that I could as a Servant… Ah, I'm rambling aren't I?" Lily asked sounding emotionally exhausted already.

"No, you're fine, don't worry," Andy said reassuringly. "And I may not be able to help much with the, ah, partner part, but I can help with the 'feeling like an actual woman' part, I've been doing that for last month and a half, we can do that together."

At that Lily dropped her brush and wrapped her arms around Andy. "Thank you, Master, thank you for accepting me, Andy." She cried tears for the first time in a long time.

Andy returned the hug. "Of course sweetie, I'll always be here for you."

Lily just continued to cry. As pent-up emotions that had never gotten a release in life flowed out of her.

They stayed like that for a good few minutes, Andy hugging Lily and saying comforting words while she cried out her emotions.

Eventually, Lily stopped crying. "You good for now sweetie?" Andy asked her shortly after.

"I am and what's with the sweetie. You talk as if you were my mother?" She asked.

"Master, mother, close enough right?" Andy said as she released Lily from the hug.

"So what now 'mom'?" She asked.

Andy felt an odd feeling at that, even with the tone. "Well, uhm, how about dinner for now and then...what's something, something _else_ you never got to do that you wanted to?"

"I kinda wanna put on makeup." Lily let out.

"Well alright then. After dinner tonight we'll do that. Of course, I don't have very much experience with doing makeup yet either, but we'll figure it out as we go." Andy said, smiling at Lily.

"Sure thing 'mom.'" Lily said again.

Andy felt the same odd feeling again. "Alright, let's go eat, for now, its Emiya's turn to make dinner tonight. Should I tell him to make anything in particular, sweetie?"

"I… I would like some filled pancakes, 'mom.'" She answered.

"Alright, pancakes it is," Andy said, relaying the order to Emiya.

xxx

A/N: If you like this or any other of my stories you can donate to my P A Treon. StreamingViking to support me so that I can write more


	57. Mother Andy

Andy, wearing a Chaldea hoodie and shorts, entered into the lounge, and quickly spotted Kiyohime chatting with Tamamo. "Hey Tamamo, Kiyo sweetie. I didn't know you two were friends."

"We're pen pals, we have chat room together with Osakabehime, that shut in. Wonder if she is going to join us here at some point." Tamamo answered.

"Oh." Andy said, deciding to file how the hell that was possible for Servants under 'Ignore for Sanity's Sake' folder. "Well, maybe she will, then you'd all be able to hang out together in person."

"Not likely, she is a shut-in and won't leave her Castle," Tamamo answered. "Though she might be dead now, thanks to the whole Incineration thing unless she managed to get out of dodge." She added. "Now is there something us ladies can do for you Master?"

"Well, I came down here to have a chat with Kiyo, but I guess since you're here Tamamo, are you enjoying Chaldea so far?"

"Mikon, that I am Master it's so delightful to be here, though seeing Cat and that Archer was certainly a surprise." She answered.

"Lemme guess, Moon Cell?" Andy asked, having caught on to how when Servants knew each other somehow that she didn't know about, that was usually the reason.

"Yes, that Red Archer was a Servant to an enemy Master, a twin-tailed tsundere, such a temper," Tamamo said.

"So what is you want to talk about Andy?" Kiyohime asked.

"Well, I had a talk with Lily yesterday, and I just wanted to make sure, you only had a crush on me when you were a Berserker and thought I was Anchin, right? That's no longer the case?" Andy asked.

"It isn't and still thank you for fixing my head."

"Yes, thank the Kamis for that, we now at least we don't have to worry about you accidentally setting the place on fire," Tamamo commented.

"I can still set you on fire fox."

"Kiyo, sweetie, remember the rules about fires in Chaldea?" Andy asked.

Kiyohime sighed. "Only allowed in the kitchen, against invaders, and party tricks." She paused. "Also don't do all mommy on me like you did Lily, poor Lancelot almost choked to death when he heard her calling you that."

Andy did her best not to chuckle as she remembered that. "Well, uh, he's a Servant he can just dematerialize, but more importantly you are still a teenager, a child, and you _do_ need a good authority figure."

"Technically I'm almost a thousand years old, but if you want to play house, I'm your little sister then." She said.

Which made Tamamo bring up her hand to her mouth to stop her snickering.

"Okay, first of all, doesn't matter how long you were a legend was. To me, that's like being in like cryosleep or something during the between bit. Secondly, you-" Andy pointed at the snickering Tamamo. "-have no ground to stand on about weird families of any kind, Miss kitsune-goddess-shrine maiden who split herself into nine people, I'm pretty sure I heard Cat call you Onee-chan or something the other day."

"Yeah, my family is pretty weird, cause you know gods. It was more the playhouse comment that got me." Tamamo responded.

"Oh, shush," Andy said at the Caster before turning back to Kiyohime. "Also, everyone knows found families are often closer than actual families, 'playing house' has nothing to do with it."

"Well, if you're going to be my big sister then pamper and spoil like you should," Kiyohime said with a smug smile.

Andy grinned and put her hand on the dragon girl's head. "Y'know, I do have younger siblings, and, well, they weren't exactly 'pampered,'" Andy said, lying, knowing fully well she'd taken the fall thousands of times for their mistakes. "Last chance to be a 'daughter' and not a 'sister.'"

"I still remember my own parents very much, but I've never actually had a sister, so I don't know how that feels."

Andy's grin got a little less wide. "Ah. Well...I guess I'm your big sister then." She acquiesced. "Huh. Never actually been a big sister before, thinking about it. Neat." She mumbled to herself.

"Actually you've never spoken about your life before Chaldea Andy, I guess you were the little brother or something?" Kiyohime asked.

"Wha? No, no, I'm the eldest child, I've just never been an older _sister_ before." Andy elaborated. "I have a younger sister and younger brother. My brother actually has the same name as the little Conqueror, which was a bit weird getting used to."

"Right it's easy to forget that you were actually guy for most of your life, you just act so naturally as a girl it's kinda funny."

Andy shrugged. "Eh, I always wanted to at least try and be a girl, but that kinda thing wasn't really...accepted where I grew up. And then puberty hit like a truck, and I couldn't really, ah, get away with anything. But now, I can be me with little magical assistance, and I'm thriving. I mean, look at this arm." She said as she rolled up her sleeve, showing a moderately toned arm. "I did not have guns like _these_ before getting put on the Irish Training Regiment, and then Emiya's little cheaty magic and Leonidas' training? I'm doing so much better like this than I was before. If the world wasn't at stake, I'd probably be super stoked all the time." She paused. "Also, I might have been trying a little hard at first to 'be a girl,' and some of it just stuck."

"Well, I think you're better of for it, cause now your a lot more confident and not so guarded like you used to be, you were so nervous talking to us Servants all the time, but now it's much smoother, and you don't act like we're small collectible action figures. And it changed when you first became a girl. So I think you should stay, and besides, you have these big melons." Kiyohime said as she smashed her face into Andy's bosom.

"Ow _ww_! Be _care_ ful Kiyo, that friggin hurts, you almost stabbed me with your horns." Andy said as she tried to push the dragon girl off of her, but the small Lancer didn't budge. Damn Servant Strength. "Also, it was more like I was a dumbass dealing with living nukes, not action figures, you all aren't the fragile ones."

"It felt like that to us Andy," Kiyohime said as she let go of her.

"Well, I'm sorry about that," Andy said as she used the little healing spell she'd learned for herself on her chest. "I'm a bit of a coward, y'know? I really didn't like the idea of dying. Also please never do that again."

"Sorry." Kiyohime apologized.

"That is a perfectly valid fear to have Andy, I too was scared of dying that's why I kept running from those that tried to kill me. But in the end, well, it came to an end, but never listen to anyone that tells you just to accept it, fight tooth and nail for it."

"Heh, yeah, I won't go gentle into that good night, that's for sure," Andy said. "But, thanks, I'm happy to hear you don't want me to die."

"You're welcome, Master."

Xxx

December 4

It was Monday, and that once again meant it was Ticket time. As such, Andy was now eagerly standing by as Mash set up the circle. This was always a 'fun' time since it meant new potential strategies and resources.

Soon Mash had completed the circle. "Alright, a caster or an author, c'mon gachapon!" Andy said as she summoned the latest Servant. Huh, guess summoning was kinda like a gacha. Weird.

"The dual Servant Anne Bonny and Mary Read at your service Master." Anne and Mary announced themselves.

"Welcome to Chaldea Anne, Mary. I am Andy Murphy, your new Master. I hope you don't mind fighting for me instead of against me." Andy introduced herself.

"Of course not you're our Captain now, so of course we fight for you, isn't that right Mary?" Anne asked her partner.

"I don't really care, so long as she isn't an authoritarian bitch and there is food." The smaller woman responded.

"I can guarantee the later, but I do have some rules, like no killing in Chaldea, don't mess with the staff unless its Roman, don't destroy the building, the basic kind of rules," Andy said.

"That's just common decency, right there Captain," Mary responded.

"Then you'll get along fine here," Andy said with a thumbs up. "Also, both Drake and Blackbeard are here, so play nice with the former, and you can only beat the later within an inch of his life," Andy said, still not having fully gotten over Blackbeard's actions; she would let them go entirely once all the people he'd wronged got a piece of him, or he proved himself a bit more.

"So just the usual in regards to the pervert then?"

"Mary, don't be mean he was a good captain, treated us much better than John ever did." Anne admonished her other half.

Andy held back from saying what she very instinctively wanted to say; they were pirates, after all, they had a different code of morality and standards and all that. "Well, I'll try to be your best captain yet." She said instead.

"I bet you be." Said the smiling Anne.

"Eh, we shall see about that," Mary responded.

"Oh, but on that note, I wanted to know about your Voyage Skill and your Noble Phantasm. I'm guessing the former is something like a boat-only Riding skill, but I have no idea what you're Noble Phantasm does." Andy said.

"It's a combination attack where Mary distracts the enemy, and I take the shot, though the more we are at a disadvantage, the more damage it can do," Anne answered.

"Gotcha. Well, my Kouhai here has some armbands for you so you can navigate and pick... _a_ room?" Andy asked, not wanting to assume but assuming nonetheless. "Which you can claim for yourselves."

"Oh, our own room? That's great tell me do you also have showers?" Anne asked.

"Uh, communal ones like with lockers and stuff, there's one for guys and one for girls, why?" Andy asked, a tad confused. It wasn't like Servants really _needed_ to clean themselves that way, they could just dematerialize, and the dirt would just fall off.

"I want to try a proper hot bath we only had rainwater to use." She answered.

"Oh, okay, gotcha. Well, don't let me hold you up then if you wanna do that, all the facilities are open to you." Andy said.

"Thank you, Captain, and thank you, Mash, for the Armbands," Anne said as she handed Mary one.

"You're welcome Miss Anne," Mash responded.

Xxx

December 6

Andy knocked on the door to Asterios and Euryale's room since she could sense they were both in there and didn't want to walk in on them... _having fun_ , as it were.

"Who is it?" Asked Euryale.

"Its Andy, I just wanted to have a talk. I can come back later if I'm interrupting something." Andy said.

"No please come inside."

Andy opened the door to see that Asterios was holding a brush too small for his hand as it glided through Euryale's hair. She saw a much bigger brush over in the corner. "Sorry for interrupting." She said as she resisted the urge to say out loud how absolutely adorable the scene was.

"You aren't so Andy what did you want to talk about, and congratulation," Euryale said.

"Congratulations on what?" Andy asked, confused.

"On losing your V-card to Astolfo how did feel and have you gone back for round two yet?" The miniature asked Goddess asked as Asterios continued to brush her hair.

Andy's face instantly matched her hair. "N-not yet. Shut up." She said embarrassedly. She found she'd gotten a bit less embarrassed after that about things, but now _everyone knew_ which was itself super embarrassing. "I came in here to talk about you two, not about me. So, to start with, Asterios, drink this." Andy said as she deposited a small flask out of her hammerspace and held it out towards the Berserker.

"What is it." He asked as he looked at the bottle.

"Oh, just a little potion that could...potentially lead to some fun times between you and Euryale," Andy said vaguely. "Medea made it, not me if that helps."

"True it Asterios, it's not like Andy would hurt us or something," Euryale said.

Asterios nodded and took the flask and drank it content, a few seconds later Asterios had turned from a wall of Muscle to an adorable Shota in terms of size. The same height as Euryale now.

"Oh, my?" The Goddess responded as she looked at the miniature Minotaur.

Andy chuckled with a wide grin on her face. "Hehehe, mini-minotaur." She mumbled as she took out a camera and started taking pictures of the two.

"I'm small now." Asterios simply stated as he looked himself over. "Just as small as Euryale."

"Yup! This is what I meant before about changing heights, and _ohmygodyou'rejustsocute!"_ Andy gushed.

"That he his, and he is mine Andy, you have your own, though I do wonder…" At that Euryale's smile became an old man's one.

"Everything was shrunk proportionally, sweetie," Andy said upon seeing her expression.

"Well, now I probably won't look like a balloon, like Medea's other potion made me do." She responded.

Andy choked on air at the image. "W-well, I also had Medea whip up the opposite one." She said as she held up another flask to the Gorgon. "In case you want to do it the other way, or ever felt like carrying Asterios on _your_ shoulder."

"Let's save that one for later, do you have a reversal one?" Euryale asked. "And yeah its kinda as gross as you imagine it."

"Yeah, that's this one." Andy pulled out another, much smaller flask since one only needed a small dosage for it to go into effect, and so the two wouldn't get mixed up. "Do you want me to just leave these here for now?"

"That would be great, so do you want to talk about something else, or do we just get to petting him?"

"Why would you pet me?"

"Because you are incredibly fluffy, and now you are smol and the perfect petting height sweetie," Andy explained as she began to do just that to the now mini-minotaur. "But, I did want to talk about something else...I think? Can't remember, too fluffy."

"Yes, so fluffy." Euryale agreed.

"You're weird." Responded Asterios as his hair was petted by the two women.

"Yeah, but the world's gone mad anyway," Andy said absentmindedly. "Might as well pet the floofy son."

"Eh?" Was the confused response from Asterios' small form.

Andy realized what she had said. "Uhm, well, uh, what I meant is, uhm, uh." She floundered as she tried to figure out how to not dig herself deeper.

"First Lily now Asterios, my Andy can you not control yourself." Came Euryale's teasing voice.

"Well, uh, I mean, I've always been the Mom Friend™, and I guess, I'm kinda...trying to just be the first part?" Andy said, unsure. She hadn't really stopped to think about it before. Was this a side effect of the potion? Or just a coincidence she would try and adopt long dead hero ghosts after becoming a woman? She couldn't tell.

Asterios responded with a hug as a low "Momma." left his throat.

Andy made a noise she was pretty sure humans weren't supposed to make as her heart melted and she hugged him back, carefully not impaling herself on his horns. Tears were actually starting to well up in her eyes; Andy really hadn't been expecting this, she'd just come in to give them the potions. "Asterios is Best Boy." She said.

"Well, then I ask permission to be your boy's girlfriend then." Euryale requested with a smile.

"Yes, of course, absolutely," Andy said. "You two are perfect together. You take good care of my boy, ya hear?"

"I will."

"I love both of you." Came Asterios' comment, though his voice slightly muffled.

Andy's heart swelled once more. "I...I love you too, sweetie." She said, overjoyed at somehow spontaneously adopting Asterios. With Lily, she hadn't been sure how serious that was right away, but she had called her mom without that tone the yesterday, so it was kind of hitting her at that moment that she really had just posthumously adopted two different Heroic Spirits. If it weren't for the fact that she had basically given up on sanity recently, that might of actually made her lose it.

Xxx

December 8

It was time for another Dream Trip it seemed after having gone to bed after having said goodnight to Astolfo, and her children. That was still a weird thing to think about.

But now she found herself with Mash standing over her in what looked like a castle corridor.

Andy, still in her night clothes, got up off the ground (why was she always lying on the ground in these?) and looked around. She recognized they were in a Castle, but that didn't mean much on its own… "Oh." She said as she looked around more, trying to find a defining feature- and noticed a banner with a Dragon on it. "Hey, Kouhai, does this place feel familiar to you at all?"

"Yes, they were covered up mostly, but the style of the wall is the same as then we went to Elizabeth's Castle for Halloween," Mash responded.

"Master, why are you here?" Came not the voice of Elizabeth but of Carmilla from behind them.

"Oh, hey Carmilla," Andy said as she turned around to face the Assassin. "It seems we've been drawn into your mind to fight some of your demons in some way shape or form, and once the nights over you'll wake up stronger. Or something. Still unclear about how the hell this works or what it's even doing." Andy tried to explain.

"Yes, I've heard from Alter and Marie, but, but I never wanted you to be in this version of my accursed home, I need to guide you out of here," Carmilla said.

"Then lead the way, madame," Andy said.

"This way both of you." She said with a voice of concern as she walked past them.

Andy turned and followed her, motioning to Mash to follow as well. "So, you said about 'this' version, is there a recurring nightmare in here or do you just have bad memories of it?" Andy asked after a few moments of following in silence.

"It is punishment for my sins, which I never wanted you to be pulled into Master." She responded.

"I guess you're haunted by your victims is that correct?" Mash asked.

"At the end, but I suffer the fate of those I administered it to, I reach the exit and am then killed by them." She responded to Mash's inquiry.

"Well, we're here this time, so you definitely won't die here. I, uh, don't actually know the specifics of what you did so I don't know how well we'll be able to help, but Mash is the Immovable Object basically so we don't have to worry about attack-attacks." Andy said, unsure if Mash could do anything about it if they like, drowned in blood, or something.

"Those are kind words a Monster as myself do not deserve Master," Carmilla responded.

"Don't talk like that. You are _not_ a monster." Andy said with zero hesitation. "Doing bad things when you didn't know any better doesn't make you a monster, and the thoughts of the people don't make you a monster."

"Wha- I, I Master." Came the muddled words of Carmilla as tears ran down her face. "Thank you, for those words Master." She responded with a hug.

"Of course sweetie." Andy said with sincerity as she did her best to ignore the spikes on the Assassin's outfit digging into her as she hugged her back and did her best not to get further stabbed by her 'horns.'

"We are at the exit soon, so be prepared for battle." Carmilla disengaged from Andy.

"You're getting really good at that emotional comfort stuff Senpai." Mash praised Andy.

"Eh." Andy shrugged. "I like to think I'm pretty empathetic, and there seems to be a _lot_ of broken or breaking or what-have-you Servants in Chaldea. It's a necessity at this point."

"That is true, many of them did not have a happy life or a very good ending to them, and many of them still have hang-ups about their failures. Though the Cus seem to belong in the Happy Camp as it were." Mash said.

"Yeah, seems like the blood knight-types seem pretty content for now," Andy admitted. "Though now that I said that something's gonna come out of nowhere and change that, I'm betting."

"100 Dollars that we're going to encounter Medb in one of the Singularities." Mash bet.

"Suckers bet. The moment they mistook me for her I've been expecting her to show up any day now." Andy said. "And now that we have Fergus? Practically guaranteed to be, if not the next one, then one rather soon."

"Master we're at the gate," Carmila said, and Andy noticed that they were now in front of the same gate that they had met Mata Hari at during Halloween. "And they should arrive about right now."

" **YOU KILLED US. BE PUNISHED. NO ESCAPE. YOU SHALL SUFFER LIKE WE DID!** " Came the shrieks and from the walls, ghostly apparitions of young girls appeared, all bloody and wounded. Their eyes were pitch black.

"Oh okay, that's a bit worse than I expected," Andy said. "I, uh, I hate to say this Carmilla, but… you need to put them to rest. I don't think they'd accept an apology at this point, but you might want to throw one of those in there too." Andy said, unsure how to actually deal with these kinds of 'personal demons'.

"I've said it before, and I say it again I am sorry for what I did to you, if somebody had actually taught me morals, this would never have happened. But you dragged my Master into this nightmare, I've never fought back before, but now for that act of dragging Andy here you deserve the highest of punishments." Carmilla stated and summoned her staff, and launched a black sphere of magical energy at that them. The sphere collided with one of the ghosts and exploded it.

"Mash, make sure none of them get close," Andy ordered. Reasonably speaking Carmilla could likely have always been able to defeat them in terms of power, but they likely overpowered her with numbers. With Mash protecting her, she was sure to win.

Mash acknowledged the order and drew her sword and cut into the ghosts as they appeared while simultaneously bashing them into oblivion.

And in the end, the two Servants were successful in killing all of the ghosts (Wasn't that an oxymoron) with Carmilla quite literally stepping on the last one out of existence.

"Thank you for the help, Andy." Carmilla thanked her for using her name.

"Of course, it's no problem sweetie," Andy said reflexively.

"What?"

Andy once more realized what she was saying, and that she was apparently trying to adopt a fully grown woman. "U-uh, I said it's no problem! What kind of Master would I be if I didn't help my Servants y'know?" she said with somewhat forced enthusiasm.

"No I heard you, you just called me sweetie why?" Carmilla asked.

"Uh, well, y'see, when I'm worried about someone, especially when they're younger, or under duress, that's, uh, just the word I use." Andy awkwardly explained.

"I'm over fifty you know, and you're such a mother… So am I next despite the age difference here." She stated.

"Uh, I mean, if you want, a mom?" Andy said, knowing full well she had gotten in over her head this time.

"Well, I never liked my real one, so do you think I can be a good girl mother." She said without sarcasm or that tone.

Before Andy could respond, she woke up and sat straight up in bed. "What the fuck did I just do." She said in complete disbelief at herself.

Xxx

"Hello, Mother." Came Carmilla's voice as Andy left her room.

Andy's face screamed 'what have I done.' "Good morning, Carmilla. I guess you remembered that dream last night, huh."

"I do completely, and I must say I'm completely flattered, but I can stop if you want, we could be sisters instead perhaps if you to keep the familial element."

"Uhhh, sure, we can do that," Andy said. "...So, um, breakfast?"

"Yeah, sure thing sister, though perhaps you could make little Elizabeth your daughter instead of me," Carmilla suggested.

"...Maybe. Let's get to breakfast for now." Andy said, formulating an idea that would help with her maternal instincts apparently going into overdrive.

They soon found themselves in the Dining Hall, where most of the Servants and staff were gathered. Soon after entering, Andy went to the center of the room and got everybody's attention. "Excuse me, attention all Servants. I have an important announcement to make."

At that, they all went silent, and she had their full attention.

Andy took a deep breath before continuing. "This is an open invitation, to all Servants who had shitty parents, no parents, or just want a new one: I am now your mother if you'll let me be."

"Oh, God Master you're the best." Came the shout from Drake. "But for me, it's big sister okay." She smiled at Andy.

"That is also the other option, I will be your sister. I guess." Andy said, internally berating herself for becoming...whatever the hell she was becoming.

Xxx

A/N: A motherhen Passive. And remember this is more like Guardians of the Galaxy family dear readers.


	58. The Return of the King

December 9

Andy, incredibly frazzled from suddenly becoming a mother and/or sister to about, what, 28? 28 servants in about 5 minutes, was now awaiting Mash to finish setting up the Summoning Circle, Ticket in hand. She was flanked by two Stuffys, members of the newest generation that looked like cloth people instead of mannequins, though these two were made smaller for now due to the increased details.

"So Senpai, I didn't get to ask yesterday but what was the whole mother and sister thing about? And the fact that you've been acting so motherly towards Lily and Asterios?" Mash asked as she finished up.

"Well, uh, with those two it was because they never really had a childhood and/or real parents, respectively, so I was just kinda trying to help. The whole 'mom' thing started as a joke by Lily, but…" Andy looked at her distorted reflection in the Summoning Ticket. "I honestly don't know."

"Do you think it has something to do with the potion you used to change to a woman, it was made by Ishtar. There could have been unexpected consequences/side effects." Mash suggested.

"What? No, that wouldn't…" Andy trailed off as she realized she'd really gone into Maximum OverMom after Astolfo… "Oh." She said simply as she realized she was a woman _magically_ by a potion for a _fertility_ goddess and had sex in a way that literally _could not_ result in offspring. "...I'm going to go talk to Medea after this," Andy said, before shaking her head and pushing that aside for the moment, and summoning the newest addition to Chaldea.

"Congratulation Mongrel you have summoned the Great King of Uruk!" Gilgamesh announced himself, and Andy immediately took notice of the differences between this Gilgamesh and the Archer one who had been summoned earlier. For one he had swords on his back and looked much younger with wilder unkempt hair. "I hope that you can provide me with entertaining fights."

Andy blinked owlishly at the second Gilgamesh for a few seconds as she tried to process it. Sure, in theory, it made sense there'd be multiple Gilgameshes (Gilgameshi?) since there were multiple potential Cu Chulainn's and Arturia's already there, but she would have thought his ego would have prevented more than one existing in one space, but perhaps it was because she only had the child Gil now? And this one seemed younger?

"Ah, welcome to Chaldea, Gilgamesh. I am your new Master, Andy Murphy. Thank you for joining our fight to Save Human History. And, as a heads up, we also have your younger self already here as an Archer." Andy said as she used her Stat-o-Vision on the third(?) Gilgamesh she'd ever seen.

True Name: Gilgamesh

Class: Saber

Master: Andy Murphy

 **Parameters:**

Strength: C

Endurance: C

Agility: B

Mana: A

Luck: B

Noble Phantasm: EX

 **Class Skills:**

Magic Resistance: C

Riding: A

 **Personal Skills:**

Divinity: A+

Charisma: A+

Monster Slayer: A

Treasury of Babylon: EX

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Bab-ilu: Key of the King's Law(Anti-Unit): E-A++

Enki: Sword of the End(Anti-Country): EX

"Ah, my unspoiled self is here, how interesting. How sad to hear that a me should not know the friendship of our friend. But tell me why do you smell of Ishtar's magic?" Gilgamesh asked.

"Oh, uhm, I've been using a potion from your younger self's Gate of Babylon to, ah, be, a, woman," Andy said, finding it harder to finish the sentence as she went on due to her thoughts from before returning to the forefront of her mind.

"Ah I see, you wanted to experience the sensations of the other sex. I'm happy to see that you do not deny your own desires. Now then does this facility have accommodation for me to use, while we await our next battle?" He asked with a boisterous tone.

"Ah, right, my Kouhai here has an armband for you with a map and communication functions, so you can get around on your own," Andy said, motioning to Mash.

"Here your Majesty, you shall find it to be quite helpful," Mash said as she handed Gilgamesh the armband. Who immediately put it on.

"Why thank you holy knight, and Master I shall treasure this gift you have given me. Though might I ask if sparring with my fellow heroes is against the rules of this facility?"

"Sparring is only allowed in the areas designated on the map, which is mostly the Danger Room," Andy explained. "Oh, but before you go, what does your 'Enki' Noble Phantasm do?"

"It is my ultimate weapon the blades can be combined into a bow and summon the great ancient flood after a minimum of seven days has passed after the first name release." He answered.

"Mhm, so it's only a long-term weapon, understood," Andy said, realizing he probably meant _the_ great flood, and deciding Enki was more of a last resort than Stella. "Well, that's all I needed to know, for now, you're free to explore the facilities as you please."

"Ah thank you, Master, you can always contact me if you wish to exchange verbs and constants with me." He said as he left.

"Well, he seems… A lot more jolly than the Gilgamesh you summoned the first time around Senpai." Mash stated now that the man was gone.

"Yeah, I think that this one's like halfway between little Gil and Archer Gilgamesh? So...Teen Gil? Young Adult Gil? Eh, we'll just call him Gilgamesh unless another one shows up." Andy said, going off on a tangent. "But, I think it's him before the stuff that made Archer Gilgamesh so… _Gilgamesh_. Like...not depressed yet, or something, so probably before Enkidu died."

"That sounds like a plausible theory Senpai."

"Yeah, but it's just a theory. We'll see if I'm right eventually when inevitably we get pulled into his dream or whatever." Andy said, internally dreading how that seemed it was going to happen with every Servant, considering she now had more than _50_ , and she never felt rested afterward. "Oh, I almost forgot, Kouhai how do you like my new Stuffys? Pretty life-like, right?" She said, motioning to the two short figures who looked, almost uncannily, close to human.

"Uncanny Valley Senpai."

"Yeah, working on that. For now, I'm working out a Rune Sequence to make them look closer, but giving them actual flesh of their own is pretty far off right now." Andy said, only just now realizing how close to creepy children the Stuffys appeared.

"Hope we get a proper alchemist at some point to help you out with the whole Homunculi thing, cause these things are still more like Automatons." She said.

"Yeah, that would be really useful. Paracleseus Von Hohenheim, in particular, would be great, but even, I dunno, some random alchemist who barely knows what he's doing." Andy said with a shrug.

"It's pronounced Paracelsus Senpai." Mash corrected her.

"Wait, really?" Andy asked, surprised. "I've been saying that wrong my whole life then."

"Well, you can always learn new things Senpai, you aren't an old dog yet. So which of your teachers are first on the schedule today.

"Well, uh, actually, I think I need to have a chat with...Medea and Cu? I think would be the best for this? I'm pushing back my lessons a bit for today." Andy said.

"Ah, okay have a good talk Senpai, I'm going to be apparently teaching Altera how to swim today." She said.

"'Apparently teaching'?"

"I found her floating in the pool yesterday, went I to take a dip, then I saw her floating like a corpse in the water. She was getting a bit bored and was told to take a swim to entertain herself, by Martha as a suggestion. But our destroyer of Bad Civ didn't tell her that she didn't know how to swim. And I went suggested myself to teach her." She explained.

"Well, look at you, being a good Senpai to your own Kouhais! I'm so proud!" Andy said half-jokingly.

Mash blushed at the remark.

Xxx

"Hey, Medea, do you have a minute?" Andy asked as she knocked on the door to said Caster's workshop.

"Yeah sure Master, what is it?" Came the response, Andy walked inside and saw that on Medea's primary workbench was some form of box.

"Uh, Medea, Rule Breaker can sever lingering magical effects, as long as they're because of Magecraft right?" Andy asked, ignoring the strange box for now. "Or, rather, when you cut with Rule Breaker is its effect selective or all-or-nothing?"  
"Master Rule Breaker isn't all delete button for Magecraft it undoes active Magecraft not… Okay, a better explanation the Modern Curse Gandr as you know makes the person that comes in contact with it sick. I could not stab someone with Rule Breaker and make them not sick as the effect of the spell has already passed." Medea explained. "You're we burned with magic fire, I can't make you in burnt with it. I could stop the fueling of it, but that's the only thing I could do to it."

"Oh. Okay. Uhm. In that case, can you make sure the Resurrection Sequence stays in my body properly when I switch back? I think I'm going to stop using Gil's potions." Andy asked.

"Why?" She asked.

"Well, the only reason I haven't switched back at all yet was because of messing up the Resurrection Sequence. And, uh, you remember what I, uh, announced yesterday?" Andy said as she remembered just how _weird_ that was and how...not like her it was.

"Vividly."

"Yeah, I think...I think the potion's been messing with my head. Cause that whole thing only started after I...uh...had...sex." She said, still embarrassed to talk about it. "But, more importantly, the potion was made for followers of Ishtar, a _fertility_ goddess, and then I had sex with someone who literally _cannot_ produce a child? You get what I'm getting at, right?"

"I am so, shall we switch to my own, if you want the female form without the side effects, how was your time of the month exactly. Won't have to deal with that if you don't want too?"

"Oh, really? Thank god, it's not like I'm going to be having children anyway." Andy said, relieved.

"Well, now I know what to give you for Christmas, so shall we call up Cu and make it, so your skin doesn't rip then you change back and forth from the Fleece," Medea said.

"Yeah, lemme just call him in…" Andy said. She telepathically told Cu to come down there, before re-noticing the box on Medea's workbench. "Oh, hey, what's with the box? Is that the same one you were working on after we got back?"

"It's a private thing, I'm working on nothing you need to concern yourself with." She said as a second later Caster Cu entered the Workshop.

Andy gave her a look that she hoped read 'that's _exactly_ what I need to be concerned with' but let it slide for now.

"Hey, Cu, I'm gonna need you to adjust the Resurrection Sequence a bit, think you're up to it?" Andy said nonchalantly as if she weren't asking Cu Chulainn to adjust the Golden Fleece implanted into her body in the shape of Norse runes that acted as a bonus life.

"Sure thing Master, hey woman do you have a table we can put Master on?" Cu asked.

"Yes, over here dog."

Xxx

December 10

Andy walked through the halls of Chaldea to have one his talks with his Servants. Andy was back in his male form, which was now very different, with how he hadn't seen it for almost two months now.

At least he could no longer be considered weighty, at least in that sense. Really, he was closer to his dream-bod of Hafthor Bjornsson. Not quite, but a lot closer than before.

Regardless of that, he was now going to have a chat with little Gil. Summoning Gilgamesh had made him realize he _really_ hadn't been putting little Gil's generosity to good use.

Which was why he was now entering the game room to find Gil playing Gran Turismo again. He sat down on the couch next to the little King and waited for him to finish the race.

He crossed the finish line a minute later after of course having won the race.

"Hey, Master. I see you're back to being a boy, and that you summoned another me. Didn't think I could be summoned from that point in my timeline." He said.

"Yeah, for some reason I never even considered I could summon 'you' in another class," Andy said. "Oh, right, did you want the rest of the potion back? I'm switching over to Medea Brand Potions™ for switching."

"Ah, the whole motherhood thing got out of control didn't it?" He asked. "Hmm, should have seen that coming really it was Ishtar's stuff. But I can take it back if you want."

"Yeah, I don't even want the chance of drinking it accidentally or something," Andy said, depositing the potion into his hand from his hammerspace and handing it to the little King. "Oh, and, I know it might be rude asking so soon after rejecting another of your gifts, but is it okay if I ask for a few things?"

"If I have no use of them sure." He said.

"Alright, in that case…" Andy said as he pulled out a small physical notepad. "First up, the prototype of the Tarnhelm."

"You want the invisibility or shapeshifting?" He asked.

"If I had to choose one, the shapeshifting," Andy said with no hesitation.

"Invisibility it is cause you're neither a dwarf or a dragon." Kid Gil answered with a smug smile.

Andy gave Gil a look. "If that's what you're willing to give me, then fine. But, do you have anything related to Arachne, or magical spiders in general?"

"Her's is innate stuff don't get that. But here is Hades's Cap that is the prototype for that helms invisibility." Gil said as he took out a witchy-looking cap. "Remember it doesn't block sound."

Andy took the Cap carefully and looked it over before shrugging and putting it on. "So, how is it activated?"

"It is when it's on, it's most useful for sneaking past Bounded Fields, as it blocks any form of magical detection."

"Oh, wait, does that mean you can't see me right now?" Andy asked since from his perspective nothing had changed.

"Yep, but I can still hear you."

"Neato," Andy said before taking off the cap and storing in into his hammerspace. "Thanks. Oh, uh, one more thing, and one question. I'll start with the question- do you have any info on the work of Zouken Matou within the Gate?"

"No I do not, my gate has a problem with Secret stuff, that is why I do not have the weapon that the Sun Warrior wields. It has not been ingrained into the Human Order if his work had been found shared between many I would."

"Ah. Gotcha." Andy said, having basically expected as much. "Well, one last thing, do you have anything to do with Golems? Since I realized my Stuffys are closer to Golems than they are to anything else, I figured I might as well stick my finger in that pie too."

"I do have the original works of Avicebron, as his knowledge is the basis of modern Golemancy, and so unlike Zouken's work been engraved into the Human Order."

"Oh, goody, could I borrow those?" Andy asked, ignoring that he was basically adding an entirely new field of Magecraft to his already packed, and far behind, study schedule of Magecraft.

"Sure thing, is there anything else you wish to talk to me about Master?" He asked as scrolls of parchment dropped out of the Gate.

"Well, you wouldn't happen to have something that could just make me immortal or something right?" Andy joked, knowing it wouldn't be that easy.

"Sorry, the only Immortality I've got is the Youth Potion variant. Anything else has the whole no longer be a human thing." He answered.

"Oh, shit man really? Like what?" Andy asked, slightly excited.

"Be a plant like Utnapishtim."

"...Would I still be mobile? And, well, more importantly, me?" Andy asked, voice neutral.

"Standing like a tree, and you would you based on memories but nothing else, you would no longer have pesky feelings cause a plant doesn't need those." Gil spat, guess that was something him and his adult-self shared, an unfathomable hatred of the divine.

"Ugh. Any...other options?" Andy asked.

"Got nothing else, what do I look like Sun Wukong?"

"I mean, maybe? A lot of famous blondes tend to look alike here apparently." Andy said, thinking in particular of Saber, Nero, Jeanne (the last one of which he only kind of saw a resemblance, but Nero was super close). "Maybe we if we get you the right outfit and a staff…"

"No." Was the simple rebuttal.

"Aww, C'mon, you dressed up as a magical catgirl for Halloween, what's the big deal with Sun Wukong?" Andy asked jokingly.

"That was Halloween, and it was silly, and I don't want to dress up like a golden self-absorbed asshole, yes I realize what I just said, but the point still stands."

"Well, yeah, for Halloween you dress as something you're not," Andy said a smug grin on his face.

"Master, you're going to keep bugging me about this aren't you now?"

Andy just grinned wider, deployed Hades Cap, and cackled as he disappeared.

"I've made a terrible mistake." Andy heard him say as he left.

xxx

A/N: If you like this or any other of my stories you can donate to my P A Treon. StreamingViking to support me so that I can write more


	59. A Very Santa Alter Christmas - Part 1

December 17

Andy groaned as he felt himself wake up on the cold ground, his eyes started to blink open as he heard a familiar voice start speaking. "Emerging from the Rayshift tunnel, your eyes were met with the sight of a field blanketed in… A most literary beginning. The use of the second-person lends a certain subtlety to the sentence. Don't you think so Andrew? Or is it Andy now?"

Andy's vision became clear, and he saw…

"Alter? What are you talking about, you know it's Andy now. And what's with the get-up, Christmas is still like a week away." Andy asked as he got up and looked around, the fact that Alter was standing there wearing… what could be marginally called a Santa costume with a miniskirt and thigh-high boots, being secondary to the fact that either she was having another dream thing, or for some reason they had Rayshifted _somehow_ in his sleep into a wintry forest filled with pine trees.

"Hmm, a lively response but I feel possessed to kick you in the arse for forgetting me don't you remember our encounter in the Cave of Fuyuki?"

"Oh," Andy said, eyes widening. "You're _that_ Alter. Uhh, I kinda summoned a different one of you after that, so I thought that was who you were. Sorry. But, I'm guessing from the fact that I'm not already dead that you need me for something?"

"I do. It's quite simple after our fight I appeared in this Singularity, and to rid myself of most of Mud's taint I took up the mantle of Santa Claus. I am Santa Alter. I am Santa Claus of Lawful Evil that slices apart the icy breath of Midwinter. And part of my self-cleaning requires me to give presents to fellow Servants that have been summoned into this place. Each day until Christmas. And that's why I Reversed Summoned you to here so that you can replace my reindeer that ran away. What a coward really I just used Excalibur Morgan as a jet engine to propel us into the stratosphere. I could do it myself, but that disgrace the title of Santa. And so my first gift shall be me giving you the title of being my reindeer." She held out reindeer headgear that he was probably meant to put on.

"This feels racist, Is this racist?" Andy muttered to himself, but nonetheless, he took the horns. "Wait, lemme see if I've got this right. You kidnapped me to help you deliver presents? Because you're Santa Claus now? But you want me to be your _reindeer_?"

"Yes, you speak like it is weird, the title of Santa Clause is one anyone can obtain, one discards their own wishes and only live to fulfill others." She pressed her fingers together. "I couldn't get anybody else to help me." She said embarrassedly.

"Y'know you could've just asked, right? I probably would have helped if you'd given me the choice." Andy said, before sighing. "Is there any way I can bring in my Servants to help us distribute gifts?" He asked, accepting that he really was going to do this.

"I shall next time, but there should be no need for that. We shall just deliver presents, there should be no need for fighting. Now my reinderic Master, now let's get to my sleigh." Santa Alter said.

Andy sighed before putting on the headband. "Alright, as long as I don't have to literally pull it."

"Of course not you just have to steer, it can fly on its own, and with Morgan, we shall fly at even greater speeds." Alter said as they arrived in front of the sleigh, which was ordinary red Christmas sleigh as it could get.

And underneath it was Excalibur Morgan strapped to it with what looked like duct tape.

"I don't think this is OSHA compliant," Andy said as he looked at the open sleigh that would no doubt be moving at high speeds. "Oh, wait, duh. Deploy Tenfold Shields." He said, and mercifully it actually worked for once unlike in the dreams, the armor appearing around his body...and the horns now on top of the helmet, somehow staying on. "So, how am I supposed to steer this?"

"Take the reigns, of course, I'm going to be guiding you, but do not worry the Llamrei Mark II is a stable vessel for our needs. I have the first address we shall go to. Darius Three Years Old in Persia. The wish has gotten smudged but if I see his face, I should easily able to tell which present is most suited for him." Santa Alter stated.

"Aww, a three-year-old Darius? That's bound to be adorable." Andy noted as he got up into the sleigh and grabbed the reins that weren't really connected to anything, wondering how the hell he was supposed to steer with them. "Well, let's get going then. The quicker we get all these presents to deliver, the sooner I get to go back, right?"

"Yes that should be true, now let us take off my Reindeer." Santa Alter said as she jumped onto the sleigh.

"Please stop calling me that," Andy said, knowing full well she wouldn't listen.

"No."

Andy sighed. "Figured as much. Let's get moving, yeah?"

"Very well, let's take off." At those words, the sleigh seemingly came to life, and it blasted off breaking the sound barrier, and soon enough Andy and Santa Alter found themselves in the upper atmosphere.

"Woah," Andy said as he looked down at the landscape, silently praising Da Vinci's genius for making Tenfold Shields as he knew he'd have been deader than dead without it at there rapid speeds, as he admired the rapidly moving view of the earth. "I've never been this high up before." He said in awe as he took it all in.

"Yes it's quite beautiful isn't it, now at this speed we should arrive in about three hours."

And so three hours passed which to Andy felt a lot shorter, they landed on the roof of the mansion house Darius was living in and had jumped down the chimney.

Where they were met with Lu Bu, Phantom of the Opera aka Eric, not the Bloodaxe one, and not a three year old sized Darius, he did, however, have a very much adorable frown on his face.

"Hello, and Merry Christmas everyone Santa Claus has arrived with presents now could you tell me where Darius aged three is? I only see this giant Christmas tree." Santa Alter.

"Psst, Santa, the big guy with horns is Darius," Andy whispered as he nudged her.

"Oh?"

"Yay… Santa… Santa… Presents Gimme Gimme." Darius Age Three began stamping in happiness.

"Well aren't you a greedy child, now come closer children for Santa Claus come with your gifts." Santa Alter announced.

"Christine, Christine do you come with my lovely Christine."

"Something close, here take the Craft Essences for you to use, Dragon's Meridian for you Berserkers. And Angel's Song for you Phantom." Santa Alter said as she took three card like objects from her sack.

"Yay. Thank you, Santa."

"I can hear its song, it sounds like my Christine."

"Well my Reindeer, this went well for the first time, let us get back up to the roof and the sleigh." Santa Alter said.

"Do we go back up through the chimney?" Andy asked.

"Of course what other way? Going through the front door?" She asked.

"I suppose that's true." Andy said, deciding to follow the 'Santa Logic' that seemed to be on display at the moment. A moment after Santa Alter jumped up the chimney, followed by Andy, who overshot the roof by a _bit_. "Deploy wings!" He yelled rapidly before he impacted the house; he had the feeling breaking their things would get the Servant-children (also, what in the name of God was happening that he was actually thinking that?) angry.

"Now let us take to the air again Reindeer while I find the next address for us to go to." Santa Alter said as she took a seat on the sleigh.

"Righty-o, Santa" Andy said as he floated over to the sleigh and into the 'driver's seat' as it were. "Ready when you are, Santa." He said, deciding to just...embrace this new spore of madness. The happier he was, the quicker it would go away. And anyway, it was Christmas (soon), these 'kids' needed their presents.

"I am fly my Reindeer," She commanded.

"...You're the one in control of our 'engine,' Santa." Andy said after a moment where nothing was happening.

"Oh right," She said, and a second later they blasted back up into the sky.

"Where to next, o mighty Claus?" Andy asked.

"Let us see, the next Dear Santa letter is from Marie in France. Two of her friends are always fighting each other, and so she wants a present that brings them together. Foolish girl Santa only brings gifts made from one's own wishes, not to others, what does she think Christmas is about? I do not have presents that grant other people happiness." She said.

"Isn't Christmas about the joy of giving though? About selflessness and togetherness?" Andy asked, not wanting to get into a theological debate with evil female King Arthur turned Santa, but willing to follow the Christmas movie tropes that seemed to be on display here. "Like, c'mon did you merge with Saint Nick, or with American Santa?"

"Like that would make a difference I could easily also be merged with Odin. But I Santa Alter only brings gifts. She does not bring happiness. Whether the gifts themselves bring happiness. That is up to the individual if they have been good or naughty." She answered.

"Mhm. Sounds pretty Lawful Evil, that's for sure." Andy said. "Oh, yeah, but what were those things you gave them? They looked like cards, but that had those pretty awesome names and the kiddos seemed happy about them."

"They are Mystic Codes that can be used by Servants to empower themselves beyond their current abilities for a limited amount of time, along with having additional things. Though that depends on the Craft Essence. Some are just sealed items." She answered. "Now we're currently over France, and from the writing of the letter I can tell that this Marie is part of the Royal Family, so I expected a country-wide celebration of pure chaos and expensive turkey, but I can't sense any Christmas festivities down there." Santa Alter said.

"Well, it's only the 17th right? Maybe they only celebrate closer to the actual day?" Andy speculated as he 'steered' (really he was just pulling on the reins and hoping, and so far it was working) the sleigh towards the very obvious royal palace.

"In the modern day people only celebrate December 24 Christmas Eve and December 25, but people used to celebrate the birthday of Christ over a much longer period." Santa Alter answered.

"Oh, so you _are_ acknowledging that part, I thought since you were a 'Santa' you were just ignoring the whole 'Christ' part of Christmas," Andy said. "And, as for why they aren't celebrating, how many people exist in this world? Because I've been seeing lots of buildings, but the only things I've seen moving around have been the 'children.'"

Before Santa Alter could speak up another very familiar voice sounded beside. "Hold it Santa you have violated French Airspace." Announced Astolfo riding on his Hippogriff.

"Wait, we're several kilometers up in the air isn't that little crazy to be stopping us like this?" Santa Alter shouted at him.

"Hey, Astolfo, you don't want to ruin everybody's Christmas right? She's the new Santa Claus, without her all the good little girls and boys won't get their presents!" Andy said to the Astolfo that he had to actively remind himself was not _his_ Astolfo.

"Don't care, Marie shoot them down!" He shouted, and it was in that moment freaking cannonballs slammed into the Sleigh.

"We're going to crash now, Reindeer grab onto something and don't let go."

"Nope," Andy said, before Deploying Hurricane Ride and jumping out of the crashing sleigh onto the bike.

"Traitor!" Santa Alter yelled as Andy did so.

"Oh hold your horses Santa I've got a plan!" Andy yelled back as he flew under the plummeting sleigh and went upside down, pressing up against the sleigh with Hurricane Ride to slow its descent. It actually seemed to be working too as they lost speed.

And a cannonball flew past Andy's head, missing by an inch. "SANTA NEED A LITTLE HELP HERE!" He yelled, since he couldn't really maneuver much with how he was slowing the crashing sleigh, and if he moved away the sleigh would just crash anyway.

"I'm on it Reindeer, the sleigh is stable now. We are going to land and beat those naughty children's buttocks red and fill their stockings with coal." She shouted, and soon after they landed in the middle of a goddamn gingerbread village, with a carousel in the middle.

Andy looked around, ignoring the fact he was in the middle of a life-sized gingerbread village while hoping there wouldn't be similarly sized moving gingerbread people. "The palace is that way, are we heading in on your sleigh or on foot, Santa?"

"My, my shooting a cannon is so much, fun I've never felt so violent. Do you agree d'Eon?" Came Marie's voice.

"Well it was an excellent shot, your Majesty, we have managed to capture Santa… Your majesty, I think we got the wrong one?" Said d'Eon.

Andy and Santa Alter turned their heads towards the two Servants. "Yes, it is not that round fat man that tricked me out my money. Oops!"

"What. There's another Santa? And he took your money from you? _For Christmas?_ " Andy asked, on the verge of losing the little sanity he had left. "First it was Lawful Evil Female King Arthur Santa, now it was Jolly Red Thief Santa, what was next, the Old Santa on the Mountain? Attila the Hun the Female Alien Rave Warlord Santa? Best Santataur Asterios Claus? Setanta Claus? Da Vinci, CEO of Santa Claus, Inc? _Andy Claus?"_

"It must be a fake Santa then, a Santa Clause only gives, not take. After we have delivered all the presents, we shall deal with the Faker." Santa Alter said.

Andy took some deep breaths. "Yeah. Yeah, let's do that. Give the kiddies some presents, they didn't know better." He said after a moment, motioning towards the two 'children' standing there with faces that screamed 'sorry' and anxious anticipation.

"Yes, here is a Glass Pony for you who I guess to be Marie, and a Maid outfit for you d'Eon now you can better serve your Queen." She said as she threw the two CE's containing items at the two Servants. With d'Eon blushing heavily.

"I-I shall wear this with pride." He announced.

"Good let us leave then my Reindeer our job is done."

"Isn't the sleigh damaged? And what about the pink haired one in the sky?" Andy asked.

"He should have realized we were the wrong ones, to begin with, he should be happy that he didn't get coal. And only the paint has been scratched Reindeer." Santa Alter said, "Though let's just see if more damage has been sustained." She added.

"And how will we do that, Santa?"

"See if I can will it to fly or not, but if it can't I've checked the other addresses, and they are in France too. So we can drive as it were instead."

"Alrighty then," Andy said as he stowed Hurricane Ride away and hopped back into the Sleigh. "Ready when you are, Santa."

"Huh, the flight system is down, so we have to drive from now on. Let's see the next one is sent by Jing Ke from a cave system where with two of her friends they are celebrating Christmas, their wish being to have more things to party with. Well, that seems easy enough."

"Welp, off we go on our no horse open sleigh," Andy said as they began moving, like a normal sleigh for about half a second before the jet engine of evil that was the duct-taped Excalibur Morgan fired off again and they blasted through the landscape, carving a path of destruction through the land. "Hey, Santa, don't you think you're destroying a bit too much with that?"

"Nah, destruction is a part of Christmas don't you know?"

"No. No, I don't know that. Considering it's about a very specific new life being brought into the world, and all." Andy said.

"Have you not seen a Christmas battlefield, where women go shopping for as many presents as possible scrambling over each other to get that last sale. That is pure destruction my Reindeer."

"Yeah, but that's not Christmas, that's rampant consumerism conflating buying things with happiness while ignoring its suppose to be the joy of giving things to people you love to make them happy. I'm really starting to think you've got that Capitalist Santa, and _that's_ why you're 'Lawful Evil.'" Andy said, not looking back at Santa Alter as he steered the sleigh, doing his best to go through only the least-used looking parts of the area. Even if only Servants existed in this world, it was still the principle of the matter.

"We're here Reindeer." Santa Alter said as they came to a stop in front of a cave's mouth. Completely ignoring what Andy had just said.

"Yay." He said flatly. "So do we walk in, or did you want to find a chimney. A cave chimney." He said, deciding logic no longer had meaning when you were a reindeer.

"We shall go the entrance this time, I can sense no chimney here." She answered.

"Understood," Andy said as he got out of the sleigh and was about to enter the cave before remembering Marie's group had attacked them, so it was likely this one might too. "Deploy Stuffy V2.05 #4." He said, and a moment later the child-sized, child-looking Stuffy was standing there. This one looked a lot more like a human than the previous iterations thanks to some handy Rune work smoothing out the textures. The eyes were still iffy, so they just wore sunglasses for now. "Alright Number 4, you're our scout. Run in there and tell them Santa's here." Andy ordered.

"Santa's here, Santa's here!" It replied with childlike cheer. The voice box was better than the previous iteration as well, but could only repeat things for now. It then ran into the cave, continuing to shout 'Santa's here.'

Andy felt the connection to it vanish as it was killed, as he saw through its eyes being munched on by Tarasque.

"Get back in here you fat fuck, we haven't forgotten. let Ushi have your head." Came Martha's cursing.

"That was a fake Santa, we've got the real Santa!" Andy shouted into the cave. "Also, have you never heard about not shooting the messenger?"

"It might have looked like a child, but it felt like a familiar you idiot, and also come in and prove it?" Martha shouted from inside the cave.

"We would if you hadn't just killed my familiar! How about you come out here? If we had the fake, we wouldn't want to be anywhere near you after what he did, right?" Andy yelled back.

"Fucking grow a pair and don't bitch when your toy is broken."

That caused Santa Alter to let out a chuckle in response to the so-called Holy Woman's vocabulary.

"It wasn't a toy HE WAS MY BABY YOU MONSTER!" Andy shouted before launching a Fire Runestone at the mouth of the cave. "Since apparently, you can't fucking see anything, how about a few Christmas lights to brighten things up?" He said.

"Reindeer let me handle this." Santa Alter said. "This needs some serious Santa power." She said as she walked into the cave, and Andy wondered why she hadn't just done that in the first place. A few seconds later Andy heard the sound of punches, with going quiet and Santa Alter stepping out a minute later. "Fixed the situation, the Fake Santa apparently stole all their things after tricking them into signing a few contracts which I have now replaced." She explained flatly.

"Ah. Well, even more, reason not to like that Faker. But, ah, just wondering, why didn't you like...say anything till the end?" Andy asked, now having calmed down a bit and realized he might have gone a little overboard, though he blamed it on the situation.

"That conversation was too funny to interrupt." Was her response.

Andy attempted to glare at her before remembering he was wearing a helmet and just sighed. "Alright, who's next?" He asked resignedly.

"Next up is Gilgamesh of Uruk… Let's just forget that and move on to the next one, shall we? Perhaps we shall just go and deal with the Fake Santa?" She suggested.

"Yeah, let's do that. How are we supposed to find the Jolly Bastard?" Andy asked.

"Hmm, I have an idea-." But whatever Santa Alter was about to say was cut off as thick fog passed through their position. After it passed the two of them found themselves in another place.

"Excuse me miss are you Santa?" Said a young female voice.

"Yeah, are you Santa? The real one?" Said another.

Andy turned his head to see Jack the Ripper in a raggedy cloak and another little white-haired girl, this one wearing a full victorian-looking dress, but...she had ball joints like a doll.

Of course. The ultimate assault on his mind. Murder children.

Xxx

A/N: If you like this and any of my other stories you can donate to my .


	60. A Very Santa Alter Christmas - Part 2

"Yes, I am Santa Claus, now which manner of ghost are you, children? Cause you do not feel like proper Servants? Just more like a fleeting memory?" Asked Santa Alter as the both of them looked at the children.

"Neither Jack or I know what we really are, we just found ourselves here, in the cold. From here we could see the town from our eyes put nobody could see us, not even the one with pink hair. But we wanted warmth." Said the one with purple clothes.

"Alice is right we don't also remember much only our names, and I a sewer."

"And I only remember the hospital, so we wished for warmth, and then he came, and he could see us. The big man in red, we thought he was the Santa they talked about. But he told us he wasn't, but the real one would come if we wished really hard and now you're here." Alice said happily.

"Hmm, Reindeer it seems they managed to summon us to them due to the strength of their wish for warmth. I see you're just memories of girls that have not known love, only loneliness. But here during this Christmas time you've managed to gain a sense of self. Reindeer they might not have written a letter, so should we grant the wish of a warm Christmas and ease their loneliness?" Santa Alter asked Andy.

"Absolutely," Andy said, trying not to tear up at the tragedy these children had gone through. "We're going to make this their best Christmas _ever_."

"Alright you lonely spirits my Reindeer has spoken, despite not having written a letter, I hear your wish, and I shall give you Christmas." Santa Alter spoke as she opened her sack and it seemed to explode with white light, and as it died down. Andy saw that in front of them a giant Christmas Tree had been summoned up with tons of presents beneath it. And he could feel actual heat from the thing as the snow underneath started to melt.

"Wow, thank you, Santa."

"Wow, that's a big tree, and it all warm now. The cold is gone." Jack stated as she touched the green grass beneath her feet.

"You're welcome children, I hope you enjoy it for how little you can."

"And thank you too Mister Reindeer." Jack thanked Andy.

"Of course sweetie, it's Christmas. Everyone deserves happiness on Christmas." He said.

That was then Andy noticed the fog began to appear again, filling the area and obscuring his vision.

"It seems Reindeer, that we have accomplished our mission here." Santa Alter stated, as now Andy could barely see his surroundings.

"And Mister could, you, please summon us the real us, they don't deserve to be cold and lonely like us." Came the voice of Alice and a second later the fog was gone and so was the children and the tree.

"I will," Andy promised right as the mist dissipated. He took a moment now that they were back in the clearing to get his goal back into the forefront of his thoughts- deliver all the presents, have a 'nice chat' with the Faker Santa, and then go home and hope there wasn't another massive time dilation. "Okay, Santa. What now?"

"We still have one last letter that needs to be addressed, but first we shall deal with the interloper that is ruining the good name of Santa." Santa Alter said.

"Right. Do you think he might actually be close to the next letter sender since he seems to be following the same path we are?" Andy asked, recalling how every set of 'children' bar Darius, who had been on a different continent, had interacted with the Fake Santa before them.

"It seems there is a brain in that noggin of yours now let us hit it, we just have to go straight." She said and pointed forward.

"Righty-o, Sandy Claws," Andy said as he hopped into the sleigh, Santa Alter soon joining him. "Mush ghost deer mush!" He joked as he sent them off in the direction Santa Alter had pointed.

They drove through the heavy snow, as Excalibur Morgan served as their engine, it was then they saw a light in the distance probably where their next delivery was, they saw a person in front of them, a large round man dressed in red.

And it was fucking Caesar. Well his early mental joke of him looking like Santa seemed to have come to be.

"CAESAR YOU FAKER SANTA PRICK!" Andy yelled at the Roman Proto-Emperor as they barreled towards him on the sleigh. The Saber barely had enough time to turn around before the sleigh rammed right into him and kept going for a few seconds before the 'engine' turned off and the Saber went flying off the front of the sleigh as their momentum all cut out (thank you magic bullshit). "Santa, he's yours to deal with as you see fit," Andy said as he motioned towards the Roman Saber now embedded in the snowy ground 10 meters away.

"Hmm, yes this righteous punishment isn't it." Santa Alter said as she jumped off the sleigh, and landed next to Caesar, with Andy just watching the show from it.

"So do you have any last prayers?" She asked as the man removed himself from the pile.

"Now, now, let's not be hasty, I know I used the identity of Santa Claus to scam people, but that's just business. They were the ones who mistook me for him the first place, so I just took the opportunity that was presented to me. Now I didn't scam those poor children they were too innocent. So now that you decided to hit and run me are we straight?" He asked nervously with a chuckle.

"Never straight!" Andy quipped from the sleigh out of reflex. "But it's Santa's decision."

"No." Was her simple rebuttal as she took and summoned the dark mana she possed around her fist and proceed to Mana Burst right into Caesar's face sending the fat man straight up into the sky where he seemed to blink like a shooting star.

"Sayonara, Caesar!" Andy saluted the twinkling in the sky, internally amazed that that was an actual thing that could happen. Really reminded him that this was real-life anime. "Alright, Saint Pendragon, off to our next stop?"

"Reindeer I might be Santa, but I'm not a Saint that's a whole different title. Now our last letter is from a french girl living over in that village wanting board games to play. Should be simple enough." Santa Alter said as she sat in the sleigh once again.

"Alright, then on...me I guess?" Andy said as they started off, realizing he was the only 'reindeer' so the whole Dasher Dancer, etc. thing wouldn't work. Though he supposed he did have a 'red nose' right now, so he could be Rudolph.

"Yes, let's go." She ordered, Excalibur Morgan, turning 'on.'

They rocketed off towards the village, it was only a few more miles away, but Andy honestly didn't want to be here much longer. The 'engine' cut out again just before the village enough that they could stop without sending up a wave of dirt and snow, and then continued on at an actual 'normal' pace into the village. "Alright Santa, which house is it?" Andy asked as he traveled along the empty roads.

"I can feel her over in that Inn over there, though I would normally use the chimney. For this one, it's best if we went through the front door." She said pointing at a house with an Inn sign in front of it.

"Alrighty then," Andy said as he parked the sleigh outside the inn and hopped out, before walking up to the door and holding it open for Santa Alter. "Santa's first." He said, doing a half-sarcastic bow.

Santa Alter went inside, and Andy quickly followed and inside they saw… Jeanne d'Arc Alter playing what looked like a board game with a bunch of crying old men, all them the same guy. He looked like the Archbishop from the Castlevania anime, but slightly less fat and more broken. Which was saying something, considering how brutally that one got murdered.

Andy, of course, no longer cared about the fact that it was Jeanne Alter specifically, she didn't really ask to be born from Caster Gilles' wish she wasn't going to hold it against her. But, she was more or less ignoring them, so he walked over to the table, noticing that she was playing Monopoly, and seemed to be more than winning, she was _dominating_ the replicated bishop. "Ah, excuse me, ma'am, there is someone very important here to see you." He said politely.

Jeanne Alter jumped out of her seat while letting out a small eep as she had now brandished her Banner and pointing it at Andy. "What-what the hell are you doing here?" She asked with an embarrassed blush on her face.

"Well, it is a Reindeer's job to lead the way for Santa Claus, isn't it?" He asked, pointing behind him to said patiently waiting Santa, not minding about the banner since she could have just killed him instantly anyway. He knew that probably wasn't what she meant, but if everyone else could mess with him with alternate versions and stuff, he could do it too sometimes, dammit!

"Wha?" She turned her head to look at Santa Alter who was looking at Jeanne Alter. "Bullshit, you're not Santa, if you are, then I am a woman of God." She said sarcastically.

"Congratulations, you're a Saint again," Andy said cheerily. "She really is Santa, miss Holy Maiden."

"Shove that Dragon armor up your ass Andrew, and you stay quiet!" She shouted at the crying priests who had begun shouting for help.

"Andrew? Who is Andrew? That is not my name." Andy said, completely truthfully, enjoying every second of this. "I am simply Santa's humble reindeer."

"I am indeed Santa right now Jeanne. Though I'm surprised, such a hateful woman such as you even wrote a letter to Santa Claus. More the fact you're even able to write in the first place?" She asked.

"I learned okay, my first was horrible chicken scratch but I got better, and now I'm perfect at like everything else I can. Now if you're Santa can I get my board games cause I'm running out and games are fun especially when you're winning in a game like Monopoly the despair on the faces of others when you take their money right in front of them as they land on your property." She

said with a face that Andy really couldn't decipher or would want to.

"What a wicked attitude, you still haven't repented have you? You'll never make friends like that, and you'll definitely never get to be a proper Servant." Santa Alter said.

"Santa, don't be so harsh about Miss Holy Maiden. It's true, but you shouldn't say it so rudely." Andy 'scolded' Santa Alter.

"Why would I ever want to be a proper Servant? I don't want a Master. Especially one like Andrew here, the one who defeated me. I'm fine being alone, I shall repent for my sinful nature all by myself. And I don't need anybody's help." She grimaced.

"I told you, Miss Holy Maiden, I am not Andrew." Andy insisted. "But. Seriously, Jeanne. I know I'm probably not the best to be saying something like this, but...being all alone with horrible thoughts or memories leaves them to fester. And then those rot away at the rest of your mind. I'm not saying I really know how to deal with what you're going through, but...it's better to be alone in a place where you _can_ have someone, then to be completely isolated from everyone and everything." Andy said seriously.

As he finished, he saw Jeanne Alter's expression change from that of a grimace to a more sour expression.

"Well, Jeanne here is your board games, my Reindeer and I shall be taking our leave." Santa Alter said leaving a stack of board games on the table where the replica priests were sitting fearfully.

"You're just like that damn Saint. You know what? Fuck this. Pierre D. Grab the presents we're going back to Purgatory. Cause I'm going to be training my Spirit Origin so that I can become a proper Servant."

"Ah, Miss Holy Maiden. I also have something for you before we leave." Andy said, pulling out an armband. "In case you change your mind." He said as he left it on the pile. Right before he left, he turned back and took off his helmet, showing Jeanne Alter a different person to what she had seen last. "Oh, and like I said, I'm not Andrew. It's Andy now." He said as he looked back at her, before leaving the inn and putting his helmet back on.

"Fuck you, I don't care, Andrew, I'm going to be back with my own Event then I'm going to impale you and that Saint." He heard her shout as the door closed. Though Andy could tell that her voice was brimming with Tsun.

"I _do_ have a potion for that!" Andy shouted back as he hopped into the sleigh with the waiting Santa Alter and started away from the Inn.

"Well, Andy, I have one last present to give, here." Santa Alter said, as in her hand she held a red and blue summoning ticket. "If you ever wish for me to join you at Chaldea you can use this to summon me, though only on Christmas for thematic's sake of course. Any time else would just be awkward."

"Aww, thanks Santa. But, you sure aren't in the Christmas mood then if you think like that. Christmas decorations start in the US on November 1st and end on like Valentine's day if I'm lucky. I will literally make it Christmas all year round if it means getting another Servant on our team." Andy said as he gratefully took the ticket and stored it away.

"Well see you soon." She said, and a second later Andy found himself sitting in on the chair in his Library.

And it seemed it had been physical transportation as he was still wearing Tenfold Shields, and carrying the ticket in his hand.

He quickly activated his armband to check the date as the clock was tied to Chaldea's time To see that it was still December 17th, but it was closer to night. He had spent the entire day being Santa Alter's Reindeer.

Andy then calmly got up and went out of the library, looked down both ends of the hall to make sure this wasn't a trap or something, before storing Tenfold Shields away and making his way to Roman's office. They really needed to tighten their security.

As Andy explained what had happened to Roman, whom hadn't even been aware Andy had left, the doctor-turned-director's expression became more and more blank. When he finished, Roman calmly opened a drawer in his desk and pulled out an unmarked bottle and two glasses.

"Merry Christmas."

Xxx

December 19

"So, Eli, all the decorations are in place?" Andy asked the Halloween Caster as they walked to the Summoning Room, where Mash was already waiting.

"They are all up and running with the exception of the big Christmas Tree in the Dining Hall, cause I'm sure you want to insert the plug as it were," Elizabeth responded.

"Good, good to hear," Andy said. "And the Reindeer project?"

"Huh, can't believe you had me make those 'dad' what are they for anyway? Cause they are going to get annoying quickly if they are going to be running around the halls."

Andy did his best and failed, to smother a grin. "You'll see soon~. It's part of why I brought you down for this summoning." Andy said, having not actually told any of the Servants about the whole 'Santa' situation yet. It was going to be too funny.

"Okay, you had my curiosity, but now you have my attention… Is that how it goes? I'm not actually sure now that I've said it out loud." She said.

"Pretty sure you got it right, Eli," Andy said as he opened the door to the Summoning Room. "Hey Kouhai, everything set up in here?" He asked the Shielder as he walked in, Elizabeth following behind him.

"I am Senpai," Mash said as she greeted them though Andy took notice that she had added an elf hat to her usual attire.

Of course, Andy wasn't one to comment, he was wearing the Reindeer horns again, but with a pink headband, so they blended in better, along with a traditional ugly Christmas Sweater. "Alrighty then, let's kick the Holidays into High Gear!" Andy said as he used the red and blue ticket to summon forth. "I give you! Santa Claus!" He said dramatically, and a moment later the smoke cleared revealing Santa Alter, much to the shock of Mash and Elizabeth.

"Hohoho, I've arrived at your call. Tell me? Have you girls been naughty?" Santa Alter asked.

Elizabeth turned her head towards Andy. "Dad, the fuck? I thought I was your only holiday Servant. But now you replaced me with Santa in miniskirt and thigh highs." She complained.

"Yes, Senpai explain." Said Mash with a confused face.

"Alright, alright, lemme explain," Andy said placatingly. "The other day she reverse summoned me into a kinda-singularity where a bunch of Servants were children that need presents delivered by Santa here so she could cleanse herself of the evil of the Fuyuki Grail, but then we ran into a fake Santa Claus, who was Caesar, scamming the 'kids' out of their money. And then after fulfilling the Christmas wish of actual spirit-spirits of dead children we found the fake Santa and sent him Blasting Off. And then we met Jeanne Alter who was torturing the Bishop who had her burned at the stake using Board Games, and I had a talk with her before Santa, and I left, and then I woke up. And I'm not replacing you, Eli." Andy explained rapidly before talking a few deep breaths.

"..."

"..."

"Impressive and condensed."

Mash sighed. "Senpai, have you been doing drugs to deal with the stress?"

"What? No, no, no, LSD based magecraft enhancements are way out of my field." Andy said seriously. "Anyway, how else do you think Santa Alter here could exist and corroborate my story if it were a drug based hallucination?"

"I would ask if you got Alter to dress up for you and this is just a prank?" Said Elizabeth. "You've done it before with Cat."

"Eli, you became Halloween. Is it really that hard to think someone else could become Santa (aka part of Christmas)?" Andy asked.

"I had a piece of Grail to do it." She responded. "She just picked up the sack or what?"

"I kinda did." Santa Alter responded.

"Santa here is a Rider. Class Changes don't happen very easily, and anyway I can just call for Salter if you want proof it's not just her in a costume." Andy said.

"Senpai is right she is a Rider," Mash said as she held up her armband. Looking at the holographic screen, it was generating.

"Huh really?" Elizabeth said as she tipped her head to look at the screen. "And it's saying that Alter is currently in… Oh my?" She said as a blush appeared on her face.

"In what?" Andy asked as he went over to check the screen. He'd never actually used the system information since he had his Stat-o-Vision, which he realized he hadn't used on Santa yet, but decided to do so after he read... "O _h_. Okay. Well, sword and sheath and all that jazz." Andy said before turning back to Santa Alter. "Well, anyway, welcome to Chaldea Santa. We've still got 5 days to Christmas, you want to help get everything ready?"

"Sure, I can always give some proper Christmas expertise." She said.

"Alright. Then we'll get right to that after this." Andy said. "Deploy The Maiden's Blade." At his words, a plain sheathed sword deposited itself into his hand, the Summoning Ticket in the other. "Alright, let's see if this works." He said as he summoned the newest addition to Chaldea.

The smoke disappeared. "So am I before or after Achilles?" Hector asked

"Before," Andy said simply as he disappointedly stored the sword back into his hammerspace. He'd have to give it back to Gilles later, it was a hell of a hassle convince him to borrow it even for a few hours. "But, welcome to Chaldea Hector. Hope you don't mind working for us considering the whole 'Jason' thing." Andy said, not actually all that worried about Hector's reaction. There hadn't really _been_ any dissidents summoned so far, and if he really did object, well…

Heracles. Wasn't much else to say.

"I don't really, was only their side because Heracles was, how could you not want to fight at that man's side. He did in days what took Achilles and the others years to do. This old man has nothing but respect for him."

"Oh, well, good thing we've got him here then. As a Berserker, but he's still here." Andy said nonchalantly. "Also, you may say you're old, but you really don't look it."

"I was the oldest guy in the Trojan Army, that was active on the battlefield, so every other soldier called me old man. And it's just stuck so much I've begun to call myself that." He answered.

"Oh, ok. How old are you though?" Andy asked since he was pretty sure in those days soldiers were probably younger than him, which was a sobering thought.

"In the middle of my thirties." He said.

"Well, you aren't that old for a Servant in Chaldea then," Andy said. Lancelot at the very least was old enough to be his dad, and the Vlads were definitely (probably) on the older side. And there were probably more, but he was always bad with gauging people's ages beyond 'child' and 'not a child.'

"Yeah, but you kinda are when the rest of your fellow soldiers are half your age." He said.

"True I suppose. Well, you're free to explore the facilities at your leisure then, my Kouhai here has an armband for you for communication and navigation and all that. Oh, wait, actually, before that, what does your 'Proof of Friendship' skill do?" Andy asked.

"I can suppress a Servant's fighting spirit as it were and make them easier to talk and have a dialogue with, though doesn't work well on those with Mad Enhancement and Mental Pollution." He answered.

"Oh, well that sounds incredibly useful for recruiting, I'll keep that in mind for the future. And, to be clear, you Spear can turn into a Sword and can cut through basically anything, right?" Andy asked.

"The spear explodes on impact, and it is basically indestructible which is neat as I tend to break them then I throw them. And afterward, I can retrieve it via a chain that gets attached to the end." He answered. "Don't use it as a sword much, the guy who got it afterward did after that Abrahamic guy blessed it."

"Oh, neat. Maybe you can be included in the next Buster Call if we use Lancers instead of Sabers." Andy said as he envisioned such a thing.

"Yeah, that move was totally unfair you know," Hector complained.

Andy shrugged, a wide grin on his face. "Eh, C'mon, fair is only for Honorable fights or whatever, this is a battle against the extinction of the entirety of humanity, overwhelming firepower is the way to go." He said. "It means I'm being competent."

"Well, that is fair, also might I ask what are those two wearing?" He asked as he pointed at Elizabeth and Santa Alter who were still in the Summoning Chamber.

And chatting away with each other.

"Oh, they're holiday Servants. Eli is Halloween, Santa is Santa." Andy said as if that explained anything.

"That didn't answer anything Master."

"Well, Mr. Hector I agree with that statement, here take this Armband it will help you navigate Chaldea so you can avoid most of the weird Senpai brings along," Mash said as she gave the ancient spearman the Chaldea Armband.

"Oh, c'mon Kouhai, you know they're not my fault. My responsibility, but not my fault." Andy defended himself.

"But you still attract it, like flies too… like bees to a flower." Mash said, quickly correcting herself mid-speech.

"Kouhai you were this close to making the naughty list," Andy said half-jokingly, holding up his pointer finger and thumb barely a centimeter apart. " _This close_."

"I have no idea what you're talking about Senpai, I just said you smelled like flowers." She said with a smug grin.

"O~oh, so you've been keeping track of my scent, have you? Maybe there was another, hidden dog in Chaldea all along…" Andy 'speculated', smirking.

"Did you summon another Cu and hide him somewhere Senpai."

"No, Setanta Claus is next year."

"No, just no." Came the statement from the current Santa.


	61. Christmas and New Years

December 25

"It's Christmas Day Senpai! Are you ready for presents!" Shouted Mash in glee as she barged into Andy's room that early morning after last night Christmas Dinner, which his stomach was still feeling full from.

Andy, of course, was already awake. He'd been preparing for this all week. "The real question is, are _you_ ready for presents, Kouhai?" He asked, smiling at her childlike glee, already knowing full well the answer.

"Yes, I've only gotten gifts from the Doctor, so you be the first person beside him to give me things for Christmas, so are we going to go join the others, so that we can open together. A lot of the Servants have things for you too." Mash responded.

"Well let's get down there then!" Andy said, having honestly forgotten his Servants could get him stuff for Christmas too. He'd been rather focused on making their Christmas Gifts and all.

The Senpai and Kouhai left the Senpais room and headed downstairs to where the others were waiting for them. As they walked through the corridor, Andy could see Mash skipping across the floor, in pure joy of experiencing a proper Christmas with friends and family, cause Lancelot kinda was her pseudo-dad. Along with Roman, and did Da Vinci fill the mother role? Those were thoughts for later.

Now they had arrived right outside the Dining Hall, the area around them covered with Christmas decorations like it had been Halloween. Chaldea went all out for the Holidays, didn't it?

"So, Senpai it's been almost six months, or should I save this question for New Year's Eve?" Mash asked before they entered.

"Uuuhhh sorry what I don't think I caught that? What question?" Andy asked, confused and slightly worried about the question at hand.

"Are you happy being here?" Came the very heavy question.

"Oh. Uhm…" Andy processed the question for a moment. "I guess I am. Saving the world with magic and mystery and intrigue and action, getting to meet all of you, magecraft, dating one of the Paladins of Charlemagne, not dying in the Incineration, I'm in the best shape of my life, being a Spellcaster, being a Senpai, somehow becoming a parent to long dead heroes, magic… Yeah, I'd say I'm happy, given the circumstances."

"Yeah, the parent thing is weird, but thank you for being my Senpai, Andy." Mash smiled.

"Thank _you_ for being my Kouhai, Mash. I'd literally be dead without you." Andy said as he smiled back. "Now then, weren't there presents you wanted to open?"

"Yep, let's head inside, the others are probably wondering where we are." She said.

"Righty-o, Kouhai," Andy said before they entered into the even more highly decorated Dining Hall, a glittering Christmas tree covered in lights and decorations, standing tall in the middle with a star on top made to look like a Saint Quartz. The seven cat sized chimeras were currently napping within the tree, while Autumn was over in the corner of the room. And underneath were a large assortment of boxes of all shapes and sizes with colorful wrapping paper. There was a circle of Stuffys dressed like elves surrounding the presents, cordoning off the premises.

And milling about anxiously waiting was literally everyone in Chaldea. The staff all had a break right now for Christmas morning, and most of the Servants didn't really do anything in Chaldea that was vital to its operation, so everyone was there.

"Merry Christmas!" Came the shout from everyone as they fully entered, followed by either Andy, Master, or personal descriptor that his Servants used when addressing him.

"Merry Christmas everyone!" Was Andy's response, smiling wide at the sheer cheer on display. "Any of ya'll want some presents?"

"You're aping my lines, Master!" Came the shout from Santa Alter.

"Santa comes the night before to deliver 'em, I'm the one here Christmas morning to distribute 'em!" He said back, the Stuffys surrounding the tree nodding in agreement.

"When what are you waiting for let's get to unpacking, let the paper rip!" She shouted.

"I can't believe that you're me." Came the voice of normal Alter.

At that, the Stuffys surrounding the presents each picked up several presents and started giving them to their intended recipients. They only grabbed those made by Andy for others, Andy figuring everyone else would rather give theirs personally or make people work for it.

Everyone got a Team Scarf, now with some Golden Fleece in it and the completed runic designs sewn into them to make them wearable in most weather and be a handy air filter in an emergency.

The Servants who didn't already have one got their chibi-plush, and everyone got a life-sized Fou plush. Including Fou. Who proceeded to mount his doppelganger, and no not like that.

Mash got a box that had a bag of marshmallows on top, and underneath was a lavender colored marshmallow shaped bean-bag with her name on it, along with a note simply saying 'Mashumellow.'

Nobunaga got several Nobu plushies of varying sizes. And a replica AK-47. She found them and it adorable. And then proceeded to brag to Okita that she got her gift before she did.

Georgios got a new camera, which he immediately got to using.

Heracles opened up one of his boxes and stared at it for a bit, before carefully extracting the Illya plush, and gently putting it down with the plush of himself.

Little Gil eagerly opened his first present, before pouting at Andy at seeing the orange outfit within. And then cracked a smile at seeing 'Da Vinci's Super Servant Kart DX~' underneath.

Jeanne got a Sieg plush to go with the one of herself.

Gilles got five Jeanne plushies, each with a different expression or outfit.

Blackbeard's plush had a rather stupid, perverted expression on its face. And, more amusingly, a removable, and re-attachable head.

Saber Alter got an additional plush version of herself that was holding a salt shaker instead of Excalibur Morgan.

Santa's present was easily the largest, and there were six of them to boot. She seemed almost expectant to get said gifts as the Stuffys struggle to carry them over. As soon as they were before her, she tore into them with gusto unbefitting for one calling themselves Santa. And as she opened the first of the six boxes, two horned heads popped out, two proud looking Reindeer standing tall within the box. These two had tags labeling them as Dasher and Dancer. Soon the other artificial Reindeer were freed from their boxes, standing by and waiting expectantly for Santa to do anything other than looking at them with actually pretty well-concealed excitement.

Lily got a small coupon book, much to her confusion, until she flipped through it and saw that each was for 'one free girls night out.'

Leonidas got a Bly-Ray copy of 300.

Caster Cu opened his oblong present to see a spear the exact same size and shape as Gae Bolg, but green. Which sent him into a joyous laughing fit, Lancer Cu giving him a look until he saw the present and gave Andy a betrayed look. "I thought I was your Lancer Cu?" He asked.

"And you are, duh. It's not just the weapon that makes a Servant." Andy replied, a wide grin on his face. "Everyone knows that Lancer ga shinda and Casters don't."

"Hate, Master all of my hate." He said before breaking into laughter not being able to hold the sour expression before cracking.

"Hey, enough of that and you might become a Berserker!" Andy joked.

"You wish."

"Exactly~," Andy said before continuing distributing gifts with the Stuffys.

Elizabeth got a copy of The Nightmare Before Christmas.

Spartacus, of course, got a copy of the movie Spartacus, and two more suits.

The French Group all got plushies of their entire group, the Sanson one also having a removable head. And Mozart's holding the sheet music for 'Leck mich im Arsch.'

And d'Eon got both a formal dress and a suit.

Anne and Mary got the full box set of the Pirates of the Caribbean.

Drake got a plush of Bombe, and her original hat.

Vlad, and Vlad, both got a copy of Castlevania.

Kintoki got a stamp that put the word 'Golden' in sparkling gold letters without any ink on things, and a sheet of golden star stickers.

Kojiro got a plush recreation of his cutting a swallow from the air, plus some additional swallow plushies.

Chiron got a plush of his 'human' form and one of what Andy thought his actual centaur form might look like, in the plush style.

Romulus got a 'YMCA' t(Y) shirt.

Emiya got a plush recreation of Rin Tohsaka, and another with an extremely exaggerate tsundere expression.

Asterios got a t-shirt that simply said 'I'm Best Boy.' Which gained new meaning when Euryale opened a present and got a shirt that said 'If lost, return to Best Boy.'

Medusa got a smiling Sakura plush, no jokes or visual puns, just a smiling Sakura.

David got a t-shirt that said 'I killed Heracles 8 times and all I got was this lousy t-shirt'.

Ushiwakamaru got more clothes and a big blue button. Not connected to anything, just a button. She cautiously pressed it, and it said "Decapitation!" with a guitar riff.

Nero got the sheet music for Jingle Bells. "Master, this Holiday might, be celebrating that boy, but I very much like the gift-giving aspect of it, and with this, I shall surpass, Elizabeth as the best songstress."

Andy grinned. "Well, only one way to tell, right? Mozart, play Jingle Bells! It's time for a sing-off!"

And so the gift giving was temporarily interrupted as Nero and Liz 'Sang' at each other, the two seemed to have what the other lacked in terms of singing talent, Liz having an excellent tone, but no tune. And Nero singing on point by was completely tone deaf to her own voice.

As they did, Andy enjoying every minute of it, he got out one present from under the tree personally and walked over to Roman. "Hey, Boss. Merry Christmas." He said as he handed the doctor-turned-director the box while everyone else was too busy either ignoring or listening to the music.

"Thanks, Andy you didn't need to really." He said as he unpacked the present. It being another plushie, this one being of his Shit Waifu, Magi Mari the very abusive idol. Though Andy figured that the man had a fetish for it, though he did not judge at all considering what he and Astolfo had done together.

"Sorry for callin' yer waifu shit, Boss," Andy said. "Oh, and if you _really_ want, I can make you a Stuffy version."

"No," Was the simple rebuttal. "Also Know Your Meme Andy every Waifu is trash."

"Psh, that's only for them pixel waifu's, you got a crush on that idol girl ain'tcha? You even made an AI for her and everything, so she can't be too trash." Andy joked.

"Your just jelly, and I think it's time for your Christmas presents, though I think Da Vinci wants to say something to you and has something for you," Roman said pointing a finger over the genius sipping coffee while looking at the two of them.

"Me? Jelly? Bitch, my boyfriend is a Paladin, I ain't need your shitty waifu." He said with exaggerated motions and exaggerated hurt before grinning. "Merry Christmas Doc." Andy said before going over to where Da Vinci was; but as he did he said, "Oh, and try giving her a squeeze, I'm sure you'll appreciate it~."

Roman curiously squeezed the plush and the squeaker within actually produced words. "Kill yourself!" It said in Magi Mari's cutesy, upbeat voice, getting a chortle out of Roman.

Andy was grinning wide as he made his way over to Da Vinci. The Sing-off between the two 'idols' had now moved on to other songs, and several others were joining in. Seemed the 'Party' part of the Christmas party was kicking in.

"Merry Christmas, Da Vinci," Andy said as he got closer. She'd already opened the hand-knit chibi recreation of her own Mona Lisa with her current face he had made.

"Merry Christmas to you too Andy, and thanks for the painting, so I wanted to give you this for Christmas, you might recognize it." She said as pulled something out from her pocket it was a card with a picture on it.

A Craft Essence, like the one he had seen Santa Alter had given out.

"Thanks. But, uh, what is it, exactly? What does it do?" Andy said as he looked at the picture of what looked like a dragon made entirely out of fire in front of a volcano.

"This Craft Essence is meant to be specifically used by Arturia Alter, to allow for the temporary use of her Dragon Core. This is why you don't get a Summon Ticket today. I made this instead. So now you have the option of either getting one of these to empower your Servant further or Summon a new one. I have to thank Santa Alter for allowing these to be created. They were originally a project to empower a Servant further than what their Saint Graph would normally allow. By summoning a shard of their legend in this kind of format." Da Vinci said. "I call these Bond CEs."

"That...that sounds like a pretty damn good boon," Andy said, a bit awed by how these little cards could make his Servants stronger. "Especially since we have so many Servants right now; I've been trying to think of ways to make them stronger, but this would...focusing on strengthening out existing Servants and then moving on to acquiring additional ones through Tickets if we acquire the right catalyst…" Andy muttered out his plan for the future as he thought of the ramifications of such a thing. "Do _you_ choose who gets them or is it sort of random?" He asked.

"You can choose, who gets it but the effect can vary widely." She answered.

"How widely? Like, if I said to make one for Heracles would it enhance his divinity or something? Or is it more like you don't know the actual effects till after its complete?"

"I don't know the effect until it's made, like with Herc he could get a small use out of God Hand, or access to Cerberus."

"Cerber- You _absolutely_ need to make Heracles' next," Andy said, a giddy expression on his face at the thought of seeing the actual Kerberos, the original Spot.

"Sure thing I do that next week. Though I think that your Servants have presents to give you Andy." She said, as Nero and Liz had finished their contest and now the Servants stood with packages in their hands.

"Oh. Oh, right!" Andy said, turning to his Servants. "You know you guys didn't have to do anything, right? The fact you all answered my summons was a pretty good gift."

"Yeah, but this is from us to you, as the great Master that you are," Lily said, as she walked over to Andy and handed it to him.

It was a custom made ribbon for his long pink hair.

"Aw _w_ w, sweetie, thank you," Andy said. "I'll make sure to use it in the future."

"I hope so 'dad.'" She responded with a grin.

And so the presents from the others came rolling in, and they were kinda in the same vein as his own, small stuff based on them. Some of the highlights were, a cooking book from Emiya, a scented candle from Darius supposed to smell like gold, a book on economics from David, from the Tamamo's he got another book, one about the duties of a wife, from Romulus he got a small tree, from Medea he got her Gender Bender Potion, a dozen bottles. And so and so on.

Until it was finally Mash's turn, his Kouhai standing in front of him holding his gift behind her back. "Merry Christmas Senpai." She said as she held it out for him to take.

Andy took the present with a smile. "Merry Christmas to you too, Kouhai, thank you." He said before opening the lighter than it looked box, to find a book with another smaller box on top of it. He took out the smaller box but didn't open it yet, first picking up the leatherbound book and opening it to find tons of drawings, images of their adventure so far in the various Singularities, along with comments from the various Servants, along with signatures.

"That one is more from all of us but, I came up with the idea and drew all the pictures, but the smaller one is my personal one to you Senpai," Mash said.

Andy was at a bit of a loss for words at the effort she had put into the book. He gave her a grateful smile and opened the smaller present as well, to find a necklace shaped as Mash's Shield, with the words 'To protect the one most precious to me.' written on the back of it.

Andy actually gasped a little at the inscription, before looking back up at Mash. "I...I don't know what else to say but, Thank you, Mash."

"You're welcome Senpai." She responded with a smile.

Andy then put on the necklace (damn, three necklaces now, and two of them were crosses for completely different reasons).

"Hey, Andy you have to come to my room if you want to see my present for you." Whispered Astolfo in his ear.

"Hey to you too~. I was going to say the same thing, but I guess I can bring my present to your room then." Andy whispered back.

"Okay, see you tonight then." He answered back and slithered away to probably bug the other French Servants.

Andy shook his head at the Rider's enthusiasm, before turning to everyone. "Hey, I know we've got a pretty white Christmas going with the walls, but anyone up for a White Christmas?" He said, and at that a group of fluffy plushies shaped like clouds with little faces arose from a previously untouched box, the Runes along them beginning to glow as they moved, first giving the Tree a nice dusting of powdery snow before spreading throughout the dining hall, mostly moving towards the areas where there had been some 'yeahs'.

And so Christmas party continued for the rest of the day, with various games, songs snacks, and pretty much a second Christmas Eve dinner.

And now Andy was walking towards Astolfo's room, that evening to show Astolfo his personal present, the rather sizeable box being carried by some Stuffys, but when the door opened, Andy saw.

"Hello Master, how can this maid service you tonight?" Astolfo asked while wearing a french maid outfit.

Andy was thrown for a bit of a loop, not having expected Maid Astolfo. "Uhm, well, maybe, uh…" he stumbled, before deciding on a course of action and smiling. "Well, I've come to see my favorite maid; I even brought a present. Maybe you'd like to...open it?"

"Oh, my Master you're so generous to gift things, to a lowly servant such as myself," And it seemed he was fully into the roleplay already.

Astolfo opened the box to find...a second Andy, clad in what seemed to be little but a mass of ribbons, staring up at him and wiggling his eyebrows. "Well hello there, my favorite maid~. It seems you've met my...twin, as it were." He said with a grin as he stood up in the box, the Stuffys helping him out of it.

The first Andy gave Astolfo a certain look. "Well? Aren't you going to...unwrap your present?" He said, motioning to the one wrapped in ribbon.

"Okay, Master what?" Astolfo asked temporarily breaking character.

The one in ribbons laughed. "Well, y'know I've been working on ways of Not Dying in combat right? Well, my Stuffys can get pretty damn close to resembling a human being. All I needed was some pieces of me to get the connection right for the Runes, and now-."

The one not in ribbons spoke with him. "I can be in two places at once!" The first continued. "Sorta. Probably wouldn't fool any smarter enemies, and it doesn't actually have proper fleshy bits, but this is kind of just the test run."

"Oh, okay," Astolfo responded. And coughed a few times. "Oh my? Two Masters? What naughty things are you going to have wrought on my maiden body?"

They both smiled, the more clothed one closing the door and activating the Bounded Field sound blocker. "O~oh, you have no idea~."

xxx

December 31

It was once again party time with it being New Year's Eve.

Andy was standing next to Roman, the good Doctor, having a drink. He could easily guess that he wanted to talk to him about something.

"Nyeh, what's up Doc?" Andy asked. He was just drinking the non-alcoholic punch, he'd knew damn well he'd do something stupid if he drank any alcohol.

"Hello to you too, Mr. Bugs Bunny. So a brand New Year, huh Andy. And we are the only ones who can celebrate it." He stated.

"Ah. Yeah." Andy said, a good amount of cheer gone as he remembered that part. If it weren't for the fact that humanity was already basically extinct, he'd be having the time of his life, but apparently, the good times did little but remind of the whole situation for everyone. "Real shame, that."

"It is, but to make it worse, this might be the last if we don't succeed this year," Roman said.

"Yeah, I suppose that's true," Andy said. That part wasn't really as bad, he'd been fearing every day would be his last for like two month straight, that part he'd come to terms with. "But, there isn't a doubt in my mind that we'll fail. Not with everyone we have here. Not with Mash's indomitable will. Hell, we got friggin _Heracles_ on our side, plus like, what, 60-some other servants?" Andy asked, having legitimately lost count. "And then we got you, Boss, directing us while Da Vinci does What Da Vinci Does, and all the staff keep everything running. For being the last bastion of humanity, I'd say we've been dealt a pretty damn good hand, all things considered."

"It's not that Andy, I've been doing some math and well, we are on a literal time limit, we are living paradox, and by the end of next year it's going to resolve, and well we will not be feeling so good if I was to describe it." He said. "So this is going to be my New Years promise, ensuring that we will succeed no matter what."

"Oh," Andy said, before resolving himself. "I'll make the same promise right with ya then, Roman. We _will_ succeed before the end of 2018. Humanity will be back in full swing quicker than you know it."

"That's good to hear Andy, oh and it seems the countdown will be starting in a minute, so are you ready?" He asked.

"You know it, Boss," Andy said, smiling as he watched the recreation of New York Elizabeth had made for New Years, Times Square bigger than the rest of it for the ball drop.

Elizabeth herself was standing by at a control panel she had set up, barely contained eagerness on her face.

The clock ticked down.

10

9

8

7

They all began to count down voices getting higher and higher.

3

2

1

"Happy New Year!" They all shouted which was followed by the sound of crackers being pulled, cause sadly they couldn't fire off fireworks, at least the big kind. There were the little firework stations on the model that Liz had spent hours on making.

When Andy had told Liz about that limitation earlier in the week, she had been rather disappointed, until Andy promised that she'd be able to set off some bigger ones next time they were in a Singularity.

Astolfo quickly made his way over to Andy, or as Andy had joked 'As- _tall_ -fo' since he had taken the enlargement potion to be just short of Andy's height, to test how it felt doing it that way.

"Hey, Andy what a nice show that Elizabeth made, wish we could have the bigger ones." He said.

"Yeah, one of the constraints of Chaldea I guess," Andy said, before looking into Astolfo's eyes. "...Y'know, there's a certain tradition in modern times for couples on New Years."

"Oh, and what is that?" He asked it was so weird being at eyes height with Astolfo even after a few days of being so. Though the Paladin was getting tired of it and would probably change back soon. He preferred being smol.

"Well, couples are supposed to kiss as the New Year starts. We might have missed the exact start, but…" Andy said, smiling, eyebrow raised.

"Well, we better get on that right." He stated.

Andy grinned, before their lips locked together, though not full french, but Andy did taste strawberries on his boyfriend's lips.

When they pulled apart one long moment later, Andy was smiling again. "Happy New Year, Astolfo."

"Happy New Year, to you too Andy. So, didn't you say you wanted to save the potion for tonight when we talked about it earlier?" He asked.

"Oh, yeah, right, almost forgot," Andy said, a moment later the bottle appearing in his hand. "You sure you don't wanna try it, Astolfo?" He asked, half-jokingly.

"Nah, I only dress like a girl because I find it cute, I'm not as fluid in my identity as you are." He said.

"Figured," Andy said, before looking at the bottle. He had, what, 48 doses? If he switched every...week or so, he'd be good till the end of the year. And, more importantly, this one wouldn't (hopefully) have the same side-effects as the Ishtar variation. Medea said this version didn't have any, but it was magic, Andy was certain there would eventually be something. Which is why he was going to be switching often, just in case. "Well, bottoms up." He said, before drinking a dose.

A moment later, Andy was once again female. And Astolfo was now taller than her. "Ok, everything seems to be in the right place." She said as she patted herself down to make sure there weren't any anomalies, and there wasn't. She nodded to herself. "Alright. New Year, new me. Let's move forward and save the world!"

"That's my Andy, though I can't decide if your male or female is the prettier one of the two." Astolfo flirted.

"Oh you know I'm fabulous 24/7~." Andy flirted back.

"That you are, now shall we join the others?" He asked.

"That we shall," Andy said before they joined up with the main group in the center of the room where everyone was crowded around the refreshments table, a very tired but content looking Emiya standing by.

Seemed like a pretty good start to the New Year.


	62. London Fog

January 2

It was the second day of the new year as Andy sat by the table enjoying her breakfast together with the others. Mash and Astolfo, sat right next to her with Lily sitting across from her.

The morning silence was broken by Da Vinci and Roman entering and him saying. "Good news, everyone we have the precise coordinates for the next Singularity."

Andy nodded and quickly finished up her breakfast. "We're heading out immediately, I assume?" She asked.

"Yep, the destination is going to be London 1888," Roman told her.

"Londinium oh Andy can I come along? Please, mother?" Lily asked with winking puppy eyes.

Andy didn't even try to protest, knowing full well she couldn't resist. "Alright, so you're on the roster for the initial party. Anyone else wants to go?" She asked of the Servants currently in the Dining Hall.

"I wish to go along. Hopefully, a few worthy opponents will show up," Gilgamesh announced as he stood up.

"Alright, so Lily and Gilgamesh. Liz cause I promised her...Boudica, and...Mata Hari? Yeah, that seems good." Andy said to herself before standing up. "Alright, let's get going."

The chosen Servants quickly finished their food and made their way to the coffins ready to be Rayshifted.

"Now Andy, do remember that this is London right as the Industrial Revolution took off, so be careful where you aim," Roman said over the coffins internal coms as he engaged the system.

"Understood. Sticking to the scalpel for now. Keep Heracles on standby for the inevitable chainsaw." Andy said before the Rayshift completed.

Andy saw the usual Rayshift tunnel, and soon enough she found herself standing on hard cobblestone along with her Servants.

Though their surroundings were made of dense fog which made the visibility almost nil, heck she was barely able to see most of her Servants because of how dense it is.

"So, this is Londinium or is it London. Already I can tell it's much different to the one I burned to the ground." Boudica stated as she looked around. "But this fog it not natural, it's brimming with mana. And I can barely sense anything."

"Yes, this fog is not natural also, it's filled with." Gilgamesh took out his tongue before pulling it back in. "Sulphur?"

"Must be due to the heavy industry, this isn't as much fog, but rather smog. But Boudica is right it's brimming with magical energy." Mash stated.

"Oh, great, that's just great," Andy said, panic leaking into her voice as she realized she was in London in the midst of a mana-suffused fog, and she had just met (a version of) Jack the Ripper a few weeks ago, _and everyone here but Gilgamesh was female_. "Hey, uh, think I might have to swap some...most of you out, things are lining up way to well for (a version of) Jack the Ripper to show up here, and I'm pretty sure they always have a lot of Anti-female abilities," Andy said worriedly.

Andy's thoughts stopped, and everyone went quiet as they heard the sound of clanking armor through the streets.

And Andy heard a familiar female voice yell. "What are you idiots doing outside… Father?" Said the form of Mordred as she became visible to them.

"Sir Mordred it's good to see you." Lily greeted the Knight of the Roundtable. "What a surprise to see you here."

In the meanwhile, Mordred was just looking flabbergasted as she stared at Lily. "Bwuh, Father." She just sputtered out again.

"Well, technically not yet anyway," Lily responded.

"Sir Mordred, yes? It's a pleasure to meet you, but what were you saying before about being outside?" Andy asked. Either Mordred had been patrolling the streets to protect them, or to clear them, and she preferred to know in advance whether a new Servant showing up would be an enemy or not. Which was when Andy realized Mordred's helmet was down and used her Stat-o-Vision on the Knight of Treachery.

[spoiler=Mordred's Stat Sheet]

True Name: Mordred

Class: Saber

Master:-

 **Parameters:**

Strength: B+

Endurance: A

Agility: B

Mana: B

Luck: D

Noble Phantasm: A+

 **Class Skills:**

Riding: B

Magic Resistance: B

 **Personal Skills:**

Battle Continuation: B

Mana Burst: A

Instinct: A

Helm of Hidden Infidelity: EX

Charisma: C-

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Clarent: Radiant and Brilliant Royal Sword(Anti-Unit): C

Clarent Blood Arthur: Rebellion Against My Beautiful Father(Anti-Army): A+

[/spoiler]

"I thought you were civilians. Cause only idiots would be outside in this poisonous fog if that didn't do them in. The Homunculi, Automatons or the Helter Skelter would have killed them." She answered her.

"Homunculi, Automatons, and _the what_?" Andy asked.

"Well, the Automatons are like mannequin doll things, but the Helter Skelter are big clunky robots." She answered.

"Sir Mordred how did this situation come about?" Lily asked.

"W-well I don't really know the fog appeared and covered the entirety of London four days ago, along with the monsters. I found myself summoned three days ago. I've been out on the streets killing as many as I can during the day. Thankfully they don't enter the houses and attack the people inside." She answered while trying to avoid making eye contact with her.

"Do you have any idea where they're coming from? Like, where they show up most or something?" Andy asked. There were murder machines on these streets, and she wanted to clear them. And harvest them for materials, but that was a secondary concern.

"Don't know the Doctor theorized that they spawned directly from the Fog." She answered.

"The Doctor?" Andy asked, for just a moment entertaining the thought of it being _the_ Doctor; they were in London, time travel was involved, and she was already in a world she'd previously thought to be fictional.

"The guy I'm staying with while sleeping. He has a medical degree."

"Hmm, could you introduce us to this doctor Moedred?" Liz asked. "Cause this fog is messing with my hairdo."

"Why, did you bring her along Master?" Mata Hari asked as looked flatly at the complaining idol.

"I made a promise, Assassin, and I keep my promises," Andy said with no hesitation. "But she does have a good point, it probably would be best, for now, to meet up with Sir Mordred's doctor friend, he might have more useful information."

"Of course that is a sensible solution Master," Gilgamesh said.

And so they began their trek towards the good doctors home through the city of London.

Andy and Mordred were walking beside each other when the Knight of Treachery began talking. "So you're Father's Master, right? So who are you?" She asked.

Which was of course exactly why she was walking beside the Knight. "I'm Andy Murphy, the sole Master of Chaldea, and first-generation Spellcaster. I'd take off my helmet, but I'm pretty sure I'd die cause of this fog." She introduced herself. "It is an honor to meet you, Sir Mordred." She said as she extended a hand to the Knight.

Said Knight blinked a few times before she took it. "A pleasure to meet you too I guess. Though I have a question."

"Ask away, I'll answer anything you ask that isn't completely confidential."

"Why does Father look like an Angel?" She asked.

"Ah, that. She's the 'Lily' version of your Father, from just after pulling Caliburn from the stone." Andy answered. "Also, if you think she looks like an Angel now, wait till you see the photos from Halloween."

"I see, it just that I have never seen Father smile, and seeing Father like that makes my heart hurt and I don't know why." She whispered.

"Well, maybe since you can actually see Lily's emotions now instead of the impassivity you're used to, you're realizing that she does, in fact, have emotions and probably did care at least a little bit more about you than you thought?" Andy whispered back, not actually sure if she was anywhere close to right.

That caused her to have a thoughtful expression on her face, but she suddenly _moved_ and swung her sword, and Andy heard the cling that was created as metal, hit metal. And on the ground, Andy saw a pair of familiar purple knives.

"Shit, I forgot to swap everyone out, everyone stay on the defensive for a moment!" Andy said as she frantically swapped out the majority of her female Servants, for now, she really didn't want to risk an instant-kill. In a flash, everyone but Mash and Gilgamesh were replaced, with Diarmuid, Caeser, Sanson, and Arash. "Everyone, stay on the lookout for a white-haired child wearing inappropriate clothes! Mash, Mordred, be careful her Noble Phantasm is basically anti-female."

"Wah, that is so unfair." Said a girls voice from inside the fog. "You replaced my mothers, now I can't be inside of them. But that fog and my Mist aren't affecting you so you must all be like me and Father."

"Yes, they are dear. We have some Servants to take down." Said a male voice.

"But I can have those three as my Mothers?" Said the female voice again.

"Of course dear they are yours to have, for, after all, we are both Natural Born Killers! From Hell" At that, the male's voice began to change, and a loud roar was heard as several monstrous figures were seen in the fog.

"Oh, mother of fuck," Andy said as it registered that somehow they were up against _several_ , or at the very least 2, Jack the Rippers. She tried using her Stat-o-Vision on the nearest one and surprisingly actually got a result.

[spoiler=Jack The Ripper's Stat Sheet]

True Name: Jack the Ripper

Class: Berserker

Master: ?

 **Parameters:**

Strength:-

Endurance:-

Agility:-

Mana:-

Luck:-

Noble Phantasm: A+

 **Class Skills:**

Mad Enhancement: EX

 **Personal Skills:**

Thousand Faces: A

Wanderer of the Misty Night: B

 **Noble Phantasm:**

From Hell: The Evil Mist Will Perish With London's Daybreak(Anti-Army): E-A+

Natural Born Killers: Thou Art Unworthy of a Tragic Demise(Anti-Army): B

[/spoilers]

She then used it on the other ones and got the same result. "Oh _fuck_. Okay, all those things are Jack the Ripper, and then there's also the murder child one somewhere here, so kill all those monsters things! Mordred, Mash, stay with me, the murder child is probably coming right for us! I don't think they have any anti-male abilities but still be careful guys, I don't think those things will stop coming till they're all dead!" Andy ordered.

And so the fight broke out as the demon Jacks rushed their position, the boys cutting them down easily. They did not seem to be very durable, but they were strong as she saw one of them utterly wreck the cobblestone beneath Gil's feet as jumped to avoid a fist swung his way before kicking it making it puff.

In the meantime, they were watching out for little Jack while punching out a few of the demons. Andy even found herself punching one to smoke. They were utter brutes with no fighting style, and she had been taught for months by the best there were.

Though little Jack was constantly being a little nuisance as she seemed to have high agility, as she jumped around the fog and threw daggers at them at various angles always from a new position.

"Come out here you little shit." Mordred cursed as she batted away another dagger. "So Andy you and Ms. Shieldy got a plan?" She asked.

"Please don't call me that," Mash responded. "I hate this fog can't sense her position."

"I think I might be able to deal with that for just a little bit," Andy said, deploying the claws. "Wind Cannon." At her words, the box transformed into long, thick tube that seemed hollow, but had a handle and a trigger in the middle. "Alright, this may or not work, but if it does Mordred you need to go for the kill, got it?" She asked as she aimed the rocket launcher-esque 'cannon' at the area little Jack had just thrown a dagger from, which Mash blocked.

She pressed the trigger and fired, and it seemed she rolled that luck check as on the ground now visible was the scantily clad Jack looking at them with shocked eyes.

"Got you!" Mordred yelled, and with Mana Burst she threw Clarent at the Assassin that barely managed to dodge as her left arm was shot off.

"Argh it hurts, it hurts!" She cried out, and within a second a demon Jack grabbed her and then it, and the rest vanished from the area.

"Okay, looks like that worked, but stay alert everyone they'll definitely be back for revenge," Andy ordered as she cautiously approached where Jack had been standing when they had attacked, and finding the severed forearm of the Assassin, still clutching tightly one of her knives. Andy carefully picked it up and removed the knife from the stiff hand. "Well, this is…" She mumbled to herself as she curiously tried using her Stat-o-Vision on the severed limb, to no avail.

"Store Sample Designation L:1 and L:2." She said, the arm and knife disappearing into her Hammerspace before she turned back to Mordred and her Servants, who had been watching her with various levels of disgust on their faces. "What? Resources are Resources." Andy said indignantly since she herself felt a bit bad about it considering she was basically treating a child's arm the same way as dragon scales.

"Well, we really should have expected an ambush Senpai, this is Whitechapel after all, according to my map of the city," Mash said as she looked at the holographic screen that her armband produced.

"...Hindsight's 20-20, Kouhai. Let's just get out of here and get to Mordred's doctor friend." Andy said as she cursed herself internally for not thinking to check the map.

The Servants nodded, and they all now ran towards the location, to get there at a brisker pace, and to try and avoid another ambush.

"Well, this is the place," Mordred said as they stood in front of a well-made house that was five stories or so high with a little garden out front.

"This must be a pretty well-off doctor of yours, Sir Mordred," Andy said.

"Yep, he has maids, cooks and cleaners and all that. Let's go inside." She said as she opened the door. And Andy heard the most feminine British voice she had ever heard in person.

"Ah, Sir Mordred your back, and I see that you've brought along guests too. We shall have tea set over, the good Doctor is in the living room." Andy saw a woman talking, who was very ordinary looking and wearing an English maid outfit.

Andy quietly followed Mordred into said living room, while wondering how bad the last few days must have been since that maid didn't even look slightly surprised at her motley crew of Servants.

She stowed away her armor after seeing Mordred do so as well and saw that she was wearing her Apocrypha casual outfit.

"Sup Doc." Mordred greeted the man inside who was sitting at a table writing.

"Ah, hello Mordred I see that you have brought along guests." He stated as he saw Andy and her posse.

"Yep, met them outside, they are here to help with the situation."

"Oh thank God. Hopefully, with more hands on deck, this nightmare be over sooner than later. Now I guess you're the leader?" He asked addressing Andy.

"Correct," Andy said as she quickly tried her Stat-o-Vision on the doctor, but he seemed to be completely alive. "I am Andy Murphy, and my team and I have come here specifically to deal with the source of the fog." She said, extending a hand to the doctor.

He took it and introduced himself. "Yes that Demonic fog out there is pure evil, it has already claimed thousands of lives. Though nice to meet you, Miss Murphy. I am Doctor Henry Jekyll."

"Henry Jekyll?" Came the question from Mash.

"Oh, you've heard of me?" He asked.

"Yes, in a book." She answered.

"Not heard of one using my name it is rather unique even in London. Might try and track it down later. Now I guess that Mordred has explained the Fog to you?" Jekyll asked.

"Sir Mordred has explained that its deadly and spawning monsters, but any information about it could prove useful in getting rid of it," Andy asked.

"Sadly I don't know anymore about it, and I have been on the case as it were since it appeared. But due to my status, I have a rather large information network. Which I've been using to gather information, and one of my friends have made a discovery regarding the Demonic Fog. As unlike myself Victor Frankenstein The Third is an actual Magus." He explained.

"Victor Frankenstein?" Andy asked, shocked. If it weren't for the 'the third' part, she would have very much so been questioning how far back the alterations went for this singularity, but as is she was still rather confused, since if she remembered the book right. (she really should have checked the 'actual' version of the history beforehand.) the Monster killed Elizabeth Frankenstein soon after she married Victor, so how he had any children was confusing.

"The grandson of the first Victor. He is one of my close friends we went to college together." He explained. "Though I guess you read that book by Shelly haven't you?"

"Unfortunately, that is the closest record I have read to the actual event. My...superiors didn't dain to inform me of the 'real' version."

"Well, it is very close with the exception of one fact that Victor retold his story. Elizabeth managed to survive their wedding night due to her Magic Crest keeping her alive. And so nine months later gave birth to her son. She died five years ago to natural causes." He explained.

"Ah," Andy said dumbly. "I see. You said that Victor had made a discovery though?"

"Yes, but I'm very concerned as for the past hour I've been trying to contact him, but he hasn't responded. So I wondered if you could go to his Mansion in Regent Park to retrieve him?"

"We'll be off at once. We can't let valuable information slip through our fingers." Andy then realized she sounded a _bit_ too much like a Magus for her tastes. "We'll do our best to find him and bring him back alive and...as well as one could be in this fog," Andy said.

"Glad to hear that," Jekyll responded.

"Sir Mordred, do you wish to accompany us?" Andy asked the Knight of Treachery.

"Of course I've been by the mansion before and let me tell you that place has Magical Defences that even makes me nervous." She said. "Though when we get back, could you summon Father back?"

"Maybe," Andy said. "I'm trying to keep the amount of female servants low for when Jack, Jack, and Jack: Murder Incorporated show up again."

"Just here I want to talk to Father properly." She said while looking down.

"...How about after we get back, Victor's probably on a very short timescale right now." Andy said.

"That's what I said, but okay." She responded.

"Alright, then everything's settled, let's go," Andy said, and soon the seven servants and Andy were out the door and heading towards the Mansion. Soon after they left, however, Andy swapped out Sanson for Medea. Mordred gave her a dirty look at that. "Hey, I said I'm keeping it to a _minimum_ , but if those defenses are as good as you say we're going to need her if they're still intact."

"You're correct as always Andy," Medea said as she floated beside them.

" _Oh, and prepare to extract a Magical Crest, we might be finding a corpse instead of an informant,_ " Andy said to the Caster telepathically.

" _Understood Master."_ She responded.

Mordred lead them all to Victor's mansion and on the way they did run into some enemies namely the mooks that Mordred had told them about earlier.

"Okay, as soon as we aren't on a limited time frame we are _definitely_ collecting as many of those as possible," Andy said as they continued onwards towards the Mansion away from the mangled bodies of the mooks. Of particular interest to her were what Mordred had called 'Helter Skelters' since they were just straight up giant robots, and Andy _very much so_ wanted at least one.

Though it seemed as something was about to go well, the universe decided to give them all a middle finger as they made their way to the front gates of the Mansion.

The entire thing exploded into flames.

And from the flames, Andy heard a sickening laughter.

xxx

A/N: If you like my stories you can support me on P A Treon. And Yes the laughter is Mark Hamil's Joker. Cause that is the perfect Mephistopheles dub voice.


	63. Servants of London

Andy watched as a figure left the burning wreckage of a building, and she found the laughter he had let out very fitting in regards to his appearance.

"Tick, tick boom, boom went the good Victor high into the air, and my what do we got here a Master and Servants? What a wonderful surprise I wish, I had a proper Master. Instead of a fellow Demon. Huhuahah." The Servant said and laughed like he was on sugar high, but his voice was fucking Mark Hamill's Joker, so he went high up on Andy's threat level.

But his words had potential. "Well, if you'd like I can be your Master, I have the means to break your previous contract if you'd like, and I can contract you," Andy said, ignoring, for now, the fact he had just blown up their only source of information since he if they could recruit him he would be far better.

"Andy, what the fuck?" Asked Mordred as she looked at her.

"Oh that would be nice, but I would rather be summoned so I could stab you in the back and betray you like a proper Servant should Uhaha." He said. "Why don't you do it to see that sweet face of despair on her?" His eyes were directly on Mash.

"I would never betray Senpai." She stated as she brought up her shield to bear.

"Yup, okay, murder time. Bombardment." Andy ordered while pointing at the strange clown.

"Oh, it's fighting now. Well time to introduce myself." The clown said as he jumped around like an acrobat narrowly avoiding Arash's arrows, though as Medea's beams were about to hit a barrier appeared in front of him. "I am Mephistopheles of the Caster Class. Now have you all heard the Ticking Bomb!" He shouted as he threw his scissor that transformed into a belt of stopwatches that snaked its way to their group. "Kaboom!" He shouted.

"Mash, Camelot!" Andy ordered.

"Deploy Lord Camelot." She said, and within a second the barrier Noble Phantasm activated blocking Mephistopheles' own.

"Ahh, that's cheating." He said.

"Don't care. Die, you unfunny clown." Andy said.

And her wish was granted as Fran's massive mace slammed into his head. Andy heard the sound of bones breaking, and concrete as a small crater was made by Fran's attack. The bride standing over the downed clown, her body slightly charred from the previous explosion.

"Ahm," She said with a satisfied grunt as she planted her mace, and nodded her head. As Mephisto dissolved and all that was left was a single Saint Quartz.

"Never expected to see that Berserker again," Mordred commented as they all looked at Fran standing in front of the still-burning building.

Andy quickly checked with her Stat-o-Vision to see if this was.

[spoiler= Frankenstein's Monster's Stat Sheet]

True Name: Frankenstein's Monster

Class: Berserker

Master: -

 **Parameters:**

Strength: C

Endurance: B

Agility: D

Mana: D

Luck: B

Noble Phantasm: B+

 **Class Skills:**

Mad Enhancement: D

 **Personal Skills:**

Galvanism: B

Lament of the Falsely Living: C

Overload: C

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Bridal Chest: A Maiden's Chastity(Anti-Unit): C

Blasted Tree: The Lightning Tree of Crucifixion(Anti-Army/Suicide): D-B+

[/spoiler]

"Anticlimactic, but I did not want to stain my blades on that creature hopefully this Singularity will produce a better opponent than him. Almost wish that Jack the Ripper would attack again. That monster was at least fun." Gilgamesh commented.

"Gil, don't tempt fate like that please," Andy said to the golden Saber before turning towards the Berserker. "Thank you, ma'am, for slaying the demon. My apologies for being unable to prevent him from destroying what I presume to have been your home."

"Killed Victor, wanted payback. Here he wrote this." She growled out as she pulled out a piece of folded up paper from her dress.

"Ah, thank you, ma'am," Andy said as she took the offered paper before carefully unfolding and reading it.

" _To whomever is reading this. I Victor Frankenstein the Third is now dead. Killed by those who created the Demonic Fog that now fills the streets of London. I discovered a dastardly conspiracy involving three instigators that have, though only their code names. M, P, and B. Those three created the Fog and destroyed the Clock Tower causing the Magi to flee. Also please take care of my Grandfather's creation. I found the Servant walking the streets-."_

The letter ended there. "Ah. I see." Andy said as it settled in that whoever these three were they destroyed the clocktower, meaning they had better bullshit than that immortal maybe-vampire at its head. And then she reread the letter. "Oh _fuck_. Dammit, dammit, of course, of course, the time matches up with the location, of fucking course, M, motherfucking _M._ " Andy said, turning to Mash. "I'm sure you can guess who our 'mysterious' M is, right Kouhai?"

"Wait? Do you mean Moriarty?"

"Elementary, dear Kouhai," Andy said, unable to pass up on the opportunity even given the circumstances. "But it looks like it actually is, I'm willing to bet my left arm it's him with everything lining up like this, so hopefully we'll find a drug addict detective soon cause otherwise with this fog we might actually be screwed."

"Okay, information gained. And new ally got, so shall we get back to Jekyll's house. It's getting rather late now." Mordred said as she looked up.

Andy took a deep breath before nodding. "That would probably be for the best Sir Mordred, thank you." She said, before turning to Frankenstein's Monster. "Would you be so kind as to join us, ma'am? We'd be ever so delighted by your company, and I'm sure you can provide great insights into the current affair even if your mind may be as muddled as the air."

"Ahh," She said and nodded her head up and down in response.

"Good, good. Then this way ma'am, we have much to discuss." Andy said.

The trip back was much quicker than the trip there, and oddly when they passed where there should have been monster 'corpses' there was nothing but the damage from the fight.

Andy was rather disappointed, she wanted to harvest them for materials to use and study. The group however encountered something different on the way back. It was neither a Servant or the monsters, not even one of Jack's clones. But more like a piece of the fog was trying to shape itself into the form of a person, wielding a lance.

"Great this guy again," Mordred growled as she readied her blade.

"Again?" Andy asked as she got behind the Servants and out of their way, just in case.

"Yeah, he keeps showing up when I'm out patrolling no idea what it fucking is. This is the fourth time." She let loose some of her lightning a blasted the fog shaped person away. "Piss easy to get rid off, very weak to my lightning."

"Huh, from what data I was able to gather before you blasted it. It seems it was a Servant trying to materialize but not quite getting through." Came the voice of Roman.

"Hmm. Next time it shows up I'll see if maybe it needs a Master to help it through." Andy said. "And if it already has one or something we can just knock it back into oblivion. So in other words, Sir Mordred, next time don't immediately blast it. Please?"

"You can try but, he hasn't been very talkative." She responded.

"Eh, I'll give most potential allies at least _a_ chance," Andy said with a shrug. "Oh, but how do you know it's a he? All I saw was a vaguely person-shaped mass."

"Fuck if I now, I just hate using those gender-neutral words, it feels demeaning." She responded.

"To each their own," Andy said. "Oh, but, not to be rude, which then do you prefer? I know in history you were recorded as male like your Father, so I haven't been sure with the, um." Andy motioned towards her chest plate.

"You can use she, but don't call me a girl. Or else I will give you a new vagina where your neck is."

"Such vulgar language for a knight! I can't let such a foul-tongued rogue near the young soon-to-be King of Camelot, lest you corrupt her refined vocabulary."

"Fuck you. Renegade for life." She said as she began walking away, and towards Jekyll's house.

Andy laughed, before shaking her head. "Okay, let's get moving again, won't do to stand here and gawk."

"Hear, you Master, though I wonder how she would react if she awoke to finding herself in a dress." Came the mischievous suggestion from Medea.

Andy was going to tell her not to do that, before picturing it. "...No, no, now's not the time for that kind of thing. Wait till we get back to Chaldea." She said after a moment.

"Of course Andy, of course." She responded with a small giggle at the end.

"And this is why I try to avoid being near women," Diarmuid said.

"Him, on the other, I have no qualms over," Andy said with zero hesitation.

"With the exception of you of course Master." Was the quick response. "Women do have a tendency to get into vicious catfights."

"Yes, those are true words knight of Fianna. In my life, I long since avoided going in between Cleo and her targets." Caesar added.

"Less talking more walking."

They quickly made their way back to base, where they informed Jekyll of Victor's death. The man was very much saddened over the death of his friend. But quickly recovered saying he could grieve later.

So they were all given food by the staff of the house, after which they made their bed in a few empty guest rooms that he lent them.

Though before she went off to sleep, Andy sought Jekyll now that she could talk to him alone.

"Doctor Jekyll?" She said as she knocked on the door to the doctor's study. "Can I speak with you for a moment?"

"Ah, Miss Murphy do please come inside." He responded.

She opened the door and entered the modest study to find Jekyll at a desk illuminated by a lantern. "I hope you don't mind the intrusion, Doctor Jekyll."

"I do not, I was just going over some formulas to see if my math was correct, regarding the blend of chemicals." He answered as he turned to face her.

"Oh? Are you an Alchemist as well, Doctor Jekyll?" Andy asked, knowing full well the exact potion he was famous for.

"Nothing so grand, I'm not a Magus. Though I do dabble in Elixirs, I buy exotic salts from the Clock Tower." He responded. "Now please take a seat, a lady shouldn't have to stand."

"Thank you, Doctor, though if you'd like I can go over your calculations. Elixirs may not be my point of expertise, but mathematics on the other hand _are_." Andy said as she picked up the chair and moved it towards the desk before sitting down.

"No need, I was just looking it over to see if I wrote something wrong down. And it seems that I haven't. But you female Magi are lucky to have an education most women can not have." He shook his head in what seemed to be disgust.

"Well, I am cheating a bit in that regard," Andy said with a shrug. "But you take issue with the current state of education as well?"

"Yes, everyone should have the right to learn and discover. But Miss Murphy I don't think you came here to speak to me about civil rights. So what can this Doctor do for you this night?"

"Well...to be honest, Doctor Jekyll, it's about your Elixirs. Specifically...one to remove evil, I believe it was?" Andy asked, watching the Doctor carefully for a reaction. She had literally no idea what Hyde was really like, and if she was completely honest with herself this was probably like poking a sleeping bear with a stick, but she had to know for sure.

Andy saw Jekyll's eyes widen. "How do you. I mean I have no idea what you're talking about Andy, an elixir that can remove such a nebulous concept as Evil-"

"I'm from the future." Andy interrupted. "Technically, my whole group is. And we're trying to prevent the extinction of Humanity. Based on your reaction, I can assume you've either already taken the elixir at least once or have been heavily considering it. And I need to know firstly that you won't stab us in the back at an inopportune time, and secondly what the Elixir actually _does_." Andy explained methodically.

"From the future? Well, that explains why you didn't know about the Fog. Man, I wish that book was never written." He said. "Well, time to introduce myself properly Henry Jekyll, Servant Assassin." He held out his hand.

Andy blinked owlishly for a moment before taking the hand. "Nice to meet you, Assassin. I'm Andy Murphy, the sole master of Chaldea." She said, returning the favor of truthfulness. "I take it you have an ability that lets you pass for being a regular human?"

"Yes, my Skill Voice of Panic allows that. Though while chronologically my book came out two years ago. This Singularity has distorted time so that I seemingly replaced my living self."  
"Oh. I didn't think that was possible. Neat." Andy said. "Also, its quite a relief honestly, since that means you probably won't randomly turn into Hyde and kill us. I assume he's your Noble Phantasm?"

"Yes, I need to drink the potion, Our Noble Phantasm Dangerous Game is what allows the change. And when Hyde comes out, we change class into that of Berserker." He answered.

"Hmm, I see," Andy said. "...You wouldn't mind, perhaps, giving me a copy of the formula would you? I'd hate to trivialize your work or your struggle, but it could prove immensely useful."

"No, that thing was a mistake, a sin that should never have been made. To subjugate another to it would be insanity."

"Good thing I'm not really sane then, Assassin," Andy said a small grin on her face. "And, of course, I do have experience with transformations brought on by strange elixirs."

"You're an idiot then. Hyde is pure evil, my uncontrolled desires. You've read the book, you know what he has done. What do you think your desires would do if you fully let them out?"

"Well, considering my greatest desires? The two things at the forefront of my mind at all times, consuming my every waking thought and driving my every action for the last six months, are 'Survive' and 'Save literally everyone from super death' I'd say it would get the job done, at the very least." Andy said with conviction in her voice.

"That's because you have morals, Hyde does not. And if you think it reversible it's not, it would consume you from the inside. There will be only Hyde in the end. That is how our life ended."

"Well, unlike you in life, I have one of the _literal_ best potion makers ever on my side, literally _in this house right now_. If she had the formula, I haven't a single doubt in my mind she could refine it, fix the issues you, a non-Magus, couldn't see, and create a potion that, at the very least, wouldn't create a second Hyde." Came the rebuttal from Andy. "And I'm sorry about it consuming you and all, but unfortunately I don't really have the luxury of ignoring a potential resource."

"No." Was the simple rebuttal. "If you think that, well then you've frankly missed the point."

Andy sighed. "I believe I have. My apologies once more for the intrusion, Doctor Jekyll. Have a good night." She said as she stood up and walked towards the door.

"Hopefully you will never meet him." He said as he turned around.

Andy left without any further words, sighing at yet another missed opportunity as she walked through the halls of the mansion to find the other person she needed to talk to.

"Excuse me, ma'am, may I please come in?" Andy asked as she knocked on the guestroom Frankenstein's Monster had holed herself up in. Said Berserker hadn't been very talkative in any real capacity, but Andy still wanted to try and talk to her.

"Come in." She responded in a strained voice.

Andy did as such, entering the well-furnished guest room where Berserker was sitting on the bed. The damage from the explosion was more or less gone, though the room smelled smoky. "Good evening, ma'am. I hope you don't mind the intrusion."

She shook her head.

"Good, good. I just have a few questions for you ma'am, and I've brought a pen and paper if it is easier to write then speak." Andy said, holding up said tools.

"Call me Fran, Victor did, and thanks speaking hurts." She managed to force out of her throat.

"Of course, of course," Andy said as she handed them over to the Berserker, ignoring how odd it was that Victor III basically called his...aunt? By shortening of their shared last name. "So, firstly, Miss Fran, I'd like to know if there is anything you know about the current situation. We're basically flying blind right now so any information could be useful."

"Victor theorized that one of the conspirators was an Archmage." She wrote out in big letters.

"Of course there would be…" Andy muttered under her breath. Either P or B was likely to be the Archmage unless somehow Moriarty was a Magus. Explained how they were able to take out the Clock Tower even discounting the Servants. "Do go on, Miss Fran."

"That the monsters are created by them, and I have nothing else Victor kept quiet about it. Those are the things I heard him mutter. Sorry." Fran wrote.

Andy shook her head. "There is no need to apologize, Miss Fran, even this information is helpful. Since there are three types of monsters, and three code names, we might be able to figure out who made what now that we know they're making the monsters and they aren't just being spawned from the Fog." Andy said.

"Do you wish to speak to me more?"

"Ah, yes, I have just two more questions. First, if you'd be willing to come back with us to Chaldea once this is all over?" Andy asked.

"Yes, Victor is gone, and I have nowhere else to go, and you seem nice."

Andy smiled at that. "Thank you. And, the second question. Would you let me vivisect you?"

Fran responded by taking off her head and holding out for her.

"Oh. Oh! I wasn't expecting that to be so easy." Andy said, elated that for once one of her more morally dubious questions was being given a positive answer. "Thank you, Miss Fran. I hope you don't mind if I begin my study now?" She asked, smiling wide.

"I don't." Her removed head said.

"Well then. It's Science Time!" Andy cackled before getting to work.

Xxx

A/N: Passive I know that the Evil Overlord List says don't consume an energy field larger than your head, but I'm pretty sure that never applied to potions that turn you into a psychopath.


	64. A Scathing Review

January 3

It was after breakfast provided by the lovely staff of Jekyll's estate that the good Doctor had something for them for them to do.

Andy (who looked about 70% more tired than normal), Mash and Mordred sat in front of the man as he explained to them the information he had gotten from one of his contacts.

"So, while I haven't got any new information regarding the conspirators, I've gotten a message from one of my comrades over in the Soho District that apparently a Magical Book has entered people's homes and been putting them to sleep. He was waiting for you in a bookstore. If you would like to check it out?" He asked of them.

"Sure, it's our only lead as of now, so we might as well investigate," Andy said, before turning to Mordred. "Sir Mordred, would you like to accompany us?"

"Sure thing, might as well stretch my legs a bit."

"Good, good. I'll go ask Miss Fran if she would like to join us as well, and then we're moving out." Andy said.

Andy left the room and quickly poked her inside Fran's to ask if the Artificial Human wanted to come along? The written reply had been a no, as she wanted to stay and 'talk' Jekyll. Andy bid her farewell, hoping they could continue where they had left off last night. While Fran had trouble physically speaking and was a bit naive in certain aspects, she was frighteningly intelligent, and thanks to that Andy had gotten a good understanding of the Alchemical principles behind her Galvanism Skill, that allowed for the conversion of Mana into electricity and back again. And her anatomy which would help not now, but later with her Homunculi Research.

"So Andy, where are we going next for our little detective mystery?" Medea asked her hood over her hair, to protect it from the moist air according to her.

"An antique bookshop in Soho, apparently. The Doctor didn't give anything about the contact other than that he has information about a book that to me seems like the Grimoire you made out of Janus." Andy informed the Caster as they 'walked' to said bookstore.

"We'll be dealing with someone behind the book, or its something much more. As Grimoires require an external mind to function." She said.

"Could it be an enemy Servant going on the offensive?" Diarmuid asked.

"Probably? We still don't actually know the identities of two-thirds of our little triumvirate of evil, so we have no idea as to their capabilities, or if they have more Servants than just Jack & Jack & Jack, so...most likely? But Sir Mordred and Miss Fran both spontaneously appeared, so it could also very well be something completely unrelated to MPB." Andy speculated.

"Yes, but why break into people's homes and put them to sleep? Servant's are capable of getting Magical Energy from consuming human Souls. But if it is doing that why leave the job half-way finished it is not efficient on such a small scale." Medea added.

"We might be getting our answer soon cause I can see the shop right up ahead," Arash told everyone.

They were soon in front of the bookstore, and Andy opened the front door, causing a little bell over the top to chime as they entered.

And it was really an old-school bookstore with stack upon stack of books on all sides and on the shelves. And in the room they a blue haired kid reading a book.

"Huh, a kid? Is this the owner's boy?" Mash asked out loud which got the attention of the boy who looked up from his book and spoke.

"Finally your here I was getting bored." Said the boy with a very adult male voice that sounded of so familiar to Andy's ears.

"I take it you are our informant, sir?" Andy said, knowing for sure no one with Dio's voice could be insignificant. "My apologies for the delay, I am Andy Murphy, I'm here about the mysterious sleep-inducing book?"

"I see, what an overly polite Mary Sue you are going by that armor of yours, I am Servant Caster, Hans Christian Andersen." He introduced himself.

Which caused Mash to squeal in delight as she rushed up to the miniature Author and shook his hands tightly. "Mr. Andersen I am a very big fan of your work. I have read all of your stories multiple times, and I've always wanted to meet you. My favorites are Little Mermaid and the Snow Queen."

"Good Lord a Fan Girl, and woman stop shaking my arm," Hans said, and Mash let go in shock, at his words. "I see that you brought, along with a dog, a fat Roman, a knight cursed by a cruel bitch, a King of Trash, a witch and an actual Hero. Please to meet you, Arash Kamangar." The Author said.

Andy could feel the killing intent directed at the Danish author from behind her due to his comments about her comrades, with the exception of Arash who just sounded embarrassed as he spoke.

"That is too flattering, I just did the best I could."

"Okay, cool it, half-pint, it's probably best not to incite your allies, lest you meet a tragic end," Andy said, before crossing her arms. "And I'm not a mary sue," she mumbled.

"It is my nature as an observer of humans and comment on their true nature. As long you don't suck the personalities out of people, and provide entertainment we shall see, though you may be an edgelord. Now let's get back to the topic at hand about the Tome that has put half of Soho into an unending slumber." He said.

"Yeah, do you have any idea what it is? Or why it's doing it?" Andy asked, having no comebacks to the edgelord comment.

"I don't know quite yet haven't got a good enough observation of it, ever since I trapped it on the second floor of this building after it put the owner to sleep."

"Midget you telling us it is in the fucking building! Couldn't you have started with that asshole!" Mordred roared at the author.

"You didn't ask where it was?" He simply responded.

"Alright killing him now." Said the Traitorous Knight as she summoned her sword.

"Sir Mordred, please stand down," Andy said, putting a hand on the Saber's armored shoulder, knowing full well she'd do little but slow down the Knight. "He may be an asshole, but he _is_ an ally. I have a feeling your father would immensely disappointed in you if you kill him."

"Fine!" She sighed as Clarent vanished.

"An Artful Asshole, be accurate would you," Hans responded.

"Okay, the book. The book that is upstairs right now. It's _only_ been making people comatose right? Nothing else?" Andy asked, trying to get back to the potential danger literally right above their heads.

"Nothing else, though if people continue to sleep, they will die of dehydration. Though if you're going to fight it, please do it outside, cause I don't want to reimburse the shop owner, debts are the second thing I hate the most in the world." Hans said, as he put the book and left his stool.

"Well, if things go as planned then we won't end up fighting it. Hopefully." Andy said. "Where are the stairs?"

"Over in that corner, just lure it outside." He said as he pointed over to the side, where Andy could see it.

"Alright, we'll try," Andy said, pulling out another pen and pad of paper from her hammerspace as she walked over to the staircase. She had absolutely no idea if this would work, but it was worth a shot.

They ascended the staircase to find a locked door with what sounded like something moving behind it.

"Okay, let's see if this works." Andy said, writing out 'Hello?' on a page of the notepad before removing it and slipping it under the door, waiting for any reaction.

What she got was the sound of something slamming into the locked door repeatedly.

"We don't want to hurt you, we just want to talk," Andy said in as calm a voice as possible, seeing Plan A didn't work.

That was when Andy heard a twisted voice of child through the door, distorted and broken. "Name… Give… Tell… Me… MY NAME!" It shouted as it slammed into the door with more force this time.

"Oh, you want a name? Okay, I'll give you one if you calm down a little, that'll be easy." Andy said, motioning for her Servants to be ready just in case. "I'm going to open the door now, so please stop trying to break it."

Which had the opposite effect as what looked playing cards shot through the wooden door at high velocity, which broke it into pieces and revealed the entity behind the door? Thankfully missing her.

"Is your name Alice?" Andy asked immediately upon seeing the title on the book that was floating there.

That caused it to halt, and a second later it lit up and in front of her stood. "Yes, my name is Alice, it's Alice, not Nursery Rhyme." Andy heard the girl muttered.

"Well, it's very nice to meet you, Alice. My name is Andy. Would you like to come downstairs and have a little chat? Maybe over a tea party?" Andy said softly to the book-turned-girl.

"I would like that," she said as she took Andy in her hand.

Andy, Alice, and the rest of the Servants exited the staircase, and when Anderson saw Andy holding Alice's hand walking towards them, he opened his mouth. "Hmm, you certainly have CHARISMA Andy, I expected a fight scene. I should have realized it was you Nursery Rhyme, still to think that your former Master influenced you so much to still have that form when not contracted to her."

"Hans." The Book Girl growled as she took notice of the Dane.

"It's okay sweetie, he's not your enemy right now," Andy said reassuringly. "I'm guessing you two have a history in...I'll go out on a limb here and say in the Moon Cell?" Andy asked since that seemed to be where all the post-mortem Servant interactions she didn't know about took place.

"Yes, we meet in the Far Side of it. Was there I first meet her, and few other unmentionable ladies and my troublesome Master, wonder if that Bodhisattva exists in this world." He mused.

"He writes bad ends that make children sad," Alice said as she glared at the author.

"And so what life is not fair, fucking Disney messing with my stories, writing a sequel to the Little Mermaid after butchering the ending."

"Y'know Hans, just because life isn't fair doesn't mean every story needs to have a downer ending. Actually, wait, no." Andy said as she pointed accusatory at the author. "Saying 'life's not fair, deal with it' is _bullshit_ , it's not fair because of who's in control, _it can be changed!_ Saying 'life isn't fair, get over it' is just a justification so you can act shitty without any guilt, I've known so, so, _so_ many people who say that shit just so they can continue being jerks and mean. Life's not fair, but _it doesn't have to be that way_ , and happy endings are the direct counterpoint to that. If life is always a downer, what's the point? We _need_ happy endings, you insufferable blue haired prick. _Grow up a little_." Andy ranted at the author.

"And I'm completely in agreement, it's not like every story I write has an unhappy ending. One of my best is the Ugly Duckling and The Tinderbox. I write what needs to be said, my stories are a reflection of my own life and hardships, and Denmark at the time, and like you I am a Christian. Though I fear the God of Deadlines more than Yahweh."

"Oh," Andy said dumbly. "Uh, sorry for the, uh, rant. I may have spent...all of last night working on a new patient."

"Ah, sleep deprived I knew that feeling, well it seems that the situation regarding the book has been resolved, and now could you deal with the monsters that have gathered outside. I can't fight you know, so you have to protect me."

Andy turned around to look out the window Hans had been looking out of to see shadows of a shit ton of the Mannequin Automata moving in the fog.

"Ooh, goody, resources. Everyone who can fight, eviscerate those, and then put them in a pile when you're done. Children, stay with me." Andy said, giving Hans a look she hoped worked through the helmet given her words, holding out her unoccupied hand to the author.

"I am not a child, woman I am Seventy and died of Liver Cancer, I could be your grandfather." He scowled so adorably.

"Can you fight in that _child_ body, oh venerable author?" Andy asked sarcastically, still holding out her hand.

"Blame the convoluted as the summoning of artists such as myself, we are summoned in our prime, and for us, it's when we are considered Geniuses, which are when we are young. At least I have my voice." Hans ranted.

"Here have a cookie," Alice said as she moved a chocolate cookie into his mouth shutting him up.

Andy heard the grumble of. "It's good." From Hans as he ate it and took hold of Andy's free hand.

Andy grinned, though she knew no one could see it. "Thank you, Alice. Now then, lets how much progress they've made outside." She said as the rest of the Servants had all rushed outside as soon as the order had been given, and as soon as she noticed in the case of Mordred.

The three approached the window to better see the battle, which was an absolute curbstomp, but there were so many of the purple bastards that even as they were cut down more came out of the woodworks, and they seemed to be...screaming? At the Servants. But they were still making progress through the crowd as they watched, the herd of Automata thinning out steadily.

"While such a beatdown is entertaining at first, it becomes quite a chore when these mooks, show up often doesn't it?" Hans asked Andy as he finished his cookie.

"Yeah, but at least we get some materials out of it for later, and something interesting always happens soon...after…" Andy's words petered off as the dots connected in her head. "Oh no."

"What is it miss?" Alice asked.

"I think these might be a distraction sweetie." Andy said before turning to the other 'child.' "Do you have any way of contacting Jekyll right now, Hans?"

"Yes, I have a two-way Radio, made by those Clock Tower nerds, that Jekyll got from them for doing something for them." He told them.

"You should use it like right now, Jekyll might be in danger, last time we ran into a swarm of these monsters it was to slow us down getting to the Frankenstein Manor, we _need_ to know if he's in danger or if I'm overthinking this." Andy insisted, worried about the two allies within the manor, as well as the people who would no doubt die if it was attacked but...she hated to think like a Magus, but they weren't as important to saving the world.

"Sure just give me a moment." The author said as left her grip and headed into a back room, where a half a minute later he came back out. "No one attacking his place, but apparently the two Jacks are attacking Scotland Yard, along with what looks a third unknown Servant with them." He calmly told them.

"Oh, _great_ , that's great," Andy said, berating herself internally for not realizing, of course, Jack the Ripper(s) would attack Scotland Yard. She turned back to the window, to find that only a few automata were left now. "Okay, finish up everyone, we need to book it to Scotland Yard, Murder Inc is there with a mystery Servant!" She half-yelled out the window.

"And assholes just keep coming don't they," Mordred yelled as she bisected the last machine.

Andy left the bookstore, walked over to the most intact looking automata she could see and stored it with a quick "Store Sample Designation L:3." before turning to the assembled Servants. "Okay, top speed to Scotland Yard. Alice, Hans, are you staying here or coming with?" She asked the literary Servants.

"I think we should head over to Jekyll's and wait for you there, Nursery Rhyme- sorry Alice here is very much combat capable compared to myself," Hans said.

"Alice, are you okay with that? I have two friends there already so you won't be alone with Hans for long if you do." Andy asked the book-girl.

"Are you going to be there?" She asked.

"Very very soon sweetie, but there are some bad guys who are killing a lot of people that we need to stop first," Andy said.

"Okay, I'll go with him. Can we have a Tea Party when you get back?"

"Of course! I said we'd have a Tea Party earlier, so of course, we'll have it when I get back, I promise." Andy said.

"Okay."

"Now, hurry up and get there. And at least get the Jacks." Hans said.

"On it. Deploy Hurricane Ride." Andy said, the hoverbike appearing in front of her, Mash getting on without delay followed shortly by Andy. "Let's roll out!"

Xxx

Andy cursed inwardly as she saw the bodies that littered the street in front of the police station, that was Scotland Yard, men in uniform whose bodies had been sliced and diced open.

And to make it worse she couldn't hear anything from inside, her helmet wasn't picking up any heat signatures of any alive human either.

"Ah, heroes you have finally arrived, but you are little too late Master of Chaldea." Said a male voice from inside the darkness of the station, and it wasn't the same one that Berserker Jack used. "They say that good triumph over Evil, but it seems Evil has one this battle, but the war has yet to be decided." And after saying that the voice made himself visible as he walked out of the shadows. "Hello, I am P of the Demonic Fog Project."

"Hello 'P,' I take you already know who we are?" Andy asked while telepathically telling her Servants to attack the _instant_ he did anything other than talk. "Because I would just _love_ to know all about you."

"Perhaps, at a later date Hero, I have finished my mission here. Jack your mother is here." He said and then blinked out of existence via teleportation.

"Oh, _fu_ -" Her cursing was cut short as she grabbed one of Jackie's knives in mid-air. Though only due to the fact it had been a casual throw, as there had been no real force behind it.

"Master Permission to engage?" Medea asked as she created a barrier around the place to prevent the two serial killers from escaping.

"Yespleasedon'twanttodiethankyou," Andy said without pause, before looking down at the knife she was still holding which if it had been moving even slightly faster would have likely ended her life. "Store Sample Designation L:4." She said, before remembering Tenfold Shields had, as its name implied, multiple shields. "Shield, Reflect Shield, Bubble Shield." She intoned, very much so wanting to make it as hard as possible for the Jacks to kill her.

And as she did that Demon Jack clones burst out the walls the Servants engaging them.

"Maria The Ripper!" Shouted a female voice as within a second Andy saw a shadow covered Loli Ripper burst out the fog right towards her. Andy involuntarily blinked for a single second as before the serial killer hit her, several arrows pierced the girl's small body.

Letting out a small. "Mommy." Before she vanished leaving behind a Saint Quartz.

Andy looked up to see Arash smiling at her before returning to shooting the Demon Jacks.

Andy let out a shaky breath she had been holding, the one she thought might have been her last, before picking up the Saint Quartz and storing it away. "Okay. Okay. One down. One to go." She said to herself. "Medea! They can't get in or out of your barrier right?" She asked the Caster after having regained her bearings.

"Yep, he can't leave even if he summoned a hundred demon, and I'm also cutting off his energy flow so that he starts running out juice." She said.

"Great, so we just need to keep killing them until there's nothing left. That's good." Andy said. "Deploy Autumn." She said, and the red-orange-yellow chimera, barely kitten sized, appeared in her open hand with a bottle on its collar, which she unstopped and gave to said chimera, and it was soon full size. "Alright Autumn, kill the shadow things." She said, and the Chimera let out a roar/bleat/hiss at the Demon Jacks, spreading its wings wide before barreling forward and through the fragile Jack's closest to them, before going on and spewing fire around it and getting in on the action.

"My what mean little Kitty you got there?" Said Jack from behind Andy, who turned around to see the Serial Killer in the more pop culture look he was thought to have, top hat and all.

Andy wasted zero time with conversation. If this was the 'real' Jack, she could get this over with and launched a Runestone-Ice- at the serial killer with no hesitation.

The rune exploded and froze his bottom half in place.

"Smart move." He said. "But why didn't you just kill me?" His tone was one of laziness.

"Lightning." Andy intoned, before addressing him. "Well, you need a chair, don't you?" She asked, before firing the Lightning runestone at his center mass. "For your execution."

"Hee, good one. Hope you summon me. You're just like Flat, and I'm sorry my friend." He said as he exploded.

Andy picked up the Saint Quartz from off the ice, before turning and looking around and seeing that the other Jacks had vanished with him. "Good thing he's super weak on his own…" She muttered to herself as she stored the Saint Quartz away. "Alright everyone, let's book it back to J-...the Manor," Andy said to her Servants, plus Mordred.

"Wait, the fuck just happened?" Asked Mordred as she looked totally confused.

"Which part has you confused, Sir Mordred?" Andy asked.

"Why did, all the demons disappear and did you just get the fucking kill?" She asked.

"Oh, that. It looks like the demonic Jack the Ripper clones continued existence were reliant on the 'original' not dying, but he was just as easy to kill as the clones. I actually don't know why he exposed himself like that and didn't try to kill me instead, but honestly, I'm not complaining." Andy explained.

"Damn, you're badass." Mordred complimented. "Well, he probably chose to die since Arash here killed the little one, and he seemed to be more following her whims than that P guy. Or something like that I don't know. Let's get back to the nerds."

"Yeah, let's get going, and unless you're specifically referring to the Doc and Hans only don't say that please," Andy said.

"You don't deny it," Mordred said with a grin.

"Denying what?"

"That they are nerds those two."

"Not really, I just know there's nothing I can do to stop you from calling them that," Andy said with a shrug.

"...Well… Let's go then enough." Mordred said as she began walking.


	65. Page Master

January 4

It was morning once again in London, and once again Andy, Mash, and Mordred were in Jekyll's living room this time joined by Hans.

They had returned to his residency after the fight with the two Jacks, where they had calmed down, and Andy had her tea party with Alice, the small Caster overjoyed to see them return safely.

Now the other apparently had some information to share with them after, he had done a little independent research.

"So Andy, tell me do you know how Servants are summoned?" Hans asked her.

"Taking a Heroic Spirit from the Throne and putting them into a Class Container through the usage of a Holy Grail, normally by a Master but in times like these it seems they can manifest without one," Andy said, recalling just about every one of her allies from the past singularities. "But I take it this is different somehow?"

"Nothing, with the exception of the Demonic Fog that now surrounds and fills London. When Mordred told me about her encounters with the half-formed Servant, which you yourself have met. Tell me what did he look like?" Hans asked in such a way that he already knew the answer but wanted her to realize it.

"All I could really tell was that it was a person-shaped mass," Andy said, before remembering something. "Wait, I can just show you the footage. Hold on a moment." She said, pulling up the holographic screen on her armband and going back through the footage from yesterday. "Here, this is when I saw it. And that's Sir Mordred blasting it back into oblivion." She said, the footage playing on the holographic screen on a short loop.

"Yes, Andy but what does that mass look like its made out of, come now the answer is so simple a child would be able to tell."

"Oh. Oh! You mean how their spawning from the Fog, I thought you figured something out about that one in particular." Andy said, dismissing the screen. "So, are you implying the Fog is a direct result of the Grail?"

"Yes, it is at least, fueling its growth," Hans responded.

"Mm. So MPB found a way to further weaponize the Grail. Wonder if it's like the Mud…" Andy muttered to herself. "But, I take it there's a point to you bringing it up?"

"The Fog is what Servants like myself, Alice, Mordred, Frankenstein's Monster, the Jacks, and Mephistopheles materialized from, so who is to say that it has stopped doing that? So go out on patrol to see if more have spawned and prevent them from being recruited by the enemy." Hans said.

"That does sound reasonable, especially considering we still have no idea how to find MPB or stop them. Hopefully, we'll find a drug-addicted detective, I'm sure he'd be able to crack this case wide open, as it were." Andy said.

"I've tried to contact the good detective, but I have been unable to get a hold of him." Said Jekyll, as he flipped a page in a book.

"You know Sh- wait, of course, you do, never mind. But if you haven't been able to contact him, then that could very well mean he's already dead. Which...might actually work in our favor, as horrible as that sounds? Cause that means he could very well be spawned from the Fog at any moment if he is dead." Andy said.

"Perhaps," Jekyll responded.

"Well, I'm going out and smashing heads. Hopefully, we will pick up somebody useful besides more bookworms." Mordred said as she stood up and summoned her armor.

"Ah, wait, Sir Mordred, you shouldn't go alone. Here, take this." Andy said, switching out Caesar from the other room with Lily, said Knight appearing before her. "Lily, would you like to accompany Sir Mordred on her patrol?"

"I would love to come on Mordred, let's go. See you later mom." Lily said as she dragged a bewildered Mordred out the room before.

"MOM?!" Came the shocked response, that shook the house.

"So, while they are doing that. Should we go on our on patrol Senpai? Or if this was under better circumstances London date with Astolfo." Mash grinned at the last part.

"Sh-shush, Kouhai," Andy said. "But, we should probably go on a patrol...after I check something." She said, before swapping out the rest of the team for the original Landing Team, who hadn't really gotten any action, but also swapping Saber Gilgamesh for Little Gil. "Hey, Gil, sorry to bring you in her all of a sudden, just wanted to ask if you have anything that can cause natural lightning strikes, preferably on the user?"

"I have something that can be used like that, but why?" The child asked with concern on his face.

"Oh, don't worry, it's not for me. We've made an ally who can turn electricity into mana, so I figured giving her something like that would be really useful." Andy explained.

"Well, I have lighting bolts that I use as auto-defense that I can lend you." He responded by reaching into his vault and pulling out a cartoonish looking lighting bolt. "The Servant, your speaking of, has the Galvanism Skill correct? So they should give the Servant a power boost as they tend to be self-sufficient by absorbing their spent Prana back into themselves."

"Yeah, that's basically what I had in mind," Andy said.

After briefly explaining how to actually use said lightning bolt, Little Gil was swapped back out for Saber Gilgamesh and Andy was now outside of Fran's room while her Servants prepared to depart. "Miss Fran, do you have a moment?"

"Ahh," She responded with a happy tone.

Andy entered the room to find Fran sitting at the desk inside. "Miss Fran, I have a gift for you. This-" she held up the lightning bolt. "-can be used to basically super-charge you, if I understand your Galvanism skill correctly."

"Ohh," Fran responded as she looked at the lightning bolt in fascination.

"Its straight from the armory of the King of Heroes," Andy said, before going on to explain how to use it. "Did you get all that?"

She nodded and took hold of the bolt looking it over closer, before placing it down on the desk. "Thank you." She stuttered out.

Andy smiled. "Don't worry about it. I can't have anyone dying on my watch, y'know."

This time Fran responded with writing and Andy could see that her penmanship, had dramatically improved from how it had started out. "Thank you for your kindness, Andy." Which Fran followed up with by giving her a hug.

Which Andy returned. "Like I said, don't worry about it, sweetie."

"My Lord we are ready to move out." Came the voice of Diarmuid, though muted as it traveled throughout the mansion.

"I thought I swapped you out!" Andy responded before turning back towards Fran. "Alright Miss Fran, my group and I are heading out now. Would you like to come with us or would you rather stay here?"

"No thank you." She wrote out.

"Alright, see you later Miss Fran," Andy said before heading back downstairs and looking over her Servant group, noticing that indeed somehow Diarmuid was still there and Mata Hari was not. "Diarmuid how the hell did you do that? I'm sure I swapped everyone out for the original party."

"I did nothing of anything Master you must not have hit the button properly."

"Contain your cheek, Knight of Fianna." Said Boudica.

"I apologize your Majesty."

Andy sighed. "No, that's on me I guess. Even now I guess my fingers are just too big for these screens." She said, before swapping out Diarmuid for Mata Hari. "Alright, everyone's here as they're supposed to be. For now, we're just going on a patrol, but with this Fog, we could very well run into literally anyone so don't attack anyone on sight, except for this guy." She said, a holographic recreation of 'P' projecting from her armband. "This guy we know is an enemy. Any questions before we head out?"

"Glad to be back Master, that Assassin left us all a little sour, though where is little Lily?" Mata Hari asked as she looked around for the Princess.

"Oh, she went ahead on patrol with Sir Mordred awhile," Andy said nonchalantly. "Mordred is really temperamental, so leaving her to go out on her own could very well lead to any potential allies having their faces smashed in. So Lily makes a good balance to that since unlike me, Mordred seems to listen to Lily."

"That's probably because you aren't her Master," Boudica said. "From what the little time we were with her, I can say that if you summoned her properly, you could not ask for a more loyal Servant." She put forth her observation. Though her being Boudica, probably gave her some deeper insight into various British Servants.

Andy raised an eyebrow. "Yeah. Which is why I sent Lily with her since I'm not her Master. So it's better to have someone she _might_ listen to with her."

"Good idea Master, that Saber is like a lion that could go on a rampage if sufficiently provoked," Gilgamesh commented. "Though let us leave, my body is in need of some light exercise."

"Alright, let's head…" Andy pointed in the opposite direction of where she could feel Lily heading. "This way. And remember, any Servant we run into could be a foe, or a friend so talk first shoot later."

"Understood Andy," Liz said as she twirled her pitchfork.

The group left Jekyll's mansion and entered Demonic Fog. Starting their patrol of the neighborhood.

"So Master, what have you discovered so far about the state of Londinium?" Boudica asked.

"Well, this Fog is tied to the Grail and spawning both monsters and Servants, headed by the 'mysterious' MPB. I'm 99.9% certain M is Moriarty, and we met P, that's the one I showed you before. No idea what exactly they're doing, why they're doing it, or anything. But they have been killing a lot of people, including decimating the Clocktower." Andy recapped for the Rider.

"So, you believe that the Napoleon of Crime is behind this Master? Though we should probably check out the Clock Tower place to see if there are things for you to take. You do like being a bit of a scavenger." Boudica said.

"Scavenger yeah that's an accurate word to describe Master with, a little thief, taking people's stuff. Though not like that is a bad thing, I've stolen a lot of things myself." Said Mata Hari.

"Oh yeah! I'd kinda been thinking they just wiped it off the map, we totally should swing by and loot anything left." Andy said as Boudica's words processed. "Also, I am not a little thief. I am a big thief." Andy said, motioning to herself as she said it. "Regardless, we should swing by the Clocktower, we might find something useful."

"That's a good idea Senpai, though we should probably ask Jekyll where the entrance is," Mash said.

"...Probably."

They were about to walk back to the mansion as they had encountered a few Automata and Helter Skelter during their little ring around the Rosie trip of the neighborhood.

Then they heard a boasting voice from an Alleyway of to the side.

That sounded quite familiar to Andy's ears.

"Vexing, how vexing. This city of Fog has been quite the bore, I hath been summoned, but there is no Grail War to participate in. It is mysterious, but there is nothing else to it? This is horrendous material to work with, I would get greater inspiration from licking a spider. And who do we hath here?" Said William Shakespeare as he made himself visible. "A Master and a group of Servants. This should be interesting. Hello, Servant Caster William Shakespeare." He said bowing before them.

"Well if it ain't good ol' WouldIWas ShookSpeared, I've been looking forward to meeting you for a while," Andy said, grinning like mad beneath her helmet. "I am Andy Murphy, Master of Chaldea, and a big fan of your work. In life, that is. Wasn't much of a fan of that 'play' during the Great Holy Grail War."

"I get it. And yes it was quite a bore, but that ending was a great twist wasn't it? Though I'm quite lucky to find the main character of this tale already. Though which of my work is your favorite? I would love to know. I'm always looking for feedback." He said as he walked up to them.

"Hamlet, probably. Or at least out of your tragedies. I really liked your comedies too, but for some reason, in schools in my era, they only ever focus on the tragedies, which is a shame. But it also means that I don't really have any feedback on it you haven't heard a million times." Andy said. "Also, [Exit, Pursued by Bear] is my absolute favorite stage direction ever."

"That is good to hear, yes the whole being taught about in modern schools, was a surprise to learn. Also, the door is blue because its blue nothing else, people reading deeply into things sometimes. Though hopefully, you did not read Titus, that was an embarrassment of my teenage years I would like to see whipped." He said the last part with embarrassment.

"Oof, yeah, I didn't read that myself, but a friend summarized it for me once," Andy said and used her Stat-o-Vision on the Caster as she remembered that that was a thing she could do and probably should.

[spoiler=Shakespeare's Stat Sheet]

True Name: William Shakespeare

Class: Caster

Master: -

 **Parameters:**

Strength: E

Endurance: E

Agility: D

Mana: C++

Luck: B

Noble Phantasm: B+

 **Class Skills:**

Territory Creation: C

Item Creation: -

 **Personal Skills:**

Enchantment: A

Self-Preservation: B

The King's Men: C

 **Noble Phantasm:**

First Folio: When the Curtain Rises, the Applause Shall Be As Ten Thousand Thunders(Anti-Unit): B+

[/spoiler]

"Oh, but, uh, hey, Shakespeare, do you think you could use your Enchantment skill on me? Like on my armor?" Andy asked since if she recalled correctly, he had enhanced Shirou Amakusa's sword during the Great Holy Grail War, and that kind of boost to her existing armor could be very useful in the whole 'not dying' department.

"I could, though, for my Enchantment Skill, I need to write a story about. Though with armor like that, it shall be a grand fantasy epic. Yes, I can see it now. Dragons, princesses the entire shebang. Though there shall be twists and turns, I shall not make cliched trash. I shall show those two hacks what for when they go up against a true master of the art." Shakespeare boasted, with wild arm movements.

"Thank you very much, Shakespeare. I'm sure it will be a beyond interesting read. But, 'those two hacks'? Are they from life or do you know something about the current situation?" Andy asked.

"Knowledge from my previous summoning about the modern world, though I'm sure that Tolkien is alive at the moment is he not?" Shakespeare asked.

"No, I thought of that too he won't be born for another 4 years," Andy said. "I checked after meeting Hans Christian Andersen."

"Ah, the fairy tale author, someone who writes at my level, and writer of tragedy too. That shall be an exciting meet."

"You two can gush later, we have a guest." Spoke Gilgamesh interrupting the two. "My how brave of you to show up again mongrel after you ran away last night."

"Hmm, it seems that you have already acquired the Servant that the Demonic Fog spawned, I was too late in acquiring a new ally for our cause," P spoke as he made himself known.

"And that cause is?" Andy asked, placing herself between P and Shakespeare even though she knew it would do little.

"To expand the Demonic Fog to the rest of the world and ensure that this Era is destroyed and the incineration is permanent. So that a new future can be carved out. And to think this one was a Caster, he would be taken back for adjusting, and set to work." P explained.

"'Adjustment' my that sounds like the highest form of character assassination taken quite literal," Shakespeare said.

"Now before you die Mage could you tell us who you are?" Gilgamesh 'asked.' the bishounen pretty-boy.

"Yes, I will die here for I have no means of transport this time, but that does not mean I will go down lightly. My Name is Paracelsus von Hohenheim, the Master of the Elements and seeker of the True Ether. Though I have a different mission now- assist my friend."

"Aw, damn. If you were just doing it because of your Master, I would have tried to recruit you. I'd of loved to have you on our side, Paracelsus." Andy said, shaking her head. "Oh well. Everyone- kill him. And try and bring back a piece for later."

"Come forth oh great Elementals of Earth, Wind, and Fire." He spoke with extreme speed as he pulled out three gems out his cloak and threw them at the ground. The red and blue ones turning into two creatures made from Wind and Fire while the yellow one became a crystalline barrier in front of him. "Attack." He spoke.

The two ethereal beings created from Wind and Fire roared and opened their mouths.

"Mash, Phantasm," Andy ordered calmly as soon as she recognized the combo.

"Lord Camelot!" She shouted as she activated the barrier before a fire tornado washed over them.

"Liz, Pumpkins Rain please," Andy ordered once the fire tornado ceased its raging.

"Pumpkin, Pumpkin Cannon times two!" She launched her attack in the form of two Pumpkins that exploded with their own elemental properties that countered the Elementals. Water for the fire and lightning that destabilized the wind.

"Now Master let me handle this." Mata Hari said as she stepped forward, walking towards the barrier where she began to dance and move with such a grace that Andy found utterly mesmerizing like she would do anything for her.

"Now dear Parry, would you do something for me?" Mata Hari spoke with the seductive voice of hers, it felt like pure honey was flowing through Andy's brain.

"Anything my dear," Paracelsus spoke with a tone of reverence in his voice as he stopped charging his attack.

"Then could you take that knife and stab yourself."

"Happily." Andy watched as Paracelsus carved out his own heart and fade into a Saint Quarts for their wonderful Mata Hari.

And then Andy found herself back in reality.

"...What the hell was that?" Andy asked, bewildered.

"My Noble Phantasm of course. With it, I can brainwash anyone to my will though as you've seen, it doesn't discriminate between friends or foe in its hypnotizing effect." She explained. "Though doesn't work on those that had Mad Enhancement active or Mental Pollution, and Skills that protect against such a thing."

"I see. But, I gotta ask, why didn't you tell him to tell us the names of M and B or something?" Andy asked.

"... I didn't think of that of good I'm so sorry Master, I just wanted to prove myself useful, and I messed up. Bad, Mata Hari. You useless woman always fucking up in the last moment." She cursed as she slapped herself.

"Oi, don't go literally beating yourself up about it, you still just single-handedly defeated one-third of the Triumvirate, that's definitely useful," Andy said, more than a little shocked at her reaction.

"Ah, Master is too kind." She said. "Though I think we should head back to Jekyll and get shown the way to that entrance to the Clock Tower."

"Yeah, lets."


	66. Clock Tower Basement

"Ahhh," Fran yelled as she smacked Shakespeare in the head with her mace as soon they entered the Mansion's living room sending the author into the bookshelf.

"I… am… alive…" He grunted from the pile of books he was now buried under.

"I will say that was excellent comedic timing," Hans commented from his chair.

Fran just responded with a well-satisfied grunt as she returned to her tea.

"Heal." Andy intoned as she held her hand out to Shakespeare before helping him up. "Sorry about that Shakes, I probably should have realized that would happen."

"That is fine," He grunted as he sat up, his hair a mess now. "Now then I shall take to write that story for your armor. So I shall be finding a room to be cooped up in for the foreseeable future."

"Alright. Doctor Jekyll, are you okay with that?" Andy asked the Assassin.

"Yes, just don't bother my staff with your shenanigans playwright." He said with a tone of agitation that had not been there previously. Andy could probably guess that a certain someone was getting antsy.

"Thank you, Doctor," Andy said. "Oh, but we came back because there was actually something I wanted to ask you about. Do you know where the entrance to the Clocktower is, or I suppose, was?"

"I guess that you wish to look through leftover equipment and stuff, well if it is that you need to use the underground entrance by the British Museum, though from what Mordred told me last time she walked by there the entire place was rubble."

"And to add, I will be going with you as there is information I wish to find in regards to Heroic Spirits themselves," Hans added.

"And me too, as your guide." Said Jekyll.

Andy nodded. "Understood, the more, the merrier. Ah, but before we go, I'm going to check in on the Pendragons real quick." _"Lily sweetie, have you found anything interesting?"_

" _Like all the Helter Skelters the area we're in are in is filled with them, and Sir Mordred is in the middle of blasting apart what I could only call a Boss Skelter and… huh, that's interesting?"_ At that, Andy started looking through Lily's eyes to see what she was seeing.

And it was indeed something that could be called a Boss Helter Skelter, the thing had the same shape and form but was a silver-grey color instead of the green and brown the others had been. And also being almost two stories tall.

Though right now that thing was cleaved in half and non-function and around them all the other Helter Skelter had ceased to function, just looking dead.

" _Huh. That is interesting. The big guys must act as control towers or something. Do you think you could bring one of the powerless ones back to Jekyll's? Wait, no, the British Museum since that's where the rest of us are heading right now?"_ Andy asked, not wanting to pass up the chance to study one of the Helter Skelter when fully intact instead of hacked to bits.

" _Sure thing mom."_

" _Thank you sweetie,"_ Andy said telepathically before switching back to her own senses, to find the assembled Servants, sans Shakespeare who seemed to have already left for his new study, were staring at her with varying degrees of confusion or worry. "Uh, sorry, Lily and Mordred found something I had to get a look at myself. They'll be meeting up with us at the museum then."

"Ah, okay so shall we be leaving?" Jekyll asked.

"Yeah, as long as no one else has anything important?" Andy asked, and when she got no response, she nodded. "Then yeah, we're heading back out. Lead the way, Doctor J."

"Please don't call me that."

"But Doctor Jekyll are you going to be okay out in the Demonic Fog?" Mash asked.

"Do not worry Miss Kyrielight I'm going to be perfectly fine in it, and I do have an ace up my sleeve if we run into a lot of opponents." He answered her.

"Oh, okay."

Xxx

"Damn you losers are slow," Mordred said as she and Lily stood outside the ruins of the British Museum, an intact Helter Skelter next to the two.

"No, Sir Mordred, your just very fast," Andy said as she began looking over the Helter Skelter. "Huh. Didn't get to see these up close before. A lot shorter than I thought they were. Store Sample Designation: L5." She said to herself, the green robot disappearing into her hammerspace.

" _Hmm, Andy could you perhaps send it to me instead?"_ Came the voice of Da Vinci. _"So that we might be able to identify its creator, we have been able to do some short range analysis of those you have fought, and their composition is similar to that of entities produced by Noble Phantasms."_

"Oh. Okay, I'll send it over then. Honestly, if I'd had the option, we'd have been doing this with all of the enemies anyway." Andy said as she deposited the Helter Skelter before marking it for Rayshift. A moment later it disappeared in a wave of blue particles. "Tell us as soon as you find something Da Vinci, we haven't been finding anything concrete until the enemy tells us it themselves. And I don't like that."

" _You do know who you're talking to right?"_ She said, and the connection was cut.

"I'm guessing that that was Da Vinci asking for it?" Mash asked.

"Yeah, she said about identifying the Servant who made them, since they seem to be made from a Noble Phantasm," Andy answered. "Oh, right, back to the topic at hand. Doctor, if you would be so kind as to lead the way?"

"The entrance is right around the corner, but as I said, the entrance is covered in rubble."

"And that is a job for the armored brute," Hans said.

"Sir Mordred he is not worth getting angry over." Said, Lily, as she held back the knight from striding over and smacking the Dane.

"Hrmm, f _ine_." Mordred practically growled as she summoned her blade and blasted stone away with her lightning revealing a staircase going down. "Time to go into the den of super magic nerds."

"More like the grave of those super magic nerds at this point. You have some experience with graveyards, don't you Sir Mordred?" Andy asked, grinning under her helmet.

"If you start messing with the corpses, I will hit you." She said.

"...You might want to stay up here then, Sir Mordred, because I make no promises about that. I'm no Necromancer, but I am a bit of a kleptomaniac since anything could help us complete our mission." Andy said.

"Yeah, it's probably a good idea if I and one other stayed up here, to prevent certain assholes from blindsiding us," Mordred said.

"I would like to stay up here Andy, I don't want to go into a small place again," Liz said.

"Alright, you two stay up here and do some family bonding, and Lily sweetie, please tell me immediately if you're attacked this time. Everyone else, onwards and downwards." Andy said.

"Ah, sure thing mom."

"Okay, then this is over you're going to tell me why father is calling you that, she didn't explain. I never knew that father could look so smug and angelic at the same time."

"Well, there's a simple explanation for that, Sir Mordred," Andy said.

"Father are we sure that she is not Merlin's daughter?" Mordred asked. "She has the same attitude as that damn Incubus."

"Hey, I am _not_ part demon or whatever," Andy interjected, before sighing. "But, I guess I really have to explain this right now don't I, Sir Mordred."

"Well, you two do share the same gender flipping fetish," Lily said.

"Yes, wait? What?" Mordred asked.

"Ex-ca- _use_ you, Arturia Pendragon?" Andy asked, a bit of actual anger in her voice. " _Fetish?_ I _desperately_ hope that was just because you don't have a wide enough vocabulary, but I will _not_ tolerate that young lady."

"Sorry." She said, and Andy heard the shame in her voice. "I didn't mean it that way… Sorry."

"Oh, sweetie, it's okay, I'm sorry I shouldn't have gotten angry with you like that," Andy said, immediately regretting the way she had said that. "Just...never use that word to describe my gender-fluidity again, please. I'll give you a crash course on some better vocabulary once we get back."

"Okay."

"Damn got the same temper as mother." Andy heard Mordred mutter.

"Please don't compare me to her, Sir Mordred," Andy said, suddenly feeling 100 times worse about it.

"I'm all for drama, but shall we save it for a more friendlier environment?" Hans asked as he stood by the entrance, and Andy noticed that most of her Servant's looked so fucking awkward at the moment.

"...Yeah, let's get back to looting the Clocktower." Andy said, heading over to the stairs herself and heading down.

Right before they got out of earshot from the entrance, Andy heard Mordred say "Hey wait a minute, she still didn't explain-" which got a chuckle out of Andy.

They were led down further into the tunnels and halls of the Clock Tower, though there weren't any of the surface enemies they had encountered what Roman had described as grimoires animated by the Demonic Fog leaking down into the underground complex.

Which of course convinced Andy to switch out Boudicca for Medea almost immediately and have her try to make one of them Hers.

"Sorry, Andy but it looks like they have rather good security installed into them, for when I try to cut them off from their source and attach them to mine or yours, they self-destruct," Medea said as the books combusted in the air. "Sometimes I think modern Magi are too protective of their stuff."

"That's a shame. Though you should probably stick around, for now, we might run into some nasty magecraft down here after all, better to be safe than sorry y'know." Andy said.

"Yes, that is probably a good idea," Medea said. "It wouldn't surprise me if they had some Phantasmal Species sealed up down here."

"They probably do, this is basically General Storage," Jekyll said. "Oh, and Hans the greater Library is just up ahead do you need help locating the texts you need?"

"No, if they have any sense, they should have some form of index," Hans answered.

"They _are_ Magi, Hans," Andy said. "Since when do those have any sense?"

"... I actually don't have a retort to that statement. Hopefully, it's at least in alphabetical order."

"Mata Hari, stick with Hans for now and help him out," Andy said to the Assassin. "You're probably the best for protecting him since you can distract any enemies while he hides or escapes."

"I do my best Master." Mata Hari responded.

"Alright, that's settled. Jekyll?" Andy asked.

"Now where we should be heading is a little down the ways, I've only been there once, but it should have a lot of materials if you want them." He said.

"Materials?" Andy asked eagerly. "Yes p _lease_!"

They followed Jekyll until they came to a large metal door, that looked to have no way of opening it.

"Gilgamesh, if you would?" Andy asked.

"Of course, though if you're going to ask if I have Keyblade the answer is no. My little Archer-self should have a Skeleton Key. But I have no need of one." The gate opened at his side, and he pulled out a short-sword and swung it at the door, and in an instant, the entire thing froze over.

Which he followed up slightly tapping it and the thing shattered.

"Nice ice, baby," Andy said, followed by a near-immediate groan from the Servants. "Alright, so what exactly is...this…" She stopped in her question as the dust settled and she could see the sheer enormity of _things_ stored in the room. She couldn't make out what most of them were, mind, due to most of them being in boxes, but still. "Ohohohoh, this is going straight back home. Boss! We've got several literal tons of ~materials~ sending through!" Andy practically giggled as she marked the nearest section for Rayshift.

" _Save it for later cause I think you just triggered an alarm and I'm actually able to detect what looks to be some sort of Demonic Entity. And its rushing right at you."_

"Oh, goody. Mash, block it." Andy ordered, sounding more 'cheerful' than 'worried.'

Mash brought up her shield as the Demon's fist collided with shield sending a shockwave out from the impact, but her Kouhai stood steadfast and retaliated by bashing it in the stomach with said shield.

"Yes, that thing is on the level of an A-Ranked Servant Master," Gilgamesh announced. "And it seems that I get to finally have fun."

"Try not to mangle it too much Gil, I at least want one of its hearts intact!" Andy ordered.

"As you wish," Gilgamesh said as he equipped his blades and rushed at the monster, his gates opening in a half circle around him.

The Demon roared as it fired a beam of magic from its eye, that he dodged and slashed at its hand.

And soon Gilgamesh looked like he found himself in a dance of death, looking much more alive than the Archer version she had summoned and seen in UBW. Guess he really was in his 'adventuring days' where he sought out challenged and strong monsters to fight.

Heck, she could even see him smiling as he fought against the Demon, which was actually more unnerving than the monster.

Though the fight came to an end, as he turned his blades into Tonfas, and decapitated the demon in an epic finisher move as he appeared behind it and a few seconds later the head flew off.

Andy started applauding, which sounded rather odd considering her gauntlets, but she didn't care. "That was _awesome_ Gil! And great job leaving it intact looks like all the important bits are still there. Absolutely superb." Andy said as she walked over to him and it. "Store Sample Designations: L6 and L7." She said, wanting to make absolutely sure she brought this one back with her and storing its head separate from its body.

" _Okay, good job with the Archdemon, and unlucky sod that was its host at least you brought him out his misery well I can't detect any other entities. So you're free to loot you, Kleptomaniac."_

Andy cackled like a madwoman before going through and marking everything she could for Rayshift, continuing to cackle the whole way through. In a matter of minutes, the entire warehouse was almost completely emptied of its contents. "Alrighty then! Hey Jekyll, this the only part you know about? You wouldn't happen to know if they kept a menagerie down here would ya?" She asked, sounding like a kid in a toy store.

"I sadly don't know if they have something like that, this is the only part of the Clock Tower I've ever been in so sadly I can't help with anything else, though let's go back and see if Hans and Mata Hari are done. Though thankfully, there was no need for me to use that here." He said.

"Don't worry about it Henry, this was already super helpful for us in the long run," Andy said.

"I'm glad to be of assistance." He responded with a smile.

They made their way back up to the library to reunite with the author/spy duo. "So, Hans, did you find what you were looking for?" Andy asked as they entered the rather sizeable library.

"We have, and it is quite interesting, I will tell you more when we return to the Mansion," Hans said.

"Alright, that's fine," Andy said, before marking the nearest bookshelf for Rayshift. "We'll be heading back once we send these through."

Xxx

"So, you must be wondering what I was looking for," Hans said.

They were all back in the Mansion with Andy, Mash, Mordred and Jekyll in the living room. With all the others having a tea party with Alice, which Andy was, of course, to join afterward, at the insistence of the Child Servant.

"Obviously, Hans, or else we wouldn't be waiting for you to explain," Andy said sarcastically.

"It was into the nature of Heroic Spirit summoning itself, the manifestation of Servants. Can you tell me for what purpose a Servant is summoned?" He asked.

"A Servant is summoned, under normal circumstances, as one of seven to fight each other to the death over the Holy Grail while protecting their master from the others, until the end when the surviving Master uses the combined energy from the seven dead Servants to make a wish, ostensibly to poke a hole to the Root, designed by the Triumvirate of the Tohsaka, Einzbern, and Makiri families using Das Rheingold to make the Greater Grail." Andy recounted the things she knew about the purpose of Servants.

"Yes that is true, but where did they get their knowledge of Servants from except the original ritual, not the one used by humans to fight in Grail Wars, but the one utilized by the World itself. The original summoning ritual was to not have Servants fight amongst each other but together against one singular enemy. The Seven greatest Heroic Spirits to have been. Though there is something else." Hans said.

"Something else?" Andy asked apprehensively, not at all shocked that the Triumvirate of Dumbass Magi Families had apparently mimicked a defense mechanism used by the World.

"The location of that information in the library I knew it was there, but it had been placed in such a way that anybody but I would have missed it. Somebody was there and placed it for me, us to find. Perhaps that original summoning is something we need to learn of how to activate to solve our current crisis of all of History being on fire. Though that is just a theory."

"Mm. So someone or something probably knew you'd be with us ahead of time and placed that book there specifically for you to find and potentially help us out." Andy said, slightly skeptically. "Welp, not the craziest thing I've heard this week. So, we have to look into this greater ritual, and there's potentially a literal clairvoyant working the shadows, or maybe the world itself or another time traveler or who-knows-what." Andy said with a shrug. "Typical Thursday."

"Yes, quite the investigation we've got on our hands. Though let's relax for now perhaps we'll have a better idea of what to do tomorrow?" Jekyll suggested.

"Yeah, that's probably for the best for now. I do have a tea party I need to attend, after all." Andy said with a grin. Things seemed to be going pretty well for once.

Xxx

Chapter 67:


	67. Science Hurts

January 5

"Good morning to all of you." Said the holographic projected screen of Roman onto the nearest wall. The usual group was once again gathered in Jekyll's Living Room though with the addition of Fran and Shakespeare. "I've got good news for all of you and a bit of progress. We have managed to identify the creator of the Helter Skelters, via the one you sent us Andy."

"Well, don't leave us in suspense here, tell us," Andy said after a moment.

"It's one Charles Babbage, the genius engineer, and mathematician," He told them. "We found his signature inside it, via the steam engine that powered it. Though now we just need to find him."

"Mhm, Charles Babbage. If his robots are powered by steam…" Andy trailed off. "Do we have any way to get a thermal view of the area? Like a familiar or drone that could fly above the Fog? If we could see or otherwise track the heat signatures around here, we could at least find where the majority of the Helter Skelter is, or maybe even a control center of sorts."

Fran raised her hand.

"Oh? Miss Fran, if you have something to contribute please, by all means." Andy said.

She began to write on her paper, and a few seconds later she revealed to them what she had written. "I can sense the signal between the Helter Skelters, so I know where Mr. Babbage is, but I didn't want to believe it was him. Making those things to hurt people, he is a kind man one of the only people that helped me when I was alive. I can't believe that it's him." Andy could see the shame on her face.

"Oh, of course, radio waves, duh," Andy muttered to herself. "But, Miss Fran, you have to remember he's a Servant right now, he probably doesn't want to hurt people but has no choice in the matter."

"Andy is right about that Fran, if you say he is a good person, then he is. So can you lead us to him so that we can knock some sense into him?" Mordred said, with her own version of supporting words.

"Actually, if we can get him still enough we can probably release him from his Master's hold," Andy said. "Medea, the hooded Caster I keep swapping in and out can do that. And hey, even if we can't, we can probably summon him after the fact. So, will you help us save your friend, Miss Fran?"

"Y-yes." She spoke physically.

"Ah, such a declaration of determination is pure beauty. But before you leave, I have finished my script for your armor, Miss Murphy." Shakespeare spoke as he pulled out a stack of papers. "The typewriter is truly a magnificent invention."

"Thank you, Shakespeare. And, if you think the typewriter's great, wait till we get back to Chaldea and I show you a Word Processor." Andy said.

"Shall I apply the enchantment, before you leave it shall not take long. Though I need you to bring it out."

"Ah, right, sorry. Deploy Tenfold Shields." Andy said and was in an instant clad in the armor.

Andy watched as Shakespeare slapped the manuscript onto the armor and watched as it absorbed it.

"There now the scales strength matches it magic resistance, it is now the equivalent to a C-Rank Noble Phantasm of the defensive nature."

"Thank you, Shakespeare. I'm very happy you've made it harder for me to die. Now, does anyone else have anything prudent that needs to be said?" Andy asked.

"At this moment Master, I am rather paranoid that something is going to go wrong soon, from what my gut is telling me." Said Boudica.

"I always have that feeling. Every time we think we've got everything understood, boom! Archer Heracles, and we still came out on top. So, I'd say we just prepare for the worst like always. On that note, Elizabeth, you have those fireworks ready, right?" Andy asked.

"I do, then do you want me to fire them off?" She asked.

"Wait just a bit yet, I'm sure M would _love_ to see the spectacular show you'll put on," Andy said.

"Ooh, that sounds perfect Andy." Liz giggled.

"Alright, anyone else?" Andy asked. "No? Then Miss Fran, please lead the way."

Fran nodded her head, and everyone sat up.

"And will be here, monitoring your condition." Said Roman as his image vanished.

Xxx

The Demonic Fog seemed even heavier than it had been yesterday as they walked through the streets of London, though the moment they had set foot outside the mansion's doors they had been attacked by Helter Skelter.

"Close." Said, Fran, as the Artificial Human led the group forward.

"That's good, I suppose. Means we won't have to go far." Andy said as she swapped out Mata Hari for Medea. _"Hey, Medea, sorry for swapping you in suddenly, we're tracking Charles Babbage, who's a friend of Miss Fran. We'll immobilize him for you, but as soon as we do, you need to make him Ours."_ Andy told the Caster telepathically, knowing full well they could be overheard out in the fog.

" _Understood Andy, also when you're done with the Singularity, there is something I need your help with."_

" _Sure, as long as I won't die from it."_

" _You won't."_

"Ah, to think that I would have to face you, child." Spoke a deep, slightly mechanical sounding voice through the fog that sounded restrained. "First to participate in this senseless act of incineration, then to fight my friend."

"Well, you know you don't actually have to fight, Sir," Andy said. "If you can hold still for just a little bit, it'll just be a little pinch, and you'll be freed from your orders."

"Yes, please hurry I can not hold myself back much longer, I do not wish to hurt you or her." Said the Mecha Servant that was Charles Babbage.

"Gil, pin him just in case. Medea, quickly now." Andy ordered.

The gate opened up behind Gilgamesh, and a single blade shoots out of the golden portal to the worlds greatest treasure. It impaled the shadow off Babbage created by the street lights behind him. And Andy saw his body freeze up no longer slowly walking as it had been before.

"Rule Breaker!" Medea shouted as she activated her Noble Phantasm and stabbed Babbage with it.

A second later Andy felt a new contract form within her mind and stumbled a bit a seventh servant was now pulling on her own reserves than those transmitted by Chaldea through her to her Servants. She could feel her Circuit's heat increase just a little bit.

"Thank you." Said Babbage with a much more now at ease tone of voice.

"Yeah, no problem," Andy said as she nodded to Medea before sending her back to Chaldea, instantly feeling relief on her Circuits. "Miss Fran said you were a good person, Sir Babbage, so I figured I should at least try to do this."

"Thank you." Came the thanks from Fran.

"Yes, I thank you to Master of Chaldea now shall we stop my creation which created this Demonic Fog," Babbage told them.

"So you were the one who made this annoying as fuck fog?" Mordred complained which resulted in a jab to her side by Lily.

"Sir Mordred be respectful it was not under his own volition."

"Yes, Father."

"To answer your question Sir Babbage, yes we would very much so like to do that. But before we do, I need to know. What was the name of your former Master?" Andy asked.

"My Master, who you might know as M. His true name is Makiri Zolgen." He told them.

"Makiri Zolgen," Andy said flatly, before looking around in the Fog for any bugs. "I _see_. Well then. We'd best hurry up in destroying that machine of yours." Andy said, before remembering Stat-o-Vision was probably something she should use on her new Servant.

[spoiler=Charles Babbage's Stat Sheet]

True Name: Charles Babbage

Class: Caster

Master: Andy Murphy

 **Parameters:**

Strength: B++

Endurance: B++

Agility: D++

Mana: A

Luck: E

Noble Phantasm: EX  
 **Class Skill:**

Item Creation(False): A

 **Personal Skills:**

Single-Mindedness: C

Mechanized Armor: A

Overload: D

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Dimension of Steam: Gorgeous World of Ashes(Anti-Army): EX

[/spoiler]

"Which way to it? Oh, and do you still have control of your Helter Skelters, Sir Babbage?" Andy asked, noting to ask him about that... _apocalyptic_ sounding Noble Phantasm after the machine creating the fog was destroyed.

"My Great Steam Machine Angrboda is down in a great cavern beneath London itself. And yes I have." He said.

"Good, we _finally_ have an army," Andy said to herself. "As for this 'Angrboda,' is there a passage to that cavern or should we just smash our way down?"

"Yes, we need to go through the sewers and then through the catacombs."

"Hmm, Angrboda isn't that the name of Loki's wife?" Mash asked. "The Jotun that gave birth to Hel, Fenrir, and Jormungandr."

"Yes, it was an appropriate name for a machine of that size, and with the Grail, as its power source, it has 'Birthed' Servants has it not," Babbage spoke with a tone that was like a mix of pride and shame.

"I see. But, for what purpose? Why does Zolgen want to do all this?" Andy said, unable to match up what was going on with the worm's lust for true immortality. Unless he'd been offered it…?

"He has not been open with himself, but I have heard him muttering about it was all useless in the end," Babbage told Andy.

"Zolgen gave up?" Andy asked legitimate surprise and worry in her voice. "I really really really _really_ hope that's just because he saw a Demon Pillar or something. That bastard spent...spends? five hundred years doing the most absolutely heinous shit to get what he wants, but _gave up_ just like that?" She shuddered at the possibilities.

"Perhaps you should ask him Senpai? People like him always seem to want to banter before a fight." Mash suggested.

"Hopefully. He's the most pragmatic bastard I've heard of, but he gave up so who knows."

" _If he still somewhat acts like then I knew him, he will always be up for a philosophy debate."_ Came the voice of Da Vinci. 

"Da Vinci, I'm pretty sure that was a long time before he set down the path of immortality. I did tell you what he did to his 'adoptive granddaughter' right?" Andy asked the genius.

" _You did, I wouldn't be able to tell you what made him go down the route of evil, but when I knew him, he always spoke about wanting to create a world where everyone was happy. A Utopia."_ Da Vinci answered.

"You do know that literally means 'nowhere,' right?" Andy asked rhetorically. "And you have to keep in mind, it's been what, 300 years since then? I've changed more than I could possibly have imagined in just 6 months, he's had 600 times that long since you last spoke."

" _I'm just having a little bit of hope for a dear friend. Now go down and confront him."_

"Right."

Xxx

The catacombs beneath London were damp and muddy. Fortunately or Un, depending on one's point of view there had been no enemies in the underground tunnels as they weren't very wide Babbage almost scraping against the walls and roof with his large size as he leads them.

"Hmm, to think the damage I did against this Roman settlement so many centuries ago can still be found down here," Boudica said as she walked behind Andy and Mash.

"This is from you?" Andy asked, only a bit surprised considering the crazy shit that happened in history.

"We just passed the layer of ash that was created when I burned it down to the ground." She said.

"...That's a lot of ash if it's still here 1800 some odd years later." Andy said, 'appreciating' for the first time the sheer amount of destruction Boudicca had wrought, who she recalled was very much so a Celtic Warrior Queen.

"I aim to impress."

"We are about to arrive." Came the mechanical voice of Babbage and a few seconds later they entered the massive cavern that was located beneath London.

"This place almost looks like the cave in Singularity F." Said, Mash, as she looked around the desolate place.

"Too much like it," Andy said. "Sir Babbage, you didn't use the Greater Grail to make Angrboda did you?"

"No." He answered. "That is my Angrboda." He said as he pointed his finger at the enormous machine on top the small hill.

"So, do we just break it open and take out the Grail?" Mordred asked as she came up beside them her armor rustling.

"In theory, yes. In practice, I have a feeling at least three things are going to go wrong before we get to." Andy said and then was struck by a revelation. "Sir Babbage, please tell me there weren't any other Servants that you neglected to tell us about?"

"So, you have betrayed us, Babbage?" Said a calm male voice, and the sound of footsteps was heard and from the shadows cast by the machine a figure appeared. "So, Heroes of Chaldea you have arrived."

"Glad to be here. I assume you are Makiri Zolgen, the one behind all this?" Andy asked, deciding to try and take Da Vinci's advice.

"Yes, on the orders of my King to destroy this era I summoned Babbage here to create the Demonic Fog, which now fills London and soon the rest of the British Empire." He said. "But Makiri Zolgen the man who tried to be a hero exists no longer. I am Barbatos of the Seventy-Two Demon Gods, now please die." And with a flare of energy, a Demon Pillar stood before them.

"Liz? I think the ball just dropped." Andy said, giving the Caster her cue.

"Pumpkin, Pumpkin fireworks." She chanted and with a wave of her pitchfork all the fireworks that she had made was summoned and unleashed on Barbatos. Causing to scream in pain as he was temporarily blinded in his many eyes.

"Okay, plan to kill this disgusting thing?" Mordred asked.

"Pendragons, Noble Phantasms. Gil, anti-demon weapons would be good. Boudicca, Liz, aim for the eyes when/if they open. Babbage...if you have a ranged attack, do it. Fran, same for you, but no Blasted Tree." Andy ordered, pointing dramatically at the Demon Pillar and launching a Lightning Runestone which didn't do much damage but worked as the signal for the Servants to start attacking.

"Been waiting to use this. Clarent Blood Arthur!" Mordred roared as she fired her Noble Phantasm at the Demon God.

"Yes, don't let get a chance to attack and retaliate Sir Mordred. Caliburn!" Lily said.

"Yes, this thing is in great need of death, what a disgusting creature of meat," Gilgamesh said as he began to fire upon Barbatos. Golden portals floated in a half circle around the adventuring form of the King of Heroes.

"You shall all die, humanity no longer has a future, or past gives up and face oblivion." The voice of Barbatos roared as he tried to attack but every time he tried to fire his eyes beams, he got hit in it by Liz and Boudica who was flying around in her chariot.

"Shut the fuck up you overgrown maggot! You're nothing but cancer on human history, and wouldn't you know it, we're removing you!" Andy shouted back. "So either say something useful or die quietly!"

"You dare human! We Demon Gods are superior to you in every way you would never hope to comprehend the plan of our King." Barbatos yelled. "Argh, you damn flies you will never be able to kill me."

"Then let's test that out you rigged piece of shit," Mordred yelled as she threw Clarent right into one of Barbatos' eyes.

Andy watched as she quickly Mana Burst'd over and grabbed the hilt. "You're weak enough for me to do this shit. Clarent!" She shouted as activated her Noble Phantasm again.

And swung up.

Andy watched as Mordred bisected the Demon God in half.

"Argh!" It screamed out as it began to shrink, leaving the form of Zolgen on the ground. "Yet you shall serve with your eyes clouded by chaos. For you would be one caged in madness. I shall wield your-."

"Christ shut up!" Mordred shouted as swung her sword and decapitated him. "There he is now fucking dead."

"Sir Mordred I don't think that'll keep him down for good," Andy said as she rapidly approached the Servant and decapitated body.

"Hmm, Senpai he just said a part of summoning chant." As soon Mash said that lightning struck the place all around them, and incinerating Zolgen's remains.

"Yes, I hear you call, I shall respond to your wish!" Shouted a large booming voice. "I who am Pioneer of the Stars, I who am the Modern Prometheus, I who stole lightning from the Gods, I who surpass, Indra, surpass Zeus." Said the man before them.

"Who the hell are you?" Mordred asked as she looked at the eccentric looking man.

"Did, you not hear me, Servant of the Earth, I am the Servant who is of the Star. Quite Mad, now let me show you why Alternate Current is superior." Lighting flashed from his hand and within a second Mordred collapsed to the ground her armor scorched and burned.

"Mordred!" Lily and Andy shouted at the same time, Lily rushing over to the other Saber's side.

"Hey, Percy Jackson or whatever, your Master was dead before you were even summoned, so there's no need to fight us y'know!" Andy shouted, pretty sure she was yelling at Nikola Tesla considering the 'Alternating Current' comment but not 100% sure.

"Like I said I'm quite 'Mad' Right now, I have been given a mission which shall be fulfilled. Watch as I create a new Legend."

"Miss Fran, if you would!" Andy said as she saw the lightning thief charge up another attack.

"Argh." She roared, as she charged.

"A fellow Servant of lightning, however, it is USELESS, System Keraunos!"

Lightning flashed, and Andy's world became darkness.

Xxx

"Senpai wake up please?" Asked the concerned voice of Mash. Andy could feel her body being shaken.

"Did you get the license plate of that truck that hit me?" Andy said groggily as she numbly tried to sit up.

"Elon Musk," Mash responded.

"So it was Tesla then?" Andy asked as she wearily blinked her eyes open. She actually did feel like she'd been hit by a truck.

"Yeah, that was him. He managed to knock us all out with his Noble Phantasm which according to his Majesty he held back severely as it is more effective against Servants of Earth and Heaven." Mash said.

"Ah. Must be like Vlad back in France, fighting against the madness. But, ah, Kouhai, I have a very important question for you." Andy said.

"What is it Senpai?"

"Why is it so dark in here?"

"Oh, I think you're temporarily blind, or your helmet is broken," Mash answered.

Andy quietly took off her helmet manually, which caused no change in her vision. "Oh. Gr _eat_. He blinded me with science."

"Give me a second, your Majesty do you have any healing potions in that Gate?"

Andy felt something smash against her head. "Thank you. Here drink this Senpai." Andy felt cold glass against her lips, a liquid that tasted like utter shit flowed down her throat, and a few seconds later Andy 'saw' her vision returning.

"Okay, that's better. Thank you, Gil." Andy said as she shook off the grogginess as the healing potion did its work. "Okay, now that I can see again, what about everyone else?"

"We're are fine just some burns. Though I think Mr. Babbage is unable to move." Said Lily.

"Yes, motor functions have been disabled in my legs, and it shall take some time to repair. You go after the Pioneer, I shall stay and fix myself, and start the removal process of the Grail." Babbage explained.

"Alright, hopefully, we'll be back shortly Sir Babbage," Andy said. "Everyone else, get close together so I can heal everybody at once, and then we'll take down Tesla. Unless anyone wants to tap out?"

"I think I will Andy, I am not suited to fight against that guy," Liz said.

"That's alright Liz. Anyone else?" Andy asked. "No? Alright then." Andy said, before swapping out Liz for Asterios. "Hey big guy, sorry to swap you on without warning like this, we've got a Maddened Nikola Tesla on our hands, and I figured a little more Lightning couldn't hurt."

Asterios grinned. "Use Labyrinth?"

Andy grinned back. "Right on the money." She said, only just barely restraining herself from saying Bullseye instead.

"Okay, good to see you all up again." Came the voice of Roman from their armbands. "Got some information for you all. Sir Tesla was so kindly to shout his plan out loud while you were knocked out and I heard it. He plans to accelerate the expansion of the Fog via his electricity don't know how that works, but it probably will and right now is on his way to the Buckingham Palace to do it. Though thankfully right now he is being occupied by Kintoki and Tamamo, he somehow got summoned into the Singularity along with her somehow, probably due to some sympathetic magic and she hitched a ride. But you need to hurry as those two right now are fighting on limited reserves as they are cutting themselves off from you so you won't get strained." Roman explained.

Andy blinked owlishly for a moment before giving up on trying to make sense of that for the moment. "Okay, we'll look into how that happened later, everyone let's get up there, I'll heal you on the way."

"Right we need to hurry, that man of lightning is dangerous for a legend of an age less than a hundred years," Gilgamesh said. "If he were not an enemy at the moment I would praise him as a shining example of humanity."

"Yeah, he wasn't exaggerating too much when he said about stealing lightning. I'm pretty sure Tenfold Shields uses Alternating Current." Andy said, before remembering what had happened before they had been knocked out and turning towards Fran. "Miss Fran, my apologies for not being clearer earlier, but when I called your name, I had been hoping you would absorb his attack with your Galvanism skill."

"She would have if that had been ordinary electricity, but that Noble Phantasm, it bears more of a resemblance to Ea's Enuma Elish in function than most other. To tear and rip space itself." Gilgamesh said.

Fran nodded.

"Oh. Sorry. Looked like it was just magic lightning to me." Andy said.

"Apology accepted." She stuttered out. "Though it was too, but then it hit. More prepared now."

"Okay, everything sorted out? Yes? Then let's go."

They all ran as fast as they could back through the catacombs, back through the sewers and onto the cobblestone streets of London.

And not so far from them they could hear the sound of clapping thunder.

"Okay everyone, remember the plan," Andy said as they approached the thunderous battle which was about to get a lot louder.

They soon could see the three, Servants battling it out against each other.

Though it looked like Tesla had a barrier of the fog and lightning that surrounded his body, that seemed to be nullifying a lot of Tamamo's spells.

Andy took the time to use Stat-o-Vision on the Pioneer while he was occupied.

[spoiler=Nikola Tesla's Stat Sheet]

True Name: Nikola Tesla

Class: Archer

Master: [s]Zolgen Makiri[/s]

 **Parameters:**

Strength: D

Endurance: C

Agility: C

Mana: A

Luck: D

Noble Phantasm: EX

 **Class Skills:**

Independent Action: B

Magic Resistance: D

 **Class Skills:**

Galvanism: A

Natural Born Genius: EX

Pioneer of the Stars: EX

 **Noble Phantasm:**

System Keraunos: Legend of Mankind - Advent of Lightning(Anti-Fortress): EX

[/spoiler]

Andy noted that thankfully, his Endurance wasn't all that much. "Alright, now!" She ordered, and Asterios lept into action.

"Chaos Labyrinth!" Berserker announced interrupting the fight as the legendary maze was generated all around them.

Andy saw a wall shoot up between them all and Tesla which hopefully would give them a few minutes to stage an ambush for the Mad Scientist inside the Labyrinth as Asterios would know where he was at all times.

"Yoo! Master! It's Golden good to see that you're alright." The sunglass-wearing Berserker greeted Andy.

"Golden Boy! Not that I'm complaining, but you wouldn't happen to know why you're here would you?" Andy asked.

"I felt the power of not so Golden lightning, and I responded to face and boom I was in front of that enemy that hurt you." He responded.

"And I was next to him when it happened, and I hitched a ride to make sure the Golden Idiot didn't do anything stupid or get himself hurt, that would get Minamoto here in a hurry," Tamamo said with a shudder.

"Okay, well, you're here now, so that's good." Andy said, filing away to ask about 'Minamoto' later. "More pressingly, Tesla's still in there, so we gotta go in there and pulverize him before he spreads the Fog all over Britain."

"I'm all for that plan if the bastard likes lightning that much he can get a taste of mine." Said the still toasty Mordred, smelling like ozone. Though even Andy had healed her, there was no fixing that hair even with Magecraft.

"Then we can't waste another moment. Asterios, lead us to him." Andy ordered.

"This way." He said as led them down, corridor after corridor to where they would meet up with Tesla, though they would pop-up behind the genius so that he didn't have time for a counter attack.

Asterios lifted up a finger for all to see, meaning they would in a few moments behind Tesla.

They turned a corner.

And then, all of the Fuck You was unleashed as every destructive Noble Phantasm was unleashed on him. Mordred yelling "DIE!" As she unleashed hers.

And as the dust settled only a Saint Quartz was left.

"Eat Shit asshole," Mordred commented with glee.

Andy picked up and stowed away the Quartz. "Alright, let's swing back to Jekyll's then head to Sir Babbage, I want as many Servants coming back with us as possible. Oh, Kintoki, Tamamo, I'll try to send you back while we're doing that, it's not fair for you two to be cutting yourselves off like that."

"You should of with doing until we have properly secured the Grail Master, we still have enough reserves to go for another hour on our lonesome. And going by your track record and what you said earlier something else is going to show up and ruin our day." Said Tamamo.

Andy sighed. "Your probably right. Lets still go to Jekyll's for now, four new Servants isn't something to ignore."

"Humh, so you're all still alive?" Came the scathing voice of Hans from behind the current group. They all turned around to find house Jekyll all standing together.

"Well, that's convenient," Andy said, not very surprised considering all four of them were literary. "Well, C'mon, we're going back down to Angrboda where hopefully Sir Babbage has extracted the Grail, and anyone willing to come with us back to Chaldea can make a Contract."

"Ah, I like the sound of that." Said, Shakespeare. "So many Servants, so many stories untold that needs to be written." The Playwright sounded joyful.

"Is there people that would want tea parties?" Alice asked.

"Oh, there definitely is Alice," Andy said with a smile.

"Okay, then people let's get going before this act overstays its welcome," Hans grumbled.

"You seem rather grumpy Hans, maybe when we get back, you should take a nap," Andy said with a grin as they started walking back towards Angrboda.


	68. King of Magic

"Ah, Master good to see that you're alright." Spoke Babbage all fixed up now and in his hand, he was holding the Grail used by Zolgen. "Angrboda has been disabled, and I hope that you have some way of storing this thing?"

"Yes, just give it to me Mr. Babbage," Mash said as she took the Grail and stored it within her shields convenient hammerspace function. Where Fou was chilling out most of the time, when they were in combat and walking around then not sitting on her either Mash or Andy's shoulder.

"All right, now that that's settled, everyone who wants to come back to Chaldea with us needs to make a contract with me ASAP, preferably all at once so we can leave sooner. Is there anyone who _doesn't_ want to come with?" Andy asked the small crowd of Servants who were not yet hers.

"Well, I thought we would disappear and had to be summoned by you, but this is much more convenient." Said Mordred.

"Okay, you do that Andy in the meantime I'll prep the system to Rayshift you out the mo…" Roman's voice became complete static.

"Oh fuck," Andy said immediately.

And then a voice cut through the cavern. "Demon Marshall Gilles de Rais, Imperial Founder Romulus. Hero Spy Jason, and Divine Scholar Nikola Tesla. I thought they would be somewhat useful, but they have spoiled my fun as they couldn't even clean house."

Andy heard the sound of footsteps, and all of them turned to face whatever was approaching them. Whatever it was it was strong, as she could feel an invisible pressure on her body making her whole body heavy.

"Such stupidity, such stupidity, humans really do degrade with time." The voice spoke again, as the shadowy figure before them stopped moving.

"Master, this is bad, we got a not so golden guy here."

"I agree with Oni Killer, this feels like me with all of my nine-tails." Said Tamamo.

"I could not sense magical energy while I was alive, but as a Castor, this feels like God himself has descended upon us," Shakespeare exclaimed.

"I only fear the god of editors, but I did not expect the Big Boss himself to show up," Hans added.

"Chaldea has become isolated from the time-axis and become a base floating through the void. So that even my eyes which see everything and all possible futures have trouble of perceiving its location." The voice spoke again. "That is why you survive. Pathetically, shamelessly, uselessly. Intolerant of a history of destruction already decided, a pitiful boat still adrift an endless sea. That is what you are Chaldea that is what you are Andy. A stain upon the scorched ashes of human history. The name of the only fools who would defy 'my' deeds."

"Stop monologing from the shadows and show yourself then, coward!" Andy said, her voice definitely not cracking despite her best efforts at both the overwhelming presence and the wild conclusions she was coming to about the identity of the speaker considering the 'God-like presence' and 'all-seeing eyes' thing.

"I thought you had already figured it out, but much like monkeys, you need to be taught manners. But I have taken a liking to your idiocy, and so I shall explain to you like the stupid animals you are. I am the final destination that you seek. I am the one that commands the 72 Demons Gods and will destroy humanity from his throne. My name is Solomon, and among Heroic Spirits, I stand above them as one of the 'Grand' seven." And no longer was he covered in shadows.

"The fuck? I thought you were supposed to have the Wisdom of God, why would you be destroying Human History?" Andy asked defiantly, some of the fear fading now that she had a name and a face and knew it wasn't someone 'bigger' than 'just' Solomon.

"So we got a big shot Heroic Spirit here?" Mordred asked. "I have to ask the same question as Andy here, you were summoned as a Servant and decided to spend your second life destroying humanity?"

"No, Knight of Treachery, I am indeed a Servant, but no man will ever summon me," Solomon answered.

"What?" Came the confused response from the knight.

"Do not think me as being in the same rank as you incompetents. After my death I was brought back to life by my own powers as a Heroic Spirit in my own body, I am both a Servant and living being. No Master commands me, I did all of this of my own volition. In order to eliminate all you humans." Solomon exposited, dude much love the sound of his own voice.

"Okay, but _why?_ And if you brought yourself back after your death, why _now_?" Andy asked while worrying about a potential Gaia Theory situation considering what Hans had said about the so-called 'Grand' Servants before.

"I wanted to see if humans would be able to conquer death, but in three thousand years you did not. You continued to live in fear of death, unable to overcome it. That is why you're the biggest sole and greatest waste in this entire universe. You should have discarded that fear as sensible Sapient creatures, but you did not."

"That's what makes humans, _human_ you dumbass 'omniscient' immortal," Andy said with vitriol. "Without fear, the only adaptation is evolutionary. Actually, no, scratch that, with no fear _your_ ancestors would have died long before your birth, ' _O King_.' Fear of death is what drives people to live and change and grow! The God you _used_ to serve, who granted you your so-called Wisdom, granted us that! Discarding fear isn't sensible, it's downright _suicidal_!" Andy yelled at the Servant she felt with every fiber of her being could kill her in an instant and was merely toying with them, her anger at his reasoning overpowering the fear (ha!) she was feeling for the moment.

"Your perspective is limited, you do not see what I see, where you might see growth and change, there has only been stagnation in the human condition. There everything is still the same as it was one thousand, two thousand, three thousand years ago. You should have discarded your fear, your sapience, and returned to the animal whence you came and lived a more blissful existence. Now tell me Andy, that ring of light in the sky above us what do you think they are?" Solomon asked.

"Lemme guess, it's your glory hole as you fuck over humanity, sharmuta?" Andy asked rhetorically. He was really starting to piss her off, considering he wasn't making any sense.

"My, my what a fucking cheek you have there Master of Chaldea."

"It is you Noble Phantasm is it not King of Magic." Came the voice of Gilgamesh.

"Yes, my fellow clairvoyant that Band of Light is what is used to Incinerate Human History, it is my third Noble Phantasm 'Ars Almadel Salomonis', it is an Anti-Humanity Noble Phantasm the band itself is constructed out of millions rays of light, each ray has the power of that Holy Sword of yours Arthur Pendragon."

"A million of my Excaliburs?" Came the shocked voice from Lily.

"Hundreds." He added to rub salt in the wound.

"That seems like it's a _little bit overkill_ , don't you think?" Andy asked, her voice cracking again at the sheer _power_ contained in those rings.

"It what was needed, now I have answered the questions, now it is my turn. Out all of you, I'm most interested in the one holding my dear descendant Galahad. Let's test out how well you're able to use his powers girl. But out of consideration, I will go easy on you." Solomon reached into his coat, and Andy's eyes widened as he pulled out three Saint Quartz. "Come forth." He said as he threw them into the air and a second later Andy and the others watched as the three Saints Quartz seemed to suck in the Demonic Fog that was still hanging in the air that began to condense into the form of a Servant. "Annihilate all before you King of the Wild Hunt, Arturia Pendragon."

"That is Father, that is Father wielding the lance that killed me. Rhongomyniad." Mordred said with shock.

"Are you mocking me, Solomon!" Lily said in anger as she looked at the Israeli King of Jerusalem

"Hmm, it seems that Barbatos' Mad Enhancement chant is still in effect." He said ignoring Lily.

Andy quickly used her Stat-o-Vision on the...fifth? Version of Arturia they'd come across, make absolutely sure not to look at Solomon while doing so, since if Medea Lily had been able to block it, looking at Solomon with it would probably burn her eyes out or something.

[spoiler=Arturia Pendragon's Stat Sheet]

True Name: Arturia Pendragon

Class: Lancer

Master: Solomon

 **Parameters:**

Strength: A

Endurance: A+

Agility: C

Mana: A+

Luck: D

Noble Phantasm: EX

 **Class Skills:**

Riding: A

Magic Resistance: B

 **Personal Skills:**

Mana Burst: A+

Charisma: E

Blessings from the Ends of the World: A

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Invisible Air: Barrier of the Wind King(Anti-Unit): C

Rhongomyniad: The Lance that Shines to the Ends of the World(Anti-Fortress): EX

[/spoiler]

"Gil, Dragon Slaying weapons! Everyone else who can, attack the enemy Pendragon with whatever you can but don't get close, especially Sir Mordred stay out of her reach!" Andy ordered, on one level glad to be fighting a flunky instead of Solomon himself, but on every other level freaking out since this enemy Arturia's master was that same Solomon which probably meant near-infinite mana and probably spamming of whatever Rhongomyniad did when released.

And as soon as the order was given, the Servants let loose with everything they had to blast apart the summoned Servant and hopefully Solomon himself.

And for Andy, it was like watching a nuke going right in front of her eyes. She watched as the inferno created by her Servants disappear and the Lancer moved for a second before she and the horse disappeared in golden motes.

But Solomon.

Solomon stood utterly unscathed not even a single burn mark on his clothing. He patted his shoulder and Andy watched as dust got removed.

"Was that all? Perhaps I went to easy and should just have summoned four of them like I had planned to do. But now let me show you why fighting against _me_ is futile."

Andy watched him swipe his hand and felt her whole body freeze up.

An instant later, Andy watched as her allies and Servants were seemingly annihilated out existence, the only ones still standing being Mash, Mordred, and Fran.

They only survived due to Babbage and Hans taking the shot for them.

The Author was still there but his lower half completely gone, as he clung unto life.

"You managed to survive my attack scribbler truly impressive," Solomon said as he looked down upon the dying author.

"Yeah, should have expected this to happen you're a Grand Servant are you not King Solomon?" Solomon smirked in response. "I see that is why we can not beat you, it is not a matter of one's Rank as Heroic Spirit, the King of Heroes beats you in that regards. No, the difference is the Vessel itself being made of sterner stuff than ours. We were made to fight a singular opponent while you were made to fight the World as an agent of the Counter Force, but you have turned your back on that purpose."

"Yes indeed scholar, now die," Solomon said as he snapped his finger and Hans vanished now. "Now do you see the wall that exists between you and me?"

Andy could barely think. In an instant, they'd been erased. Boudicca, Kintoki, Tamamo, Gil, Alice...Asterios... _Lily…_ She wanted to scream. She wanted to rip Solomon's heart out of his chest so he could know what she was feeling.

But she couldn't even move.

It was happening again. Freezing up when it mattered the most. Except this time, nothing mattered. Because the only reason Andy was still alive was because of her Servants, and the fact Solomon was just playing with them.

She fell to her knees involuntarily. She still couldn't move. She could feel involuntary tears gathering in her helmet. This was how it ended, it seemed, just like it began. Weak, useless, unable to do anything but watch.

" _Senpai, please don't give up."_

" _Mash?"_

" _Don't fall into despair, we can get through this if our hearts do not waver. The Servants you've contracted are okay, Lily is reforming in Chaldea as we speak. You can still feel the contract can you not, it's still active."_

Andy felt for the connection, and upon finding that yes it was still there felt a wave of relief flow through her. And then she laughed. "Roman you asshole, you should have said something before this." She admonished the doctor who probably couldn't hear her. But, that was definitely the kick in the pants she needed to snap out of it. "Mordred, Fran, quick, make a contract with me, become my Servants. Do you accept?"

"We do?" They responded simultaneously, and Andy felt the connection form.

"And asshole, you're just scared aren't you, you're just here because you're mad that Andy got your Grails aren't you. All this are the actions of a sore loser." Mordred taunted the King of Magic.

"You must be the biggest fool in existence, it doesn't matter if she gets one or six Grails. If she manages to get all of them, she might become a bug to be squashed, but right now you're no threat to me. Heck, right now you're all less worth to me than piss. For that was all this was to me, a bathroom break after finishing reading a book. But I've wasted enough time here." At that Solomon vanished in a blinding light leaving them all alone in the cavern beneath London.

Andy felt her vision fading as she was engulfed in the blue tunnel of the Rayshift.

Xxx

 **January 6**

"Oh mom, thank god you're awake. I was so scared for you." Lily cried into her sides as Andy sat up in her bed, now fully awake.

Andy wrapped Lily in a hug and held on tight, tears of her own falling as she remembered what had just happened. "You were scared for me?" She said after a moment. " _I_ saw _you_ disintegrate, y'know."

"I'm sorry, I made you so worried." Lily cried even more.

"Shh, shh, it's okay now," Andy said as comfortingly as possible. "We made it, more or less, and we're all still here."

"Well, nothing obvious but I think I heard Da Vinci say something worrying about your Magic Circuits," Lily said with great shame in her voice. "So, you shouldn't turn them on for now."

"It won't affect you guys will it?" Andy asked worriedly. If she couldn't provide upkeep for Servants in the field, they were doomed.

"Not while we're wandering the halls of Chaldea at least, but out in Singularities that don't have a shit ton of Mana in the air for us to feed on. You have to talk to Da Vinci about that." Lily said with a downtrodden look.

"Oh, sweetie, don't blame yourself for it," Andy said. "Solomon's super Overpowered, there was nothing any of us could have done. Except me maybe using a Command Spell for Lord Camelot." Andy said, realizing her mistake much too late. "But, the point is, we survived, we still got the Grail, we still have Babbage and Fran, and Mordred, and honestly we're almost _better off_ now than we were before, cause we know his motivations now."

"Yeah, too OP please nerf the Grand Caster, also speaking of Mordred she met Alter and Santa earlier. And I think she is still blue screening down the hallway." Lily said with a laugh, trying to lighten the mood.

"Aww, I wanted to be there for that," Andy said, laughing along, also wanting to move forward. "How about I go talk to her, I need to stretch my legs anyway." She said, trying to get up but finding she couldn't. "Please tell me I'm sedated, and not that my legs are missing."

"Sedated, you had a heart attack when you arrived in Chaldea, which happened after you went into shock. Yeah, you were in surgery for a few hours before you got sent back to your room." Lily said nonchalantly.

"Ooh, do you know if Da Vinci did anything on my Wishlist?" Andy asked, assuming Da Vinci had led considering her Genius.

"No, I think she just fixed your heart up," Lily said. "And right now I think you can't due to your legs being hard asleep due to the aftereffect of sedative, instead of the sedative itself," Lily said.

"Oh. Um, in that case, could you be a dear and bring Mordred in here then? We should probably nip that problem in the bud sooner rather than later." Andy asked.

"Sure thing mom," Lily said as she left Andy's hug and then her room.

Andy sighed as she turned her head to see Fou looking at her from her desk.

"Hey little guy, how're you holding up?" Andy asked the white fluffball.

"Fou." He responded as he jumped down and over to Andy where he placed himself on her lap.

Andy began petting him almost immediately. It was almost therapeutic, which was exactly what she needed right around now. She sighed. "Y'know, in a way, I'm super jealous of you Fou."

"Fou?" He responded as he tilted his head to the left.

"I mean, you don't have to worry about friggin Solomon, the Grand Sharmuta Servant, coming around and roflstomping everyone around you," Andy said, chuckling sadly. "You just have to worry about your next nap and your next meal."

"Fou." He responded as he grinded his head into the palm of her hand for a good nuzzling as Lily returned with Mordred.

"Mom, we are back." She said.

"Hey, Second Best Master ever, you back in the game?"

Andy pouted at the Knight of Treachery. "Second Best, huh. And after I saved you from Solomon, ugh. Grandkids, no respect for their elders anymore."

"Because Shishigou is number one. And what is up with that whole 'mom' thing you still haven't explained it, Father." Mordred complained.

"Eh, I was just messing with ya, I know yer. Dad's your favorite," Andy said, grinning. "And Lily, you can explain now if you want, I'm rescinding my order not to tell her."

"Sir Mordred, Andy was acting like a mother hen and offered herself up as mine, when I told her I did not have one growing up," Lily said giving an extremely abridged version of the events that happened.

But was seemingly enough for the Blood Knight. "Ah, okay so you're Granny now Master." She said with a mean grin on her face. "What an old woman I have for a Master."

"Boy don't you start with me," Andy said jokingly. "Back in my day, Servants had respect for their Masters, and we had to walk up the hill both ways through the snow to get to Chaldea!"

"Okay, we are getting into stupid territory now, Sir Mordred could you wake Andy's legs up?" She asked her knight.

"Sure thing."

"We need a little stupid right now Lily," Andy said, before registering the rest of the conversation. "Wait? Wha-"

Andy's word was cut off as she felt a shock go through her body, but now she could at least feel her toes now as she felt them wiggle with her thoughts now.

"My Mana Burst is closer to the lightning version, that what father uses, I've used it like this to wake my troops up." She said answering the question that formed in Andy's mind.

"Please don't do that again without telling me," Andy ordered. "But thank you. I'm happy you came back with us, Mordred."

"Me too, this place is awesome even with those weird versions of father walking around, the one in the dress was acting really weird towards me. Like she wanted me to sleep on her lap." Mordred said.

"Oh, right, those are versions from a completely different timeline, and a modified existence after becoming a Servant." Andy 'explained' as she shakily got to her feet. Just cause she could move her legs didn't mean they would be very cooperative, it seemed.

"So, a trip by Mash first before, meeting with Da Vinci?" Lily proposed. As she helped steady Andy while she tried to stand.

"That was the plan, yeah. The others all reformed by now, right?" Andy asked, making a mental note to have a talk with Roman later.

"They are, though I did hear Eurayles tantrum about what happened to Asterios. And well don't go by their room." She said with a haunted look in her eyes.

"Oof, yeah, probably a good idea." Andy agreed, remembering her own reaction. As they left her room, they were greeted by Hughy floating there almost impatiently. "Oh, good, so I can still control these. That's good." Andy said to herself, putting on the harness within Hughy's cloak-like form. "Alright, there we go, now I don't need support." She said, floating a few inches off the ground.

"Well, I don't know if it's a good or bad thing you thought that something like this would happen," Lily said as they made their way to Mash's room.


	69. Electric Boogaloo

"Senpai, you're up." Said Mash's joy-filled voice as she hugged Andy the moment they stepped inside her room.

"Glad to see you're okay too, Mash," Andy said as she returned the hug since Mash was the only other person there who would have actually died for real had she been hit.

"Yeah, I'm fine just a bit sleep deprived," She said with a yawn. "Though the Doctor was worse than me when we came back. He blamed himself for the debacle even though Solomon had been blocking his ability to Rayshift us out, as how he arrived in the Singularity was similar to one."

"Yeah, the nerd was all sorry, but then Shieldy here shut him up by roasting some sense into him," Mordred commented which caused Mash to blush.

"Okay, him you can't use that word on, he's my Boss, and therefore he's your boss too," Andy said half-jokingly. "Also, good job getting him to his senses Kouhai."

"Thanks, I do my best, but Da Vinci helped out too." She said. "Though Senpai speaking of Da Vinci you should be going down to her immediately."

"Yeah, that's where we were heading next," Andy said. "Are you coming with?"

"I am, I need to know what is wrong with you immediately so that I best can care for you. S-en-pai." She said poking Andy on the chest with her finger while splitting up the syllables of senpai.

Andy blinked owlishly before silently floating up to the ceiling until she was flat against it. "Don't. Don't turn out to be yandere. Please." Which caused Mordred to snicker, along with Lily busting a slight gut.

"Do I look like Kiyohime to you Senpai," Mash asked with raised eyebrows.

"No, but neither did my ex," Andy said. "Also, Yandere Kouhais are extremely common."

"Well at least you have Astolfo now, I don't see him pulling out an ax. He would probably try to give you a Harem or something." Mash said with a deadpan tone.

Andy sighed. "He has suggested that. Several times, in fact." She said as she floated back down. "We should probably go make sure my circuits aren't going to explode or whatever."

"Yeah, that would be bad. Well, mom, we'll see you two later. Sir Mordred hasn't gotten a full tour yet." Lily said.

"Please, Father I can walk around by myself."

"And you're going to blow up part of the facility the moment you run into Lancelot, and I don't want that to happen."

"It would be worth it."

Andy laughed internally and snickered externally at the back and forth of the father/son(?) Pair. "If you really want to fight Lancelot go to the Training Room, but you can't drag him in there physically to force him to fight you," Andy said.

"Fine," Mordred relented.

After that, the four left Mash's room and parted ways though Andy and Mash didn't walk long before…

"ANDY!" SHouted the Astolfo missile as he collided with Andy and the two tumbled to the ground. "You're okay, I was so worried about you, don't ever do that again." He said as he pressed his head into her chest.

"Hey, hey, it's okay, I'm still alive," Andy said as they slowly floated off the ground, so she wasn't feeling all of Astolfo's weight pressing into her chest but still returned the hug. "And you know I can't promise that honey."

"I know, but still. So that's why I want this instead." He said, and a second later his lips were pressing against hers. "There payment for making me worried received." He said as he left her grip and landed on the floor.

A moment later, Andy facepalmed. "That was the solution the whole time, I just needed to give you something so you could float! Then no one has to worry about the height thing, dammit I'll get the Stuffy's working on that after this." She said half to herself. "But, sorry for making you worry dear."

"Nah, I like being smaller than you. So where are you two going?" He asked.

"We're heading down to Da Vinci to make sure my Circuits aren't wired up into a bomb or whatever," Andy said, not actually sure what the problem was yet since no one bothered to explain.

"Oh, that sounds bad, well I will be waiting for you in the dining hall for breakfast," Astolfo said as he ran off after giving Andy a flying kiss.

Andy shook her head while smiling as he ran off. "Man, nothing slows him down for long." She said to herself, before turning towards Mash. "Alright, let's get going."

"Let's Senpai."

The two of them down into the Workshop area, where they passed by Medea's room which reminded Andy that the Greek Woman had asked for help about something. She would have to check in on that later after finding out if she was going to explode or not.

"Good to see that you're awake Andy." Da Vinci said the moment that two of them entered the Genius' Workshop. "Now take a seat while I explain what exactly is 'wrong' with you."

Andy did exactly that. "I don't like the sound of that, but tell it to me straight."

"I analyzed your Magic Circuits after your little heart surgery to check for damage to them. And you will never be able to use ordinary Magecraft again." She dropped the bomb. "But not for the reasons you might think, your Circuits are functioning you can turn them on and off, channel magical energy through them, but as I said you will never be able to use ordinary Magecraft again."

"So, wait, _why_ can't I use Magecraft then?" Andy asked, noting that Da Vinci hadn't outright stated the actual reason she couldn't.

"That is going to need a bit of a history lesson. Do you know why Solomon is known as the King of Magic?" Da Vinci asked.

"I feel like I should, but no," Andy said.

"He is the reason that Modern Humanity has Magecraft, he invented the entire system, laid the Foundation for it. Why Magic Circuits no longer belongs to the gods for them to give to their chosen." She told her.

"Oh," Andy said, her voice cracking a bit. "So you're basically saying the inventor of Magecraft cut me off from using it?"

"Yes, but he also mutated your Circuits so you can't connect to another Foundation, but in doing so, you now have what we call Psychic powers, able to enact a single phenomenon." Da Vinci. "Don't know why he did this, as cutting you off would have crippled you in making new stuff, but perhaps it's a statement of some kind."

"Wha? Wait, he made me psychic? Psychics are a thing? I don't…" Andy then realized what being cut off meant. "So all my research was for nothing? I'm just stuck with what I've made?"

"Yes, though you can still contract Servants as even people without Circuits can do that." Da Vinci stated bluntly.

"Shh, it's okay Senpai it's not all gone to waste, you can still research make blueprints, and have one of your Caster's try and make something like it." Mash tried to comfort her.

"Possibly, though we have to find out what your Psychic power actually is. As it can manifest in many forms, though usually through the form of Mystic Eyes sixty percent of the time." Da Vinci said.

"Lets...let's figure that out right now if we can. I want to know exactly what I can still do." Andy said, a seed of determination having been planted during her quiet panic.

"Well, try and turn on your Circuits, it should come to you instinctually. And I think you will be able to use Mystic Codes that you're contracted to, as they take Magical Energy from you instead of you giving it to them." Da Vinci explained.

"Okay. Then, I guess this is Psychic Power Test #1." Andy said, the 'head' of Hughy detaching from the hood and floating a good ten feet above her to record it. She took a deep breath and activated her Magic Circuits.

And it came to her like she had already done this a million times before, and around her right hand saw the flash of blue looking electricity spark.

"Woah," Andy said. "Commence Test #2." She said, before activating her Circuits again, pouring marginally more power than before into it this time, and this time as she focused on it the electricity kept arcing around her hand. "Okay, admittedly, this is kinda cool," Andy said as she looked at her electrified hand from different angles.

"Nice going there Railgun, though I think you've got some homework ahead of you." Said, Da Vinci, as she too was looking at her hand.

"I think it's a bit more than homework, Andy said, amazed," Andy said, amazed.

"Nice one so you're a bit cultured." Da Vinci commented.

"I can see you and Fran will get along even better now Senpai," Mash said.

"Yeah, I suppose so," Andy said, ideas already formulating in her head as other ideas were scrapped due to her new limitations. "Oh, right, did Babbage reform yet? I've been meaning to assemble the new R&D team, I have an idea that might have just gotten...potentially easier to do."

"He has Senpai."

"Yep, I showed him the way down to Chaldea's Generators, he should still be down there." Da Vinci added.

"Good, good. R&D will convene shortly after dinner." Andy said, planning out the meeting of the minds. "Oh, right, all that stuff we looted from the Clocktower, you didn't happen to find anything useful in it did you?"

"Lot's of materials, but I'm going to need something more specific, as I'm sorting through the stuff. And speaking of things, do you want some Craft Essences instead of Tickets with the leftover energy from the Grail?"

"...I'll take two tickets and the rest Essences if that's possible," Andy said after a moment of weighing her options.

"Yes, so whose Bond CE do you want me to make? I've already given Heracles his, which will allow for a stock of three lives without relying on our resources."

"Partial God Hand is _fantastic_ news," Andy said, only slightly disappointed it wasn't Hades' bestest boys. "And, for the new ones...Mash, Lily, and Astolfo."

"Senpai." Came the expected response from her dear Kouhai, she was so easily flustered.

"Is something the matter? I mean, it only makes sense to reward the Servant who is both the most loyal and the strongest of heart, after all." Andy said as if there wasn't even a question to it.

"Thank you, Senpai. I appreciate it."

Andy simply smiled at her.

xxx

Andy waited patiently as Mash set up the summoning circle, internally sighing for the umpteenth time that day after she had confirmed her inability to use Magecraft several times over, staring at her sparking hand that had only two Command Seals at the moment. She hoped that the Meeting of the Minds would prove more fruitful given their latest additions, and hoped this Servant would as well.

"The circle is ready Senpai," Mash said as she stepped away from it, and returned to her side to watch the upcoming light show for whatever number this was.

"Thank you, Kouhai," Andy said before stepping forward and channeled not just her Prana through the Quartz, but an electrical current as she summoned the latest addition to Chaldea.

"I did now know you were one of lightning to my former enemy turned Master." Tesla hammed away as the smoke of the summoning vanished around the world famous scientist.

"I believe it might be partially your fault. Since after you blinded me with that Noble Phantasm of yours, King Solomon magic-punched me in the magic-dick, and now I can do this." Andy said, her hand sparking. "But anyway, thanks for answering the call, Tesla. I'll be glad to show you around later, but shortly we'll be having a meeting of the best and brightest in Chaldea. I assume you'll attend?" She asked, playing to his ego.

"Of course I will, how could I ever avoid such a meeting, as long as the Direct Current fool is not here. I will behave to the best of my abilities." Tesla responded.

"Good, good. Then right this way." Andy said.

They were soon in a room adjacent to Andy's workshop, where Medea, Caster Cu, Waver, Elizabeth, Fran, Babbage, and Da Vinci were all seated around a Round Table that Andy had made specifically mimicking Mash's shield. "Alright everyone, I'm sure you all remember Nikola Tesla? Good." Andy said as she introduced the Archer, before standing at the 'head' of the table. "All right. Today marks the first Meeting of the Minds for the new Research and Development team. We have three main goals: Ensure Chaldea does not fall. Ensure I do not die, so as to prevent the first. And Ensure that Mash does not die, to prevent the second and thus the first. As of this moment, any and all ideas, no matter how preposterous or impossible, should be made known as we are in the realm of the impossible, and we must consider every avenue. If no one has any objections, I shall lead this meeting with one of my designs to start us off. Any objections?" Andy asked, being in complete serious mode as she led the meeting.

"We do not Master, this think Tank of creators was an excellent idea." Waver said as he took a puff of his cigarette. The others nodding in agreement at the statement made by the Pseudo-Servant.

"Alright. In that case," Andy flipped over the whiteboard which had been rolled in by some Stuffys while she was getting set up, showing several diagrams of wiring, human body parts, and a model of an inhuman heart. "Thanks to Miss Fran graciously allowing me to vivisect her back in London, along with the initial analysis of the Archdemon slain by Saber Gilgamesh in the Clock Tower ruins. I have come up with an idea to use our collective expertise and turn that Archdemon into either a secondary suit to work in conjunction with Tenfold Shields... or, to serve as parts for my Own body to replicate the work of Dr. Frankenstein but better. This aligns with our second goal, of keeping me alive, since if I had the toughness that Archdemon had in life, we could devote more resources to other, more important projects. The floor is now open to objections and suggestions." Andy said, finishing her 'presentation'.

"Yes, we definitely have to make you not as squishy Master. So I would go with either making you a brand new better body or enhancing your current one. As if you just made another suit there would be a possibility of you being unable to put it on or it being stolen." Cu suggested.

"Yes, that would be most efficient." Commentated Babbage. And that followed by the others humming in agreement over the plan.

"So, we should start making blueprints for that. Though what do we do about Mash?" Asked Elizabeth as she began to make a list of things that was possibly needed to accomplish the many things they wanted to do.

"Well, her body's eventual failure is pretty easy to fix all things considered, but her soul has an expiration date in the very near future. We need to find a method of altering that or erasing it outright while keeping Mash intact. Unless anyone knows of a way to survive Soul Suicide?" Andy asked, having thought over this issue many, many, many, _many_ times since learning about Mash's inevitable, untimely demise and open for any ideas.

"That is the problem I have been ramming my head into, as the most obvious way to deal with it is to find someone with the Third True Magic." Da Vinci said. "Call me when you find someone who has it. Though Mash's Soul Suicide problem is fundamentally Soul Rot at an extremely accelerated rate. So the question is, how do you defeat entropy?"

"Wait...entropy is a state where work cannot be done, right? Effectively, an equilibrium? Or are we talking about the 'chaos' type of entropy?" Andy asked, a new spark of hope-wait, no that was a literal spark on her face. Seemed she didn't have complete control yet of her new powers.

"It's more the chaos version as, what makes up the Soul becomes unstable and falls apart." Waver said. "Though if it is the Third Magic that is needed, we might only need a piece of it namely an Einzbern with the Dress of Heaven. Though that is going to be difficult given our current situation of the universe being on fire, but with how Singularities work, the impossible might become possible. Though we shouldn't stress over this situation too much, as we still have an entire year to figure this out." Andy could hear those last words being directed at her.

Andy sighed. "We might not have a year either." She said under her breath, before addressing the Meeting once more. "Oh, I almost forgot. Miss Fran, if you could provide any input about your body's designs, once we finish constructing my new body we could begin work on making you a...companion, I suppose." Andy said, recalling her motivations from the book.

"Ah, but I already have you, Andy." She said with a clear tone of voice now that her madness wasn't affecting her and they had fixed what was wrong with her voice box in London. Apparently, it was not sewn on properly. So that it no longer physically hurt.

Andy mimed gripping her heart. "Stop...pink hair...too much…" Andy said, for a moment seriously reconsidering Astolfo's offer for a moment.

That caused all Servants present to chuckle a bit. "Now let's move on to the science before our dear Master starts to develop diabetes." Tesla joked.

"Oh, right, that reminds me. I've already begun design for a Coil Gun that would launch Runestone-based slugs…"

And so the meeting went on, with many suggestions by everyone present about the designs for the 'Andy 2.0' as Elizabeth had suggested.

Xxx

January 7

Andy was jittery with excitement as Mash set up the circle. Probably a side effect of all the testing she'd done of her abilities earlier that morning in order to find their extents after the previous day's Meeting. Now, she was using the tickets Da Vinci had procured to hopefully get more Servants who would prove helpful to future Meetings.

"Alright, big winnings tonight." She said as she used the two tickets simultaneously to summon the newest additions.

"Paracelsus von Hohenheim, as Servant Caster. Shall we try to save the World Master?" Paracelsus asked.

"Servant Assassin, Henry Jekyll. Hmm, to think we would meet again so soon my friend." Jekyll greeted Andy.

Andy smiled at the Assassin, silently palming her potion. "Dr. Jekyll, it's good to have you with us." She said, before downing a dose of potion and becoming male once more, winking at the befuddled Assassin. And Para seemed to be unfazed by the change "And Paracelsus, you have no idea how grateful I am for you to have joined us. We have much to discuss, you'll have to join the Meeting of the Minds tonight, your input will be invaluable." He said, ecstatic to have probably _the_ expert on (modern) artificial life.

"I shall be pleased to assist you, Master, I truly hope I will be of help." The alchemist responded.

"Andy, did you just prank me?" Jekyll asked as he came out of his stupor

"Prank you? Whatever do you mean?" Andy asked, the picture of innocence. "I _told_ you I had experience with potion-induced transformations, y'know."

"Yes, you did. But those two are not comparable. So don't ask for it."

"Oh, don't worry about that. I've found a much better way to Not Die. You can join the Meeting of Minds tonight if you'd like to learn more?" Andy asked, hoping the Assassin might still be able to provide some insight.

"Of course, I'm guessing by the name it's, some sort of think tank?" He asked.

"Indeed. And our current project," Andy grinned. "Is my new body, made from an Archdemon, the Genius of the Meetings, and a whole lot of other things."

"I see, well hopefully that will work out for you, but before that is there somewhere we can stay in the facility?" He asked.

"Right, sorry, got a little excited there," Andy said, before giving the two the normal spiel about rooms, each receiving an armband. "Any other questions for right now? If not, I need to have a chat with one of my Sabers."

"Ah, sure thing. See you later Andy." Jekyll said as he and Paracelsus left.

"So, Senpai do you want me to go with you or you going to talk alone?" Mash asked.

"I th _ink_ I can do this alone. Worst comes to worst I still have Command Seals." Andy said with a shrug, 95% certain he would have to use them anyway.

"Okay, see you later Senpai, I'm going to practice with the new weapon I got from my CE." She said as she left.

Andy had still been surprised the CE thing had actually _worked_ in the way he'd been hoping with Mash- Hopefully, it would work on an Ancestor of the man it killed. He shook his head as he walked towards where he could feel the Saber he needed to talk to was.

Andy soon knocked on the door to Mordred's Room.

"Come in," Mordred answered, and Andy entered her room and found the rebellious knight laying on her bed with a tablet in front of her playing what looked to be an Emulated Pokemon game.

"Sir Mordred, I'd like to have a chat with you," Andy said upon noting she hadn't looked up from said tablet.

"Ahh, sure… AND WHO THE HELL ARE YOU!" Mordred screamed as she finally took notice of Andy, and saw him in his 'Male Form' for the first time.

"Sir Mordred, there is no need to scream like that," Andy said calmly while cackling inside. "I mean, is that any way to respond to your Master?" He said, holding up his right hand to show her his Command Seals.

"...Fuck, that is you, only a few have that kinda hair and your way bigger than that obnoxious Rider. Why the fuck are you a boy? I thought you were a girl."

"That's what I'm here to talk to you about, Sir Mordred," Andy said, the potion depositing into his hand as he spoke. "This little bottle here contains a Medea Brand 100% Organically Brewed potion that changes one's physical sex. I use it to change my own about once per week now, give or take a few days. And, with that description, you can probably guess why I'm here."

"Ehh, no thanks Master I don't need it, in fine with having a, you know what," Mordred said.

Andy nodded in understanding. "Alright, I respect that. I just thought I'd offer, considering. Especially since it's easily reversible at any time."

"Yeah, while I will probably say I'm more of a boy mentally, I… don't know the right words to use." She admitted.

"That's okay, Mordred. Understanding yourself in terms of ideas societies enforce like gender is usually pretty difficult. Its okay to not know the right words since there probably aren't any in the English language right now. But, these words do: you will always be accepted here." Andy said.

"Thanks for the pep talk, Old Man." She said with a grin. "Maybe you can compete for the number one slot after all."

Andy grinned right back. "Does it help that I also have lightning powers?" He asked sparks surrounding his hand for a moment.

"Cool." She said as her hand flashed with her own lightning.

Xxx

January 21

"Alright, so with this the design should be enough to begin production, yes?" Andy asked, after two intense weeks of designing and planning, all of his existing Stuffys having been working on making more in the meantime for the inevitable needed hands.

"Yes, we can start producing prototypes to put our theories and plans to the test, so that we can have the perfect mixture of yours and the Archdemon's DNA to make full bodies, we can transfer your Soul too. And going by the calculations done by Da Vinci and Tesla, we should be done for the next Singularity in March." Said, Paracelsus, as the two of them stood in front of the many, many glass tubes that one would perhaps grow his new body. Which was weird to think about.

"Good to hear. Just remember to allow the integration of the Integrated Weapon System, we didn't go through the trouble of figuring that whole mess out to not use it." Andy said, recalling the several long hours of (surprisingly civil) arguments with the Meeting of Minds of what was and wasn't acceptable to integrate into his new body.

"Of course, of course. I won't forget that mess anytime soon."

"Good, good. And the Mana Excess Storage System?"

"The gems will be implanted after the perfect body has been created, and along with an emergency Philosopher's Stone. For when you get into, as you said. 'The deep shit.'" He said with a smile.

Andy grinned. " _Ex_ cellent."


	70. More Emotional Support

January 22

"I was starting to think you would never come and help me out Andy," Medea said in a teasing tone. "Though we have been very busy haven't we?"

"Sorry Medea, I kinda got caught up in the rush of actual progress," Andy said sheepishly. "So, what exactly is it that you need my help with?"

"Well, you see I have been working on a little for fun project since our trip to Okeanos." She said pointing at the box Andy had seen her work on while drunk as balls.

"Is...is there something _in_ the box or?" Andy asked, a tad wary that it wouldn't end up just being the Magical equivalent to a jack in the box.

"It contains a pocket dimension that I've made that is going a bit wonky, so like in a Singularity I have to inside and fix it. And while I'm doing that you need to protect me from the now killer Mascots running around in there." Medea said red-faced. "I made an amusement park."

Andy did his best to hold back his laughter and managed to only a snicker. "All, alright, I'll help, just, one moment please." He said as he got himself into a more 'serious' mindset, considering she seemed embarrassed and it wouldn't do to make her upset with him. "Alright, I'm good to go, as long as you don't mind me zapping any mascots that come our way."

"No please do, now let's go," Medea said as she cast a spell that consumed the two of them in white light and Andy found himself in a completely different location from where he had been before.

And he felt his jaw go a little loose as he saw what kind of Amusement Park it was.

"Welcome to Jason Land Andy, where happy couples get ruined and the girlfriend NTR'd." She said as Andy looked at the Jason themed Park with giant Jason faces everywhere.

Andy could do little in his shock and the instant repulsion upon seeing said face, but gave Medea a look that _screamed_ 'Why?'

"I freely admit that I have… Problems, Andy. This is just my way of getting through them. Meeting him in that Singularity brought up some painful memories. So have fun blowing as many Jason Dolls up while I make sure this won't blow up and wreck Chaldea." And a second later she was gone.

Leaving Andy all alone with the Jason automatons.

Who all seemed to be aggroed on him.

"Dammit, Medea!" Andy yelled at as he realized she had left him in the middle of a sea of Jasons. "I hope these are as weak as the real one…" He said, before holding out his left palm, revealing the small blue circle on the glove he was wearing. A second later, a thin bolt of 'lightning' shot out at the Jason he'd been aiming at, causing it to explode and damage the surrounding Jasons.

"Alright, field test successful," Andy said, admiring his handiwork. Turns out when you have a bunch of geniuses together in a room, making a palm-mounted Electrolaser was _shockingly_ easy.

Of course, he'd only destroyed the one Jason, and a moment later the shock wore off the others as they started rushing him. "Shit shit shit I should have gotten Tenfold Shields back from Da Vinci before doing this!" Andy said as he fired off several more shots in rapid succession at the advancing wave of Jasons, and thankfully the whole 'exploding upon death' thing was working in his favor, but they were still getting way too close.

And then Andy felt something grab him from behind and using new instincts channeled a high voltage from his shoulder, causing the Jason to explode... right on his back, knocking him off his feet as it did.

"Fuck, shit, damn exploding bastards," Andy swore as he landed, the Fleece thankfully allowing him to recover from the shock quickly as he kept firing at the (thankfully thinning) crowd of Jasons.

"Medea, you almost done?" Andy yelled as he hit one of the last 5 Jason's in the head. "Boom, headshot," he said under his breath.

"Almost done, just need to finish reinforcing the expanded space so that it doesn't collapse and we end up with something like a miniature Black Hole." Came her voice.

"Unless you can use that to make a Portal Gun, that sounds very bad," Andy stated the obvious as he shot another Jason, this one's explosion causing a chain reaction and leaving only one standing, which he decided to have some fun with.

That is to say, he lightning punched it into oblivion.

"Oh, god that felt _amazing_ ," Andy said as he shook his smoking right hand off a bit to clear it away. "Hey, Medea, I'm done over here. Were there any more?"

"Ah, why did you do that to poor, poor Master Jason." Said a voice Andy had not heard in a few months and turned his head to look at an even more demented looking version of Medea Lily.

"What the _fuck_ , Medea!" Andy asked in genuine shock that eclipsed his normal ability to roll with the punches. "Like, what the actual fuck?!"

"I'm sorry." She said as she appeared beside him. "Can you destroy that please that was just a mistake I made. It has a version of my mind when I was… His. I tried to use it as therapy, but it didn't work."

"No the mistake you made was leaving our dear Master Jason, we could have unending, bliss even after the spell broke. So what if we were bottom bitch." Said the maniac Medea, with even more screws loose.

"Okay, no more of you," Andy said, and a moment later the fake exploded as an even higher voltage than used on any of the Jasons was fired directly into its head. He then turned to Medea, who was hiding her face with her hood. "And you. I don't know if we have a therapist left, but if we don't you're going to talk to me about all this and I'll do my damnedest to help you work out your issues in a way that _doesn't_ involve... _this_." He said, motioning to the park around them.

"Yeah, that sounds like a good idea. I'm sorry I should have talked to you. But I didn't want to burden you with my problems and my messed up mind. What a terrible Servant am I not even trusting my Master." Andy could hear the tears that were being held back.

"Exactly like that. That ain't healthy, Medea. You aren't a burden, and it made sense not to trust me before, considering your experience with 'Masters.' And you _especially_ aren't terrible, considering I'd be dead as doornail right now if you hadn't healed me before and you've made a _space inside a space_ this big, you _really_ should have told me you could do that that would make some of the parts of Andy 2.0 _way_ easier to do…" Andy realized he was losing track of his actual meaning and quickly corrected himself.

"My point is, you've gone through some terrible shit, but _you_ are _not_ the terrible shit you've gone through, you're a good person, and you deserve a good life," Andy said, hoping his borderline rambling was helping in some way.

"HAHAHAHA," She laughed with a joy-full laugh. "You're adorable you know Andy, like a little sibling I always wanted. And thanks for the words, let's get out of here now. I don't want to be in here anymore." Medea said, and second, later they found themselves back in her Workshop.

"I've never been a _younger_ sibling before…" Andy muttered under his breath as they reappeared. "Okay, Medea, you wanna see if we still have a therapist then?"

"Yeah, that is probably a good idea, though if we don't. You're probably the best one Chaldea has. Cause you're very easy to talk to, about stuff." Medea said as she ruffled his long pink hair.

"Hey, stop that, you know how hard it is to do this the old fashioned way!" Andy said indignantly, reminded he could no longer use his ultimate spell: Magic Hairstyling.

"I could probably make a hair conditioner and brush specifically for that hair of yours." She proposed.

"I'd appreciate it if you did, I really did not appreciate how much work normally goes into maintaining hair this long before…" He stopped before shaking his head as if to physically clear his thoughts. "Yes, I would like that. But, we should probably ask if there is a professional therapist left." Andy said, dialing up Roman on his armband. Eventually, it went through. "Hey, Boss, we don't have any therapists still around do we?"

Andy heard Roman sharply inhale before he answered. "We had one on staff, but Miss Sessyoin was transferred to another facility, and well you know this happened before a new one was shipped in to replace her."

"Oof. Guess I am going to end up the resident therapist then...dammit, why don't I know Therapy no Jutsu, that would help so much…" Andy half-jokingly griped.

"Sorry, but you're not an unpredictable ninja that wants to be Hokage. So you don't get the ability to make the main bad guy your friend with a few words, or else Solomon wouldn't be a problem now would he?" Roman voice sounded beyond disgruntled.

"I mean, we are fighting giant tree demons controlled by the asshole who gave humanity magical abilities," Andy said. "If you look at the Pillars as trees, anyway."

"God, I can't unsee that now. Let's hope a bitch-faced Alien woman doesn't reveal herself to behind everything that ever happened. God Naruto went full stupid at the end didn't it?"

"I want to say yes, but I have no idea what you two are talking about." Said Medea as she looked at the holographic screen and Andy.

"Don't worry about it Medea, just a long runner shonen manga that started pretty grounded but escalated off into space as it kept going. Also, Sakura deserved better." Andy explained.

"The Matou?" Medea asked.

"...I mean, yes, absolutely, beyond any shadow of a doubt she _definitely_ deserved better." Andy said, having forgotten for a moment about that, which was impressive considering it was the reason for like 95% of his hatred towards Zouken. "Actually, wait, what _did_ happen to them in this timeline? I just realized the stuff I know probably didn't happen before the Incineration."

"No idea about Sakura, but we do have a few records that Zolgen Makiri, later known as Zouken Matou died during the Holy Grail War in 2004," Roman answered.

"Oh thank goodness, that must mean...oh my god. Roman, did you visit Fuyuki in 1994 as a child?" Andy asked, a potential revelation coming unto him.

"...What no. The only time I've been there was meeting Mr. Aminusphere after he won the War." He answered. "Why would you think that?"

"In 1994, in the timeline I know, there was a young boy with red hair in Fuyuki when the Master of Saber in that war ordered her to destroy the Grail, killing everyone but that boy and leaving him with no memories. For a moment, I thought you might have been the grown-up version who hadn't lost his memories." Andy explained. "Especially because I only know his name after he lost his memories."

"Oh, that makes sense kinda, do we look like each other that much?" He asked.

"...Yeah, a surprising amount, actually. The only thing off is your Magecraft, but that could be because you never got Factory Reset…" Andy said, realizing that there were a surprising, if not alarming amount of similarities. And he couldn't even use the EMIYA test since he would fundamentally be a different person, and Servants didn't have 'DNA' close enough to match against it. Shame. "You even have the same level of specialized magecraft expertise, just with a different thing. Its...like you're the Shield to his Sword...this is making too much sense…"

"Huh, well the Universe is a funny thing isn't it, what could and could not have happened," Roman said. "Well, talk to you later Andy. I need to make sure someone remembers to change the plugs on schedule." Roman said as he turned his head to the side.

"Sorry, sir." Came another voice that was off-screen.

"Alright, sorry for bothering you, Boss," Andy said as he hung up, before turning his attention toward Medea. "You see it, right? The resemblance to Shirou? There are _way_ too many parallels to just be a coincidence, right? He's even (just about) the right age and everything."

"Idiotic Hero Boy, yes I can kinda see it. Though he does not look very much like Emiya, though that could be a difference of lifestyle." Medea speculated.

"I mean, he isn't using Tracing Steroids, for one," Andy said, unintentionally reminding himself that he could no longer use those, either. "And is, y'know, a doctor instead of a harem protagonist denser than a neutron star." Andy joked.

"Truly? Well, I think we have messed around here long enough Andy, don't you have something else you need to do today?" Medea asked.

"Oh, right, thanks for reminding me. And remember, whenever you need to talk, I'm always here." Andy said as he left.

Soon, he was at the door to Da Vinci's Workshop and knocked.

"Come inside." Da Vinci's jolly voice responded.

Andy did exactly that. "Hey Leo, hope I'm not interrupting anything," Andy said, having realized the other day in a Meeting of the Minds he'd basically been calling the Genius by the place she was born and not her name.

"Hmm, like the nickname. And no you aren't so what can I do for you, you mountain of man meat?"

"Please don't call me that," Andy said, deadpan. "I came here about Tenfold Shields. I have... a _bit_ of a redesign for the general aesthetic of it that I think you might find appropriate considering Andy 2.0." He said.

"What is wrong with my dragon design?" She asked with a pouty face.

"Nothing's... _wrong_ with it, necessarily, but I just think it would...look...better…" Andy said, trailing off quieter and quieter as he continued the sentence.

"Okay, what you got, and it better be good." She said.

"Weeell, considering our main enemy is a bunch of Demons on a leash by Solomon, I thought it would be appropriate for it to look more like this," Andy said, displaying the holographic image of the Doom Slayer. "Especially since I've never once used the tail, so it wouldn't even be losing any functionality. And, like I said before, will be ironic once Andy 2.0 is complete for bonus points."

"Why, you gotta take advantage of my nerdiness like this Andy. Fuck I never thought of using that design. And I based the current design on Warframes." She said.

"I mean, it kinda makes sense you didn't think of using it considering the main ingredient for Tenfold Shields was dragon bits," Andy said with a shrug. "But, is that something you can do without majorly increasing your workload? Cause if it is we can put it on the back burner for now."

"It won't take long, and if you remember our conversation from a few months ago, the Nanomachines will be ready to be used in a few weeks. So you can go all Armstrong in Andy 2.0. Though they will be most useful in the body's transformed state." Da Vinci said.

"Niiice," Andy said. "Everything's coming together real nice for once. I like it."

"Well, if you used your old name you could say everything was coming up Andrew House, eh, eh. I'm funny."

"I don't get it."

Xxx

"Urgh." Andy groaned as he raised himself from the cobblestone ground that he had been laying. And since he had just gone to bed meant, he was probably in the dream of one of his Servants.

"Papa." Said a familiar voice and Andy turned around to see his fluffy boy standing there.

"Asterios! Hey big guy, I guess it's your turn for this. You wouldn't happen to know where Mash is, would you?" Andy asked upon noting said Shielder was not there like she normally was, at this point basically used to the scenario otherwise.

"She is fighting him." He answered.

"Him?"

"Theseus."

"Oh, _great_. We...we better go find her and...Mash and I will be there with you this time, okay Asterios?" Andy said as he recalled how that legend went.

"Yes, I know Papa, for Papa, is strong." He said as he picked Andy and placed him on his shoulder and Asterios began to run through the Labyrinth getting to where Mash and Theseus were fighting each other.

Andy could tell they were getting closer as he could hear the sound of steel clashing and voices yelling at each other.

"Move to the side girl."

"Never I won't let you hurt him."

"The monster needs to die."

They turned a corner, and Andy saw the two of them fighting. Mash using her sword and Shield, while Theseus didn't have on him was just using hand-to-hand, probably a form of Pankration.

"Asterios, I have a plan," Andy said, motioning for Asterios to move back around the corner, which he did. _"Mash, I have a plan. Say something like 'the Gods don't want you to do this' or something."_ Andy messaged to her telepathically.

" _You're here Senpai, okay I understand."_ She responded. "The Gods don't want you to do this."

"I don't care, I am here to stop the senseless sacrifices to the monster, no more children shall be eaten," Theseus responded.

" _Oh, shit, a hero with morals, slight change of plans."_ Andy messaged before jumping over the wall with some assistance from Asterios, tucking and rolling as he landed (superhero landing is killer on your knees) before popping up, crackling with electricity. "Well, good, we're also here because of that. Considering a growing boy needs a better diet then...actually, fuck Minos, what kind of dumbass feeds someone children?" Andy got sidetracked in his words. "Really, you should be going after King Minos, since he's the one who saw an, admittedly large baby, and decided to throw him in a cage and only give him other children for food. Like seriously, what the fuck?"

"If it were that simple I would have done, so but if the King dies by the hands of another, a plague will be unleashed due to a curse put upon him by Lord Poseidon. So, I shall take the route that results in the least amount of death. Now step aside."

"If it's 'by the hands of another,' I can totally get Minos to commit suicide. I'd only need like, three days, tops. Then, boom, the basically innocent one gets to live, the guilty one dies, and no one gets hit by a plague." Andy offered.

"Wish, I had thought of that in life, but what I did so many years ago was putting a poor child out his misery. I am just figment of Asterios' mind made to punish himself for his sins. But perhaps something more, take care of him he deserves better." At that Theseus vanished.

"What just happened?" Mash asked. "This was different from the others."

"A manifestation of regrets made to punish himself for surviving the only way he was able," Andy said, pieces clicking into place in his mind. "Atonement. This is an attempt at atonement… he still sees himself as a monster." Andy was quiet for a moment before bolting around the corner and jumping into giving the surprised Asterios a flying hug. "Asterios you are not and never _were_ a monster, King Minos was for forcing you into this, and he holds _no_ dominion over you anymore. You're saving the world, Asterios, you saved _me_ , monsters don't do that."

"I ate them, I was hungry, I didn't want to, but I ate them. They screamed and ran, but I was so hungry." He said with tears as he curled in on himself.

"Shh, shh, it's okay. It's not your fault. Minos was the monster, he did this to you, you were just as much a victim as they were." Andy said as soothingly as possible, hoping he wasn't making things worse.

"I don't want to anymore, Papa I don't want to anymore."

"Shh, it's okay, you don't have to. You'll never have to again. You're in Chaldea now, no one can force you to do those things anymore. You're a hero, Asterios. A real one. And you never have to hurt anyone like that ever again." Andy soothed.

"Papa, you promise?" He asked.

"I promise," Andy said, smiling.

"I love you, Papa."

"I love you too, Asterios."

"Awww." Came the sound from Mash, and a second later Andy found himself awake in his bed.

"Well, that was...different." He said to himself as he checked the time. Well past time to wake up, of course.

A few minutes later, after getting ready for the day, Andy opened the door to find Asterios standing there awkwardly. This door hadn't been sized for Asterios, after all. "Good morning, Asterios, you feeling okay?" Andy asked.

"Better now Papa. Had a good dream, I want to eat breakfast with you today," he said.

"Sure, it is the most important meal of the day, after all," Andy said, relieved the dream seemed to have had a positive effect on Asterios. "Is there anything in particular that you want? I can call ahead if there is."

"Waffles, waffles are good," Asterios responded.

"Waffles it is then."

Xxx

A/N: Laughing my sides into Space over Passive thinking Roman is Alt!Shirou, also next up Saber Wars.


	71. A Mysterious Heroine Arrives

[spoiler=Disclaimer]This Chapter contains my own version of Saber Wars changed to better fit this story and so won't be like the original at all. You have been warned.[/spoiler]

xxx

January 24

The sun shined in the cloudless sky of the Lesser Singularity that Andy found himself within.

He took a bite out of the sandwich that Emiya had made for him as he and Mash sat on a picnic blanket. While watching Lily and Mordred spar with each other.

Andy had been put on mandatory vacation by Roman after what had happened in London. The Doctor had wanted to do it earlier but had waited until Andy had been finished with the start of Andy 2.0.

And who was he to say no to the words of an actual doctor, in regards to his health. And since Lily had wanted to go on a little training trip of her own to fully unlock Caliburn, they had chosen this Lesser Singularity to camp in. With Mash, and Mordred joining them.

And here they were going to stay for at least the next week or so.

"Man, who'da thunk we could actually take advantage of these like this," Andy said as he looked out across the grassy plain which was steadily being marred by the Pendragon's spar. "How did we even figure out this one was safe, again?"

"The Doctor had SHEBA scan it, and it was determined it posed no threat to Human Order with only a few Monstrous Beasts running around this space. So hopefully this will be relaxing."

Andy shrugged, before holding up his thermos in imitation of a toast. "Well, here's to (hopefully) getting at least a few days to do that before it inevitably goes wrong."

"Don't be like that mom," Lily said as she and Mordred had taken a break from their spar.

"Hey, I'm optimistic about this, but given our track record, something's going to attack us at some point or another. It won't really be a _problem_ , just that they'll disrupt our relaxation time." Andy said, handing the Sabers a whole picnic basket each. "Here, have a little snack."

"Thanks," The two them said as they each took their basket and sat down with them.

"So, Lily do you have a plan to unlock the full power of your Noble Phantasm?" Mash asked the white Saber.

"Honestly over the last few months, I've been beginning to think that no matter how much I train it won't matter. But rather a fundamental problem with my own existence." She answered.

"Like with your Saint Graph? Or the way you were summoned or something?" Andy asked.

"I think it's both. I am Lily, the version of King of Arthur from before taking the throne and truly becoming King, but after drawing Caliburn. Which was the only weapon I used along with Carnwennan during that time. Honestly, it would have been more appropriate for me to be summoned as an Assassin than a Saber." She said. "For the physical form of a Servant affects both our mental and spiritual state. I'm able to remember the full life of Arturia Pendragon, but it's like they belong to another person as they are not relevant to me. But back on topic, Caliburn is a weapon for a King to use, and I am not a King at this moment. I am a Princess. So basically my Saint Graph, my body, is not able to support its full release." She explained.

"Hmm." Andy 'said' as he thought that over, before having an idea. "Hey, Mordred, can I hold Clarent for a moment?"

"Uhh, sure but what do you need it for?" She asked.

"I have a theory I want to test."

"Is it going to help father, cause I thought we would need something to reinforce her Saint Graph if it's currently not strong enough." She said while holding the silver and red blade for Andy take hold of.

"Oh, yeah, I know that I just wanted to know if Clarent would work properly if Lily wielded it for future reference," Andy said as he held the sword for a moment, appreciating it for a moment, before holding it out to Lily. "If I remember correctly, Clarent supposed to give some sort of buff in the hands of someone worthy or whatever, right?"

"Yeah," Lily answered as she took the blade. "It was meant to replace Excalibur as a sword of peace, so it boosts the effects of one's Charisma."

"Oh. I thought it boosted physical parameters for some reason…" Andy said, trailing off, before refocusing on Lily. "Regardless, while we figure out how to reinforce your Saint Graph or something, you could get away with dual wielding Clarent with Caliburn for increased power right?"

"Oh it does that too by one Rank, but I don't think I could I have no practice dual wielding at all, not my style of fighting," Lily said.

"And I need something to fight with too," Mordred said as she took back her blade. And sagged her head back looking up in the sky, she was about to say something, but Andy saw her expression change to one of total confusion. "What is that?"

"Dammit, we were supposed to get at least...one... what the fuck?" Andy started complaining as he looked up at the sky to see…

To see something falling down towards them as the object in the air got bigger and bigger. A few seconds later it landed with a loud crash a three or so dozen meters away from them. Blowing up a large cloud of dust.

But Andy was able to see what it clearly was.

A retrofuturistic looking spaceship that was now lodged nose first into a 'small' crater surrounding its impact site. Which, of course, provoked the only natural response out of Andy.

"Wait, aliens are _real?!_ "

"Well, there is a Type currently sleeping in the Amazon forest Senpai," Mash said. "But I don't think it used a spaceship to come to Earth."

"...We should investigate it." Andy said, deploying the newly redesigned Tenfold Shields a moment later as he recalled that Altera was also of 'alien' origin, and vaguely recalling what Types were.

The four them stood anxiously with weapons drawn at the spaceship, though Andy fell over when he heard a very familiar voice come from it.

"Fucking stupid ass machine, running out fuel and the engine breaking. Okay, can do this later, first mission time." Andy watched the cockpit open up and out jumped _another Arturia Pendragon._ "Hmm, you two are you not Sabers?" She asked as she looked at Lily and Mordred.

"Yeah, but I'm like probably one of the weakest ones," Lily admitted.

"God, you sound pathetic, grow a spine now you two Sabers prepare to fight, for I Mysterious Heroine X. Shall show you what it means to be a true Saber!" She announced as she summoned _Excalibur Morgan_ into her right hand while her left held the normal looking one.

"How the actual _fuck_ do you have Excalibur _and_ Excalibur Morgan? Wasn't there only one real Excalibur? What the fuck?" Andy asked in shock upon seeing the Holy Blade alongside its Altered counterpart, the whole 'fight me' declaration being secondary since that was basically expected when encountering an unknown Servant.

"Isn't that obvious I have mastered both the light and the dark side of Planet Britain's Magical Energy." She answered completely halting whatever killing intent she had been exuding before.

Andy froze for a moment before being very happy he was wearing a large, intimidating suit of armor as he quietly activated a mode he had included as a joke when updating the sound system, and suddenly his breathing sounded rather familiar. "Join the Chaldea side. We have cookies, and together we can save the galaxy."

"You have cookies really?" She asked.

And Andy off to the side saw Mordred's gauntleted hand smack against her face. "Why is this weird version of Father an idiot. AND WHERE THE HELL DID YOU COME FROM!" She yelled.

"Oh, shush Red Saber, that isn't Nero. As you saw, I came from Dun Stallion II, that you saw crash land."

"Mysterious Heroine X." Andy cut back into the conversation, drawing her attention back to him. "If cookies are not enough... We have the chef beyond chefs, EMIYA."

"Wait, the legendary chef is alive in this Universe?" She asked.

"Wait? This universe? So you're from another universe uhh, Saber?" Mash asked.

"This is getting weird." Andy heard Lily mutter.

"Indeed, the legendary chef is alive and well, under my command. If you join us, you will be able to taste food better than anything from your home universe." Andy said, lying only slight about the 'alive and well' bit. "So. Join me, claim your destiny and consume the cooking of EMIYA."

"Hey, Sabers and Shielder, your Master talks like he is from Dark ROUNDS, is he okay?" She asked. "But, why should I? I do have my own mission to complete to save my universe's Lancers from extinction."

Andy sighed and turned off the Darth Vader noises, before going out on a limb and removing his helmet. "We, too are trying to save our universe from extinction. Ignoring my joke earlier, our goals seem to align, and we can at least work together while we are here." Andy said seriously.

"And you didn't answer my question earlier about the universe you're from, and what is your mission?" Mash asked.

"Oh, yeah I'm from the Servant Universe where thousands of Servants live their own lives without a Master among normal humans. And the mission was to travel here and kill Lily before the Saber epidemic spread and started killing Lancers and throwing Archers in jail. I shouldn't have said-." She slammed her hand over her mouth.

"What a fucking idiot," Mordred said as looked she wanted to bash the base of Clarent into her skull.

"EHH, but why?" Lily asked as she just looked utterly confused.

"But you just said this isn't your universe, so hurting our Lily would mean your just killing a kid for no reason, Mysterious _Villainess_ X," Andy said.

"That's just mean, and just call me MHX. And I realize that too now. As this Lily doesn't look like an evil Mastermind, and it looks like she can't even use her Noble Phantasm fully." MHX said. "Now I feel, bad." She said as she sat down and began to draw a circle in the dirt using her finger. And now all that was missing from the scene was dark anime cloud of sadness.

"Technically, you haven't done anything to us other than say you were going to fight us, so you basically just need to apologize," Andy said, trying to help, a tad unnerved to see any Arturia acting like that.

She immediately stood back up. "I'm sorry for mistaking you for Dark Lord, so to make up for it. I'm going to help you unlock the full power of Caliburn." She said.

"Perfect! Start immediately." Andy said, happy to have a solution almost literally fall into their laps.

"Yeah, you need to help me fix my ship up first as its needed to do this and gather some Arturium to power the process. And if you do that I will join Chaldea and help you out." She said.

"So how are we going to make me strong enough to use the full power of Caliburn?" Lily asked.

"When my ship is fixed, we can use a machine that can infuse a Saber with Arturium to enhance your Saint Graph to what a normal Servants is," MHX answered.

"If we collect enough over that amount, could you boost her above that?" Andy asked.

"No, if a Servant gets reinforced too much, well they go, 'puff.'" She said pushing her now empty hands away from each other, making an empty space.

"Mhm. And what if we gave the extra to Mordred?"

"Well, we could with all the Arturium that leaked from my ship when I crashed. So, yeah we could." She answered.

"Cool, I'm all for making me more badass," Mordred responded to that factoid.

"Alright, so what does 'Arturium' look like, Mys-X?" Andy asked, saying it like 'Miss X.'

"It gathers into the form of Ahoges, so it should be easy to spot, but it likes to stick to living things, so go out and kill monsters."

"Are you not going to help?" Andy asked, noting her phrasing.

"You need to gather that, so who do you think is going to fix _my_ ship?" She asked.

"Oh, okay sorry I thought you needed the Arturium for the repairs. We'll go get some of that now I guess." Andy said, putting his helmet back on as his face reddened.

"You do that, now I should have enough reserve parts in storage to fix the engine and all the other machinery," MHX said.

"Alright, let's go look for...monsters with Ahoge, I guess," Andy said, realizing just how ridiculous that sounded even in context.

"Well, even if this day took a turn for the weird, this is kinda fun isn't it Senpai?"

"Oh yeah definitely, I thought I'd never get to use the Darth Vader mode on here, for one." Andy agreed.

"So, let's go people and smack some monsters," Mordred said with a grin as she went off.

Andy shook his head in faux-exasperation. "Well, at least I get to test out the new weapon. Deploy 'Teeth.'" He said to himself, and a moment later a simple looking metal tube with a button on one part was in his left hand as they ran after Mordred.

They soon came upon the first 'monster,' if it could be described as such.

As the giant Ahoge on the werewolf looking motherfuckers, looked so fucking ridiculous any and all intimidation regarding them vaporized into thin air.

And they were going to have a bad day.

Xxx

"So do you think this enough?" Lily asked as she held up her full sack of Arturium which were one of eight they now had filled.

"I'm not sure, but hopefully," Andy said, trying to rub the blood of his gauntlets in vain. Of course, like the one with the best grasp on anatomy, he'd been the one actually removing the Arturiums. And also knew what the inside of a werewolf's brain looked like. Those things really _were_ parasitic after all.

"So back to the I-Am-Totally-A-Saber-Not-An-Assassin Father?" Mordred asked.

"Yeah, the best way to figure out if we have enough is to check with her," Andy said.

Mordred, Lily, and Mash nodded as they all went back to their campsite where MHX had crash landed with her ship.

To see the literal AU Arturia in the middle of using a futuristic looking blowtorch on the side of the ship.

"Hey! Mys-X! We got a bunch of Arturium, is this enough?" Andy said loud enough to be heard but not quite shouting to be heard over the rather loud blowtorch.

But it did get her attention, as she turned it off, and turned around to face them. "Yeah, that should be enough for the both of them. And I'm done here too, just had to fix the exterior of the ship. But it's getting rather late now. So do you have some food we could eat before doing the thing?" MHX asked.

"Oh, yeah we were stocked for a week with two Pendragons, we have enough food for tonight," Andy said, ignoring that that would mean they'd run out very quickly if they stayed too long. "Where do you want all these then, in the meantime?"

"I'm going to place it inside the ship for the moment," MHX said as she took all the bags and placed them inside her ship.

As she did, Andy deployed the picnic set up he had previously stowed back away and got the food ready for everyone (mostly divvying it up, considering EMIYA had made most of it at his own insistence). "Dinner is now ready." He said, and so fast it was almost as if they teleported the three Pendragons were suddenly sitting on the blanket, MHX practically vibrating in anticipation at getting to taste EMIYA's cooking.

"Taste so good."

"Delicious as always."

"I've waited for this for so long."

Came the comments from the three Pendragon's as they devoured the food. At least the two Alters weren't here, or a Black Hole would probably have formed from the proximity of their stomachs.

"At least, they are enjoying it Senpai. You should eat yours too." Mash said as she held a box with food for him.

"Right, thank you my ever so dependable Kouhai," Andy said as he took it and began to eat as well. A few moments passed in a comfortable silence as the five ate until Andy decided to break it. "So, Mys-X, how would Lily have caused the extinction of the Lancers in your universe?" He asked, that part having been somewhat confusing.

"Not sure myself, but she had something to do with an explosion of Sabers and Saberfaces coming into existence that tipped the scale among the Knight classes. At least that's what my superiors said, and I was given the mission to eliminate her. Which lead to the worst Saber and Saberface coming forth. Nero of Planet Rome, formerly Mars. Who held a concert so bad that even Altera ran away in fright."

Andy did his damnedest to suppress his laughter at that. "N-Nero, huh. That still doesn't explain the 'Extinction of Lancers' thing though, don't they have, like, Karna? And stuff? I don't see how one concert would do that."

"Because Sabers do double damage against Lancers doesn't that work like that here?" She asked.

"Your world has some weird Class advantage thing going on? You poor thing. Here it's just kill the enemy, class is just an indicator of abilities. My Mata Hari single-handedly killed Paracelsus, for instance." Andy said.

"Really, that's great now Cast- I mean Archers won't hurt me as much." She said with a smile.

That caused Andy to use his Stat-o-Vision on MHX considering she insisted she was a Saber yet even Mordred had called her an Assassin.

[spoiler=Mysterious Heroine X's Stat Sheet]

True Name: Mysterious Heroine X/Arturia Pendragon

Class: Assassin

Master: -

 **Parameters:**

Strength: B

Endurance: C

Agility: A+

Mana: B

Luck: D

Noble Phantasm: EX

 **Class Skills:**

Riding: EX

Presence Concealment: EX(-)

 **Personal Skills:**

Cosmo Reactor: A

Stars of Saber: C++

Back-up Fire: EX

Galactic Meteor Sword: C

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Secret-Calibur: Sword of Unsigned Victory(Anti-Unit): EX

[/spoiler]

"So, Mys-X, who were the 'superiors' who sent you on this mission to kill your own supposed origination point anyway?" Andy asked since regardless of if she was or wasn't a Saber she was still an Arturia.

"Master Merlin of course, and the rest of the Grand Council." She answered.

"...I don't trust anything with that man's name on it." Andy said, going off of the image of the man he had built up off of Lily's various comments. "He didn't do anything weird to you did he?"

"He did play a lot of pranks on me when he was training me to eliminate all the SEIBAHS if you're referring to that?" She asked.

"Not quite. Hmm, but Merlin sending an Arturia to kill her own younger self...that doesn't make any sense to me, even knowing about EMIYA's dealio." Andy speculated out loud. "Like, at least send someone else back to do it instead or something. It's inefficient is what it is."

"You know, if that universes Merlin is anything like our annoying Court Wizard. That clairvoyant asshole he probably lied to send her here, to meet with us to help us against Solomon."

"That was rather insightful Sir Mordred, that is a good theory." Lily praised her.

"Thanks, father."

"Naah, that's not true, why would he lie? He never lies about anything." MHX said in disbelief.

"Hmm, Heroine X, Merlin lies about a lot of things, though only rarely when it's serious, but then it has a positive effect in the end," Lily told the so-called Saber Slayer.

"So, candy floss isn't made from pink sheep? And chocolate milk doesn't come from brown cows?" She asked.

Mordred, Lily, and Mash shook their heads.

"You poor, poor thing. You've been lied to your whole life by that Dick-Wizard, but now you don't have to listen to him anymore. He's literally at least one universe away." Andy said.

"Well my mind has officially been blown, 'boom.'" She said while making the accompanying hand motions.

"Yeah, that tends to happen a lot these days," Andy said sympathetically. "Cookie?" he asked, holding out said cookie to her.

"Thanks." She said as she took it. "Hmm, chocolate chip."

Andy smiled. "So, looks like everyone's done with their meal. Are we doing the Arturium thing tonight or in the morning?"

"In the morning, the process takes a bit of time, and if we're doing it for both even longer. And it's getting late. And I want some Zs." MHX said.

"Alright. Lemme just secure the perimeter then, those werewolves may not be tough but I am still a human (for now), and I don't want them sneaking in somehow." Andy said, deploying and then planting an iron spike in the ground using his Tenfold Shields enhanced strength, and then doing so in 3 other locations in a square around the camp and the ship. "There. Now nothing gets in without a nice, hearty, bright zap." He said to himself before returning to the center of the camp, where the others were waiting impatiently considering he had all the camping supplies.


	72. The OG is in da House

January 25

Andy had suspected that _something_ would have happened to them during the night, and this time he was actually in the wrong as they had all slept peacefully until morning.

So now after a hearty breakfast, they were all now over by MHX's spaceship where she was setting up the machine to enhance Lily's and Mordred's Saint Graphs.

"So, what is this actually going to do to them anyway? Like, enhancing Saint Graph's sounds good but like, in what way?" Andy asked as MHX worked.

"A Servant is composed of two things a Saint Graph and a Spirit Origin. The Saint Graph is a Servants physical body, and it is through it that the Spirit Origin is expressed. Like how the human Soul shapes the body. For Servants, our Spirit Origin is our soul the piece that contains everything about us. You understand so far?" She asked.

"More or less, yeah."

"But a Saint Graph can only contain so much of the… let's say information of our Spirit Origin that it can express. That's why classes exist to express the information in different ways, which is why Grand Servants are so powerful their Saint Graph allows for an almost infinite amount of information to be expressed. That's at least how Master Merlin explained it to me during his many lessons." MHX explained.

"Ah. So you're basically increasing their capacity for their Spirit Origin?"

"Yep." She said. "And we can begin with that now I've filled up the machine, and it is ready to go."

"Lily, Mordred, it's ready," Andy said to get the attention of the two Sabers who were having their own conversation.

"It is that's great, so I guess I'm going first right?" Lily asked.

"Yeah, since the whole point was to make you stronger you'll go first in case the rest spontaneously disappears or something. No offense, Mordred." Andy said.

"Some taken, but you're right this is more important to father." She answered.

"Well, hopefully, it won't, cause I need some of it to fuel my ship and Arturium doesn't seem to fill the atmosphere here in this universe naturally," MHX said.

Andy shrugged. "I dunno, it just feels like somethings going to go wrong. So, please do the thing before it does, Mys-X."

"Okay, step inside my… Okay, I can't finish that sentence without sounding like a creep. So let's get this over this." Lily stepped inside the machine where the door shut on her while MHX began to input probably configurations into the machine via the touch screen next to it. "Okay, starting Saint Graph reinforcement in 3...2...1… go." She pressed the button, and Andy heard the machine activate.

Though to his ears, it sounded like a microwave heating up cold food.

"Is...is it supposed to sound like that?" Andy asked worried Lily would just come out crispier instead of stronger.

"It doesn't actually produce any sounds, it was just something I added on to it for extra spice, and it should be done in a few seconds and… oh?" She said as turned her attention back to the panel screen.

"Oh? What do you mean, _'Oh?_ ' ?" Andy asked, already existing worries skyrocketing, considering if she got overclocked Lily would apparently just stop existing.

"Well… It seems that Mordy won't get her turn." MHX said as there came a bing and the door to the machine opened.

And Andy saw the 'OG' Saber for the first time in the flesh. "Wasn't...actually expecting that to happen. You, ah, you're still the same person, right?"

"Eh? What do you mean mom? Do I look different oh my god do I look like Sir Feirefiz now?"

"I don't know who that is, but uh, look at your sword." Andy said, at that moment realizing/remembering 'Seiba' had the exact same body as Lily due to Caliburn, and adding another tally to the 'List of Reasons to Kick Merlin in the Balls.'

'Lily' looked down at her hand to see the sword she now was holding was not Caliburn, but the other golden holy sword that she possessed. "Guess, I'm no longer a Lily, I'm just SEIBAH right now, oh okay this is weird, this is weird. That was a kick to the consciousness." She said. "So I guess I'll be just Arturia now as I am the OG." She said with a smug smile.

"I probably should have seen this coming," Andy said under his breath. "So, Li...Arturia, I guess it worked better than we hoped?" He said, a little lost for words.

"I don't think this should have been possible to happen, but I guess you're stronger now. Though I guess I can confirm that an Arturia Pendragon looks much adorable in white than in blue." MHX said, which caused Arturia to blush.

"Yeah, a good thing for father," Mordred said. Which was immediately followed by Arturia bursting over and hugging the homunculi.

"Ah, don't worry Mordred, I've seen my error in how I treated you. So don't worry I won't ignore you again my little lion cub." And that caused Mordred to become as red as her jacket.

"Father."

"I am now exclusively referring to Mordred as 'Little Lion Cub,'" Andy said with a completely serious tone.

"Don't you dare!" She yelled at his response.

"What do you mean, Little Lion Cub? What don't I dare?" Andy asked, the picture of innocence.

Which just caused Mordred to fume even harder in anger.

"Ah, don't tease your granddaughter like that mother, you know how upset she gets." Arturia followed up.

"You two are the worst."

"Alright, alright, I'll stop," Andy admitted defeat, before turning his attention to the other Pendragon. "So, Mys-X, since your ship is fixed, does that mean you'll join us?"

"Yeah, I promised that didn't I. And so far that doesn't seem like a bad idea." She responded. "So how are we exactly going to contract with each other?"

"When I hold out my hand, shake it and say you accept." He stage-whispered before clearing his throat. "I, Andy Murphy, Master of Chaldea, shall become your Master," Andy said, extending his hand.

She took it. "I accept your contract." After she said that MHX's body lit up briefly and as it dimed down Andy saw that she was wearing completely different clothes. "Guess that now that you're my Master, I can reveal of me to you. I am Arturia Pendragon of the Assassin Class, the Anti-Saber Servant."

"Technically, I knew that as soon as I saw your stats." He stage-whispered again. "But, the contract is sealed. The forces of fate have brought us together; may we triumph in our fight to Save Human History, Anti-Saber Arturia Pendragon."

"You can see that? That is so unfair. And yep let's work together all of us." She responded.

"Alright, everything seems to be in order. If something's going to go wrong, I suppose now would be the time, right?" Andy asked, staring up at the sky as he did, half expecting a few more 'alien' spaceships to come crashing down.

The three Pendragons also looked around, but it seemed nothing was going to happen.

"Huh, it feels like something should have happened, but didn't. Like I should have been stabbed in the chest right about now. Weird." MHX commented. "So, you guys are on vacation right?"

"Yeah, we were put on a sort of mandatory one after our last mission, give or take a few weeks for R&D purposes," Andy explained. "Though we'll probably have to stop a few days early since there's another Pendragon to feed, we won't have anywhere near enough food for all three of you."

"We can contain ourselves." The three of them said at the same time.

"I don't think we should believe that should we Senpai." Mash commented. Finally intruding herself into the current happenings. She could really be a wallflower sometimes.

"Yeah, the only way that could be true would be if they've been collectively lying about their dietary needs and instead have been gorging themselves gluttonous completely unnecessarily this whole time, and I'm _sure_ that's not what's going on, _right?_ " Andy asked, a 'smile' on his face as he looked at the three, considering they'd had to restock their food supplies from the Singularities several times due to how fast the Pendragon's went through it.

At least the Cu's were very good at fishing, along with several of the Servants being excellent hunters.

"Because dragon genes are a bitch to deal with," Arturia answered.

"Oh, I believe you, sweetie. Just saying that if that weren't the case, there might have been issues." Andy said. "But, if we're going to stay here the whole week, we should probably hunt a little, so there isn't a food problem, right?"

"Yeah, though we probably shouldn't tell Cu. 'All meat is good meat, even monster meat? So long as we don't let Gawain cook'. Isn't that what you used to say, father?" Mordred said.

"Something like that," Arturia responded.

"Was Gawain really _that_ bad a cook?" Andy asked, surprised there was actually something Arturia wouldn't eat.  
"He made everything he cooked taste like badly made mashed potatoes." She responded.

"How?" Andy asked, horrified. There were very few ways to make bad mashed potatoes, and fewer ways to make something else _taste_ like bad mashed potatoes.

"We asked that question too, even Merlin was perplexed by how the fuck he did it. As potatoes didn't even exist in Britain during our period. He had to use his Clairvoyance to find something to describe how bad it was."

Andy didn't bother suppressing his laughter at that. "Oh, oh my god, he, he must have had a secret sure hit Noble Phantasm in life, he just didn't know about." He said, continuing to laugh at how stupidly outrageous a concept that was.

"Maybe Mother cursed him when he didn't go along with the plan." Mordred speculated.

"That seems like a ridiculously petty way of revenge," Andy said, a bit impressed at the pettiness level needed to do that if it was the case.

"No that is perfectly in line with something my sister would do. She was a crazy bitch." Arturia said.

"Yeah, I can confirm that," MHX added to the comment.

"Can't wait till we inevitably meet her, since we've got what, 5 Pendragons and 2 other Knights of the Round? Wouldn't surprise me if she showed up eventually." Andy said, having long ago realized that he had a high probability of meeting basically anyone in history or mythology at any given moment.

"Hope not." Came the response from the three dragons.

"I do so too Senpai, must be because of Galahad. He must have had an encounter with the woman."

"Mhm. I'll keep that in mind. Oh, but where were we...hunting! Right, let's go hunting for some food today so we can relax the rest of the week."

Xxx

February 1

"So, Senpai I hope we summon Mr. Andersen this time. I have so many questions to ask him." Mash said with a giddy laugh.

Their vacation had ended, and now they were back in Chaldea right in time for Da Vinci to produce either a CE or a Ticket.

Andy had gone with the Ticket this time around.

Andy sighed internally and stealthily put Jack's knife back into hammerspace. She wasn't going to do that now that Mash was specifically hoping for Anderson. "Alright, let's hope your right!" She said, summoning the newest addition to Chaldea.

"Ah Hello Miss can we play together again." Said Nursery Rhyme/Alice as she stood in the circle. "Don't worry this time I won't lose."

"We absolutely can play together again, Alice," Andy said, smiling at the book-child. "Welcome to Chaldea. This is the place I said about before."

"Ahh, it's very pretty." She said as she looked around the Summoning Chamber.

"Well, this is just where we summon new Servants. I can show you around, and then you can pick out a room for yourself." Andy said while realizing she never did use her Stat-o-Vision on Alice and did so right then.

[spoiler=Nursery Rhyme's Stat Sheet]

True Name: Nursery Rhyme/Alice

Class: Caster

Master: Andy Murphy

 **Parameters:**

Strength: E

Endurance: E

Agility: C

Mana: A

Luck: C

Noble Phantasm: EX

 **Class Skills:**

Territory Creation: A

 **Personal Skills:**

Self-Modification: A

Shapeshift: A+

Meanwhile…: A

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Nursery Rhyme: A Tale For Somebody's Sake(Anti-Unit): EX

[/spoiler]

"And in the Meanwhile...you can explain what your skill of that name and your Noble Phantasm do."

"My Skill allows me a little form of Clairvoyance, and my Noble Phantasm is me, for I am a Reality Marble meant to reflect my Master's mind in the form of Nursery Rhymes, but Alice influenced me a lot, so now I can choose, and I like Wonderland the most. Jabberwocky is a good friend, he is very strong." Alice explained.

"Oh. Well, good thing you get to choose then, I'm sure you wouldn't like it very much if you were based on my psyche." Andy admitted. "Oh, but since Jabberwocky is a friend of yours, if you 'invite' him for a tea party you need to make sure it's somewhere big enough for him."

"I know, The forest makes them forget, and he goes and beats the meanies up." She answered.

"The forest?"

"The Nameless Forest, it's the place that makes you forget and when you disappear. Doesn't work on those full of themselves like that big boobed blond Saber." Alice responded a pout on her face.

"Do you mean Nero? We... kinda have her here." Andy said, hoping Alice didn't hold grudges too hard if Nero was the one who beat her (Damn Moon Cell bullshit).

"So long as she isn't being a meanie, if she is I'm going to prank her."

"Make sure to run any 'pranks' you intend to run by me first," Andy said. "And if she is a 'meanie' I'll have a talk with her."

"That's good. Can we go now? I want to see the rest of the place. Pretty please."

"Ah, right, sorry, lets."


	73. Love is in the Air

February 8

"Alright Kouhai, make sure you stand back for this one," Andy said as he held the smaller of the knives he had gotten off of Jack in London, and prepared to summon said Assassin. He was hoping she wouldn't be too bloodthirsty or what have you but still wanted Mash to not be in front of Jack when she was summoned just in case.

Mash nodded and took a few steps back from the Summoning Circle.

"Alright. Let's hope this goes well." Andy said as he summoned the new Servant.

"Servant Assassin, are you my mommy?" Jack asked as she stood in the center of the circle wearing a dark cloak around her body.

"I believe so," Andy said, kneeling down to be at her eye level. "Its very nice to meet you properly, Jack. I'm Andy, and I've summoned you to Chaldea to save the world. Is that okay with you?"

Jack responded with reaching out and touching Andy's cheek. "Warm. Don't get it but I help mommy." She said.

Andy smiled at her. "That's good to hear. We'll definitely appreciate your help. Oh, but before that, do you want some better clothes? I can make you some nice outfits that'll keep you warm."

"Dresses like all the pretty ladies wore." She answered with a smile.

"Alrighty then, let's go make you some dresses. We just need to get your measurements and then…"

Xxx

"Alright, Jack, this is Alice. Alice, I'd like you to meet Jack. I hope you two can play nice together." Andy said as he introduced the two children Servants to each other, after having found a dress that was close enough and adjusting it for Jack's size while the Stuffys worked on the 'real' ones.

"Yay, another playmate, come, Jack, we are about to get ready for a tea party." Alice took Jack's hand proceeded to drag the little serial killer into her room.

"Ah, whats a tea party?" She asked.

"You don't know? Then I can show both you and Miss Altera." Alice answered as the door closed, but before that Andy did get a glimpse of the King of the Huns dressed up as a bunny.

 _Altera the Bun._ Andy couldn't help but think at the glimpse of the Hun.

Andy, after waiting a moment to make sure there weren't any screams indicating Jack had decided Altera was looking particularly 'warm,' headed up to the kitchens to where he had had a Stuffy continue on the chocolate. He'd even gotten a few of the Brownies to help out, but most of them were focused on the rest of the food needs.

Andy didn't particularly care about Valentine's day, but it was an excuse to make just absolutely too much chocolate things for everyone in Chaldea, and with the way, certain Servants ate he needed a _lot_.

"Hey, Emiya, do you know any special chocolates or chocolate-based recipes?" Andy asked as Emiya entered the kitchen.

"I don't particularly as I haven't really done Valentine like this, I always bought the chocolate for Fuji-nee." He answered. "But speaking of Valentine do you plan to give chocolate to every Servant in Chaldea or to just a select few. For I know at least the female population is making their own special chocolate piece for you."

"Everyone in Chaldea's getting chocolate, Servants and Staff alike," Andy said. "It's a special treat from me to Chaldea for all of us making it this far, y'know? Also, to the second thing, wait really? Special chocolate?"

"More like their own design, I know that Boudica is giving them all a crash course and is helping them out. Set up their own special little room to make it." He answered.

"Oh, neato," Andy said, having no reference frame for people wanting to make him chocolate. "You wanna help with me? I'm going to make about 100 pounds of chocolate for the Artoria's alone so any help would be appreciated."

"Sure thing Andy," Emiya responded as he took off his cloak and replaced it with an apron.

"Alright, so with the Artoria chocolate, the issue is more bulk than complexity…"

Xxx

February 14

"Happy valentines day Senpai." Mash greeted Andy as the Shielder entered her room that early Wednesday morning.

"Happy Valentine's day, Kouhai," Andy replied. "A little early though, don't you think?" She said, having told everyone who could make it to be in the Dining Hall at 'lunch' time so everyone could get in on the Chocolavaganza for Valentines. Of course, she'd just said it was a 'special treat' so they probably didn't know what was coming.

"I know, you don't have to eat it now, but I wanted to give you mine before everyone else, to make it a little bit more special," Mash said as she pulled from her back a plate that she had been hiding behind her. "From me to you Senpai."

"Thank you Kouhai, that looks absolutely scrumptious," Andy said as she accepted said plate, deciding since it would be the first chocolate she would eat after she had recovered from the Chocolavaganza. "I'll be sure to enjoy it later. But, make sure to come to the Dining Hall at lunch then if you want something special, Kouhai." Andy reminded her since she had admittedly worked a bit harder on her special chocolate than most of the others, partially from the guilt of the comparatively lame gifts for Mash at Christmas, partially out of gratitude for her hard work.

"I'll be sure to Senpai." She said. "So, what you going to be doing in the meantime?"

"Oh, I'm working on some of the Aesthetic features for Andy 2.0. Why, did you want me for something? Cause I'm not going to decide on this today anyway." Andy asked.

"I just wanted to know how you've been doing? We meet and talk every day, but not about how you currently are. So Senpai how is it going?" Mash asked as she took a seat beside Andy.

"Oh. Um." Andy was a little thrown off by that, having forgotten that sometimes people just. Talk about things. And there doesn't need to be a problem that needs to be fixed. "I guess, it's going well. Andy 2.0 is coming along pretty well, which'll be useful for us. And, I uh, made chocolate I guess. How about you, Kouhai? How are you doing?"

"I'm fine Senpai, this place is finally becoming just as lively, perhaps even more so than before the incident with all these Servants walking the halls. It's strange to meet all these legendary people and see them act just like ordinary people." Mash let out a little giggle.

"Yeah, 'strange' is definitely the word for it." Andy chuckled a bit, since it was much weirder for her, still, since a lot of them were what she recognized as fictionalized versions of 'legendary figures' from before she somehow got kidnapped across spacetime. "Especially with the fact that I can tell those 'living' legends to do something and most of the time they'll do it. Like, at this point I'm used to it, but its still so fucking weird having people listen to me like that."

"That's the power of the bond between a Servant and Master, Senpai it can result in the most unlikely of friendships. And you're just such an easy going person that we can't help but come to like and agree with you." Mash responded.

"Ehh, I guess, but I'm still pretty sure someone else could have done better near the beginning," Andy said.

"Sure, maybe but we all have to learn and grow Senpai. And I think that we have both grown a lot over the past seven months." Mash said.

"I suppose that's true," Andy said, thinking once more about how she'd gone from muggle to mage to mutant in such a short span of time. "Of course, all of that's because you protected me, Kouhai. I'd be dead a million times over if it weren't for you."

"I'm glad that you see that I am the superior Servant to all, though that flattery won't get you anywhere Senpai. Now I think we need to get some proper breakfast first before you get stuffed like a turkey with chocolate for the rest of the day."

"Probably. And it's not flattery, its truth." Andy said.

Xxx

Andy waited in the Dining Hall as everyone streamed in, grinning madly. She'd worked hard on these chocolates, damn it, and she wanted everyone to enjoy them. Right now, the Stuffys were in the back waiting to bring the Special chocolate out till everyone was in.

A few minutes past noon, the Dining Hall was full, human staff and Servants alike, making small talk while they waited.

"Alright everyone," Andy said, getting the attention of the Dining Hall. "I know this isn't, really, what's supposed to be done on Valentine's Day, but honestly I figured today would be a good reason for everyone to have a nice treat. So, without further adieu, the Chocolavaganza begins!" At her words, the Stuffys came into the Dining Hall with carts and carts of covered trays of various sizes, each labeled with a specific name, and two bringing in a large table filled with various little chocolates of all sorts, and even a full chocolate fountain with some none-chocolate things like strawberries to dip in it.

The Stuffys distributed the covered trays of chocolate, the first (closest) going to Artoria, who uncovered it to find a full-size replica of Excalibur sheathed in a recreation of Avalon. She carefully unsheathed it to find a primarily white-chocolate blade.

Medusa uncovered hers soon after to find a chocolate Pegasus replica.

David had a gold-leafed Ark replica with smaller chocolates inside.

Caster Cu had a replica of his Wickerman made of dark chocolate.

And so on, each Servant finding a replica of their Noble Phantasm, all replications made in good faith.

Although, Mash's was slightly different.

It was indeed her Noble Phantasm, Lord Camelot. The entire thing. The entire castle, down to the littlest detail, remade in chocolate, at just under a full foot tall but several wide.

"Senpai," Mash said with shock in her voice as she brought her hand up to her mouth. "This is, this is beyond anything I ever expected. It's, it's beautiful."

"Well, like I've said many times, I'd be dead if it weren't for you. I need to show my gratitude somehow, right?" Andy said. "Anyway, a Senpai's gotta treat their Kouhai every now and then, right?"

"Still this belongs more in an art gallery than my stomach," Mash responded.

"Don't worry about that, Emiya managed to trace it, and we made another one out of marble," Andy explained. "This one's free to be eaten. Anyway, it's not the real thing, it's only a Model."

"Well, that was an inevitable joke really." Lamented Mash.

"I'm almost jealous Andy, are you treating our Kouhai better than your dear boyfriend." Came the teasing tone of Astolfo from behind Andy. "Thanks for the chocolate by the way, but I think it's time to give you mine." He said holding out what looked like bunny chocolate cakes.

"Aww, these are adorable," Andy said upon seeing the cupcakes. "And did you not see your chocolate yet? I put a lot of effort into that too." She said, motioning at the incredibly accurate chocolate rendition of Astoflo riding Hippogriff while using La Black Luna with mid-shattering white chocolate Dragon Tooth Soldiers suspended in the air that was where Astolfo had been sitting.

"Wow." Was all the paladin said in response as he looked at the statue that Andy had made with Shirou 'god of getting shit done in the kitchen' Emiya.

Andy leaned down to whisper in Astolfo's ear. "And, there's also something special for you tonight, too~."

"Naughty girl," Astolfo responded. "So, who is up next?"

Xxx

February 20

Andy found himself standing in a seemingly empty field covered in what looked to be Sakura Flowers and flying through the air. Making the slightly clouded sky a pink color.

He looked around for anyone else. This seemed like another Servant Dream, and if not that meant it was another Santa-situation.

"Oh my, for a guest to arrive here… Is this some kind of mistake." Spoke a melancholic female voice. "If you're dreaming, go back to where you came from."

Andy turned around to face the voice and saw a Japanese woman clad in an extravagant kimono, but the most striking thing about here were her particular shade of blue eyes.

"This is a place without boundaries. You have a name, so you shouldn't be here."

"So if you're here too, does that mean you don't have a name?" Andy asked, curious as to what was going on right now.

"Correct Andy Murphy, I am 「」, But why are you here Master of Chaldea?" She asked

"How did you say that out loud?" Andy asked, astonished.

"Ah, sorry perhaps, Nothing would be better to use. But I feel like you're ignoring my question."

"Oh, sorry. I kinda thought that part was rhetorical since I don't know. I was going to ask you why I'm here." Andy said with a shrug.

She blinked. "You're not here of your own free will? In that case… Hehe sorry. Looks like the was made from this end, so I apologize Andy. I'm asleep and thus unaware of what's going on outside. But I can take a guess. I'm sure it's just another hack-and-slash type of case without a romance. What a disaster, busy Master. But it's a good thing to have things you can do, things you must do." She spoke with what seemed like nostalgia. "...Yes, rather than talk about myself, I would love to talk more about your future, but… Too bad, the night is almost over. Seems like this dream is about to end. If we meet again could call me by my past name?"

And the world went wide, and Andy found himself laying his bed, his armband beeping with an incoming call.

It was midnight.

"Hello?" Andy said cautiously as he answered the call, the confusion of just having woken up strong at the moment.

"Andy sorry for waking you up this late at night." Came Roman's voice. "But we have an emergency so could you come down to the Command Center as quickly as possible."

"Right, I'll be there in a flash boss," Andy said, a moment later disappointed he couldn't _literally_ be there in a flash with his lightning powers as he quickly changed into Tenfold Shield's suit and then bolted down to the Command Center. "Alright, what's wrong?" He asked as he entered the room, sparking a bit.

"That was quick Senpai," Mash said as she stood on the right side of Roman, while Da Vinci stood on the left all three looking at one of the screens.

"Fou, Fou," Fou added, the fluffy animal laying on the table gnawing on chocolate from his own personal Valentines gift.

"Well, I tried something new with my abilities," Andy said. "More importantly, what's wrong? And does it have to do with a Japanese lady calling herself 'Nothing'?"

"I don't know what you're talking about regards to that, but it has something to do with Japan," Roman answered.

"Over the last few days, we have been observing a distortion near where Singularity F was located." Mash continued. "We thought it was an error at first caused, by the collapse of that Singularity. But after several days of observation nothin changed, but then Da Vinci changed the observation angle of Sheba…"

"I detected signs of life there, but those coordinates should have been incinerated as there is no singularity there, not even a lesser one." Da Vinci finished.

"So something impossible and insubstantial. Like a dream?" Andy said, starting to understand what 「」had said.

"If you want to make the metaphor, it could be considered as such, but while I detected little life signs, we were able to pick up countless moving objects. But these coordinates no matter how much we adjust Sheba, we can't get a read on the scale and era of it. It's more like a black box, we won't know anything about it until we Rayshift in."

"Mhm. I think I've already interacted with someone from there. Someone who calls herself 「」." Andy said. "She's probably a major player in this."

That caused Roman and Da Vinci to blink, and their mouths slowly went agape. "I'm sorry Andy could you repeat that, it just sounded like you spoke to the Root itself."

"Wait, 「」is the Root?" Andy asked, surprised.

"Yes, Emptiness or Nothing, are other names for the Root or Akasha, though that was probably an avatar you spoke to. But while that is beyond fascinating. We have another problem." Said Da Vinci.

"Which is?" Andy asked, trying to figure out what could be a bigger problem than the Root that wouldn't cause immediate alarm.

"As we have explained before human history is like a scroll, and Singularities are the patches left behind after it got burned. This is like a hole has been eaten out of it. So it's like a fake Singularity that have no placement as one of the many Foundations of Human History. And so as a hole, it has tendencies to pull things down into it. We don't know how, but when we changed the way Sheba observed the phenomenon. We don't know how but it somehow pulled many of your contracted Servants into it, and it is keeping them trapped. We haven't been able to get them out." Da Vinci explained.

"What!? Maybe you should have lead with that part. We need to head out immediately. Who do we have left?" Andy asked, completely serious now.

"Thirty-Seven have been kidnapped. So there should be many to take along for this rescue mission." Roman said.

"Alright. Then we're going in full power. Heracles, Darius, Arturia, Georgios, and Kiyohime." Andy said. "As soon as you give the ok we're going in."

"We'll be ready in thirty minutes, need to adjust Rayshift parameters for proper observation," Roman said as he sat down in his chair and began typing, and soon Da Vinci followed.

"Let's get ready Senpai," Mash said.

Andy simply nodded as he awoke the needed Servants telepathically.


	74. Garden of Order

"Wow, Senpai it's a modern city, there are skyscrapers and paved roads. This is like Fuyuki but without everything being on fire." Mash said in wonder as she observed the False Singularity that they had Rayshifted into. "They even got all those vending machines with all kinds of food in them." She ran over to one that was standing on the corner of the street that leads to the parking space of the apartment complex in front of them.

Andy watched and let her have her moment since this was obviously Mash's first time in an actual city. Of course, he was looking around as he did, noticing that the streets were completely empty. The only indication of any life in the surrounding city was that all the lights were on. "Alright, it feels like they're all in this one." He said after a moment, pointing to the building where he could feel the connection to the 37 missing Servants, but that was all he was getting out of the connection at the moment, which was worrying. "Mash, sorry to rush you, but it would be better if we saved them sooner than later."

"Oh, sorry Senpai."

"Okay, got communications through." Said a holographic Roman as he appeared in front of them all. "Good to see that you all Rayshifted in properly. Now that you're inside this distortion, I can tell you that this is supposed to be Mifune City, the year 1998. And as you have probably guessed all the Servants are inside the apartment complex in front of you. And there is also where we detected the minimal amount of life and movements. So there is a high chance the place is filled with zombies of the Romero variety and ghosts."

"Oh great, zombies again," Andy said sarcastically. "Explains why there isn't anyone around, at least." He paused a moment. "Fuck it, we've dealt with worse. Let's get in there and clean house, yeah?"

"Do that and oh… a Servant just appeared near you from the readings of the Spirit Origin and Saint Graph. It's an Assassin Pseudo-Servant? At least that's the closest comparison I can make as the makeup of it is similar to Waver's."

And as soon he said that said Servant came walking from around the corner of a nearby bush.

She looked downright positively _normal_ , which was probably the weirdest thing Andy had ever seen in a Servant since most of them looked at least a little outlandish. This one just looked like a lady with a knife. Hopefully, that meant she could be reasoned with. "Hello? Would you happen to know what's happening with this building? Some of our friends were taken and seemingly trapped here." He asked.

"So, you have been called to this cursed building too?" She asked.

"I guess? Sorry, we don't actually know what's going on, Miss…?"

"I'm guessing those six that are with you are Servants? Then I'm an Assassin Pseudo-Servant, the name is Shiki Ryougi." She answered. "I'm not sure either, but I know that I have to find the source of what recreated this place."

"It's good to meet you, Shiki Ryougi. I'm Andy Murphy, and you are correct, I am the Master of these six. I believe our goals are aligned; would you like to work together to get to the bottom of this?" Andy said as he used his Stat-o-Vision on the newly named Shiki Ryougi.

[spoiler=Shiki Ryougi's Stat Sheet]

True Name: Shiki Ryougi

Class: Assassin

Master: -

 **Parameters:**

Strength: E

Endurance: D

Agility: A+

Mana: C

Luck: A+

Noble Phantasm: EX

 **Class Skills:**

Presence Concealment: C

Independent Action: A

 **Personal Skills:**

Mystic Eyes of Death Perception: A

Eye of the Mind(False): A

Tajitsu: B

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Vijñaptimātratā: Mystic Eyes of Death Perception(Anti-Unit): EX

[/spoiler]

Andy felt like he should recognize the 'Eyes of Death Perception' thing more, but at the moment he just knew it was deadly and that he definitely wanted Shiki on his side and not as an enemy.

"I see no problem which an alliance, though I would recommend not destroying the building as that would cause the Vengeful Spirits within to escape." She said.

"Destroying the building wasn't really on the table cause we've got 37 Servants in there, but good to hear," Andy said. "I suppose this is the point we break into the building?"

"It is, though I must say it's a good thing there are no people around here as they probably would have called the cops on you." She said with a tone of mirth in her voice.

"Ah because we're all brandishing weapons in a public space right?" Mash asked.

"No, you would be arrested for indecent exposure for that outfit of yours," Shiki responded.

"Eh, what? What do you mean my outfit is indecent." Mash said with exasperation back her face as red as a tomato.

"You do kind of show off a lot of skin Lady Mash," George added. "Though Lady Ushiwakamaru is very much worse."

"Right?" Andy said, happy at least one of his Servants agreed with him. "I swear those 'tengu' tricked her or something. Though at least Mash's outfit got a bit better after the whole 'true name' thing."

"They probably do not understand human customs, though she still lacks most of the suit that Galahad wore underneath his armor," Arturia commented.

"That's just his undersuit? That perv's not even giving her his actual armor?" Andy asked, his opinion of the Knight dropping several levels.

"I'm talking about the purple and black cloth, you can see beneath her armor."

"Still makes him a perv for not giving her the whole thing."

"I think that's more on Mash's part really."

"Okay, enough about my clothing, let's go in kick names and take ass, wait no opposite," Mash said as she began walking towards the entrance of the apartment complex.

Andy shook his head and chuckled at that as he followed behind, motioning for the others to do the same. "Oh, right, Shiki…-san, you said this was a recreation, so I'm assuming you've been here before?"

"Yes, when I was alive before everything burned. Guess why I was summoned I have a connection with the Ogawa Apartment complex." She answered.

"Ah. You wouldn't happen to know of anything that could have caused this, would you?" Andy asked since it was likely this was orchestrated by another Servant tied to Shiki.

"I know not, unfortunately. Perhaps we will get the answers we seek inside."

"Well, I suggest going through the apartments as the Servants seem to be inside of them." Came Roman's voice.

"Alright. We'll start from the nearest and work our way up, I suppose." Andy responded. "Wait, I just realized, I can't feel anything beyond the contract, was Medea one of the ones taken?"

"No she hasn't been taken, she is currently doing something I don't know what, and I have no wish to know," Roman answered.

"Oh, good," Andy said as they entered the lobby of the complex, to find several apparitions -spirits- all over the place. "Shit dude, I've never seen an actual ghost before, these actually look pretty dope," Andy said as he saw the skeleton-like ghosts float around. "They're totally gonna try to kill us once they notice we're here, aren't they." He stated rather than asked.

And as soon as he said that they let out a huge wail, and the two dozen or so ghosts rushed the group.

"You guys are all basically anti-ghost weapons right?" Andy asked calmly as the ghosts came at them.

"Andy, sometimes you can be really stupid," Kiyohime said as she put two fingers up to her mouth and breath consuming the front of five in fire while the rest rushed past them, but they were no match for the power of Knife and Smash as Shiki and Herc crushed the rest.

"Oh, shush you. I've never interacted with _normal_ ghosts before okay, you all don't count." Andy said.

"True, true. So I guess we go upstairs next?" Kiyohime asked Shiki.

"Yes, the apartments begin from the first floor and up."

"Great, I hope we get this over with soon, cause this place is giving me the creeps."

"Alright, let's get to it then. And send on any spirits you see to the eternal rest." Andy ordered.

"He is overly dramatic isn't he?" Andy heard Shik comment.

Which got a grunt of Herc and Darius that he interpreted as 'yes.'

"Ex- _cuse_ me, I am exactly the right amount of dramatic, thank you very much," Andy said, insulted. "Shakespeare was _overly_ dramatic, that man practically oozed it, I on the other hand mix comedy and drama in nice portions to make a well-rounded me."

"Hmm, if you say so," Shiki responded.

Which got some muffled laugh from the female Servants and one dragon-slaying saint.

Andy was, of course, grinning under his helmet the whole time, all the way up to the first apartment door. "Alright, this is either going to be a trap or something weird, so be prepared for anything." He said as he carefully opened the door.

Inside most them could see a rather standard but decrepit and old looking apartment, and in the middle of it, Andy saw Eric the Viking Berserker sitting down and was polishing his axe?

"Hey, Eric, do you know what happened?" Andy asked tentatively since the connection was telling him this was his Eric, but he still couldn't do anything else like Telepathy.

"My it seems we've got intruders. Kill them, dear." Spoke a female voice that seemed to originate from nowhere.

"Rargh." Roared Eric as he stood up and attack the man coming out of the apartment and out onto the walkway that suddenly seemed a lot bigger now.

"What the hell? Gunhilde, C'mon, I thought you were chill!" Andy said to the empty room.

"My Eric, mine, mine, mine. Not yours mine. Kill them, dear." Gunhild's voice definitely sounded deranged.

"Knew this would happen." Came the comment from Shiki, and a second later Eric split in two and dissipated into golden particles.

The Assassin turned around as she sheathed her knife, her eyes now blue instead of brown.

Andy was about to ask what the hell before realizing something. "Boss, is Eric back?" He asked over the comm. If he was, no harm no foul. If he wasn't…

"His Spirit Origin is still intact, and Saint Graph is reforming though at a rather slow pace, probably due to our little Assassin here having the MYSTIC EYES OF FUCKING DEATH PERCEPTION!" Roman yelled.

"So those are a big deal then? I wasn't sure." Andy asked, relieved to hear Shiki hadn't just perma-killed Eric. He was the most expendable Servant in Andy's opinion, sure, but it would still suck.

"They are, among the myriad of Mystic Eyes that exist her's are the best in existence, surpassing Medusa's, Ophelia of the A-Teams, and many, many others. As they allow her to see, the Death Lines of all things and I presume cut them and killing them. Similar to Balor's of Celtic Myth." Roman explained.

"Yes, my eyes allow me to kill anything as long as I consider it alive, be it unbroken objects or God himself," Shiki said. "Even if that Berserker was at full strength I could take all of his lives in one hit if utilize my eyes fully. Of course, I would be unable to accomplish such a thing if I was an ordinary human." She added.

"Ah. Instakill. Seems pretty powerful." Andy said, making several mental notes to recruit Shiki as soon as they were done. "But, for my Servants, please refrain from using it on them, please. I'd rather not run the risk of you, ah, hitting the 'wrong' line and perma-killing them."

"Don't worry I'm using it at normal levels I can't see that deep, so no worries about that."

"Alright," Andy said, not wanting to in any way anger the one-slice girl in front of him. "Let's go on to the next one." But where a door to the next apartment would be close by to the first, he could not actually see one.

He blinked owlishly. "There used to be a door here, right?" He asked, pointing at the area where he could have sworn there used to be a door.

"There was but, you noticed it right when Eric entered the hallway, that it felt bigger?" Roman asked. "The space is being messed with, making the distance longer though not infinitely so, as from here I can detect four apartments with a Servant inside each of them, though three now. Miss Ryougi, was this place a Workshop?" Roman asked.

"It could be called that, it was an experiment created by an adversary of mine, no idea what the purpose of it was. But I do know what it did. This place was created using mundane means, but in such a way that it became a place that could collect death. And so supernatural phenomena happened. The day would be normal, but during the night the resident's mind would be warped, and they killed each other but come morning everything was back to normal, and the dead were alive. And so a loop was created. The mind part seems to have happened to your Servant." She exposited.

"Okay, what kind of fucked up individual would do this?" Roman asked.

"Yeah, what he said, who the fuck would do something like this?" Andy asked.

"A three-hundred-year-old monk by the name Souren Araya." She answered.

"That name mean anything to you, Boss?" Andy asked, having no idea who that was beyond 'one fucked up individual.'

"Actually it does sound familiar, I'll have Trigemestus run it through see if it got anything on him." He answered. "Though speaking of residents, I think they want to greet you," Roman said as his screen disappeared.

As he did, Andy noticed the slowly growing swarm of shambling zombies a relatively short distance away, as well as the ghosts floating above them. "Ah, right, those." He said as he launched a fire Runestone at the mob, blowing up a few of the zombies and igniting the rest. "Just like old times." He said as they burned, the ghosts noticing them and rushing at the group with that horrid wailing.

They were all swiftly dealt with.

"Okay, so there are three more on this floor right? Let's get this over with." Andy said once the mob of the dead was, well, deader, before heading towards the next nearest door. "Behind door number 2 is…!" he announced as he opened it.

The apartment was the same as the first one, with the one notable exception being that there was blood everywhere on the walls and floor.

"Oh, my it seems that I've got a guest." Said Mephistopheles the mad clown grinning at the group. "And it's you, you're here after went through all that trouble of luring your Servants here, hahaha."

"So you're the one responsible for this, clown?" Andy demanded calmly.

"I'm just one of two actors the big man already left, now come let's have an explosive party, Tick and Tock." And with that, a chain of watch bombs flew from the shadows behind him.

"Kouhai," Andy said calmly. "Do the thing."

"Lord Camelot: Mini Edition!" She yelled as she generated a much smaller barrier than normal in front of them there, the bombs exploded harmlessly against it.

"Oh, that is unfair," Mephisto complained.

"Says the one who somehow pulled 37 Servants here," Andy replied as he motioned for Darius to attack. "Now, do me a favor and die, wouldn't you kindly?"

"Rargh!" The massive Berserker roared as he swung his two axes right down on the clown squashing him.

"That was an annoying bug," Kiyohime commented.

"Indeed. Though, now that I'm thinking about it, we should have tried to get some info out of him. My b." Andy admitted/realized.

"Well, that was quite the racket you made." Said the voice of Mephisto who was standing right next to him.

Andy, more out of reflex than anything, immediately turned and lightning punched the horned clown.

"Ouchie, don't kill me I'm on your side for I am the good Mephisto, you just killed the evil one. So we're working together now." He said as he fixed his broken nose.

"Oh. Um, sorry, reflex." Andy said, feeling bad since it seemed to be another Nobu situation, and using the Heal 'spell' from Tenfold Shields on the demonic clown. "Again, sorry about that. You wouldn't happen to know what's going on though would you?"

"Well, I know that I was summoned by Grand what's his face, and he split me into Good Mephisto and Evil Mephisto who captured your Servants utilizing a Karmic connection via your contracts and summoned them to here like a Command Seal. As should be expected from a Homunculus turned Crossroads Demon, and as such, I managed to escape his contract so now Good Mephisto here is a Rouge Servant."

"That...kind of makes sense? But why would _he_ split you in two? And summon my Servants here if not to immediately sever the connection? Your explanation makes sense, but the reasoning for _his_ actions...doesn't." Andy said, confusion filling his voice.

"Don't know crazy isn't it, you never know what goes through the mind of such men," Mephisto answered.

"True. Though, speaking of minds and men, going back to what you said earlier, you're a Homunculus?" Andy asked, only just having processed that part, confused. He'd thought this was either Mephistopheles, the demon of Faust, or some weird clown with the same name. Homunculus wasn't even one of the potential options in his head before now.

"Yes, yes Master Faust made me to be a servant, but he gave me an Ego, and so I became very much _human_. And so things happened, and I drove him to despair and death, and after I too died. And so the play and I became one." He answered while giving the bare minimum of details.

"Ah, gotcha," Andy said, pretty sure he understood what that meant. "Oh, right, do you know anything else about the situation? Any information would be good right around now."

"Well, I know that the nail that keeps this place together is a few floors above us, why rush though? Let's have some fun together new best buddy."

"Suure." Andy said, still a bit wary of the self-proclaimed 'Crossroad Demon.' "I'd feel better if we sent everybody back manually first anyway. So, welcome to the team I guess, Mephistopheles." He said, offering his hand to the Caster.

"Oh, my an asking of trust I see, well I take it. Haha." He laughed while he briefly shook Andy's hand.

"Alright, now that that's out of the way. Lets clear out this floor." Andy said, walking off towards the next visible door.

Andy opened the door and where they were meet by a wailing Romulus. "Oh, brother you must die, die for my nation. Spear will only work when there is one." He cried as he swung that ridiculous spear at the group.

"Herc," Andy said, and in moments poor Romulus was reduced to chunks. "Okay, no need to be so brutal with those big guy, I'm pretty sure they'll remember all this once we're done, don't want to traumatize them too much okay?" He asked the grey Berserker.

"Hmm." He grunted back.

"I'll take that as an affirmative," Andy said.

They soon opened the next and final door for the floor.

"Why hello there, my name is Jekyll the brand new manager of this apartment would you like a room?" Jekyll asked, and it was apparent that he didn't seem to recognize them.

"Oh. Um." Andy was a bit caught off guard, having expected a fight out of all the Servants. "Hey, Jekyll, I know you probably don't know who I am right now, but could you do me a favor and just...go home back to Chaldea?"

"Chaldea?" He asked as he walked closer to them and…

Andy heard the sound of metal hitting metal and saw that there was now a knife in Jekyll's hand and that Shiki had her's out. "Ahh, I would like to have seen his blood flow, and you stopped me." Complained Jek- no Hyde complained.

"Dammit Hyde!" Andy said. "We were this close to a nonviolent confrontation for once! This close!" He said, holding his fingers barely apart, before sighing. "Shiki-san, since you're already there, do your thing."

"I've always wanted to meet Doctor Jekyll, but it seems Hyde has fully taken over, what a weak Servant and bad actor you are." Shiki bemoaned.

"Bitch die," Hyde growled, but it was cut short as he found himself with Shiki's knife in the chest. "Huh, as expected from a fellow killer." He said as he vanished a key dropping down to the floor as he did so.

"Sweet, loot." Andy joked as he picked up the key. "I'm guessing we'll need to use this to go up a floor (without damaging the building)." He said. "Alright, any reasons not to move upwards?"

"I don't have any, the faster we get this over with, the better," Arturia said.

"Yes, before we to come to suffer the effects of this place," George added.

"Alright, then to the second floor we go."

They plowed their way through the lingering zombies and ghosts on the way up, and eventually found themselves at the first door of the second floor. "Alright, whoever this is, as soon as they inevitably attack, retaliate. We need to send them back to Chaldea anyway." He ordered, before opening the door.

"You traitors, how dare you all betray me, and you, you Brutus I shall have you executed." Caesar bellowed as he swung his blade widely, George quickly stepped in and disarmed the insane roman before quickly thrusting Ascalon through his heart.

"Most painless option for a fellow Roman soldier." He said as he whipped away the blood.

"Oof." Was all Andy could say to the, what, third? Third time he'd personally seen Caesar's demise. "Let's move on real quick now, yeah?"

They were soon at the next door, which Andy opened as was becoming routine.

"I shall not die, shall not be taken I shall not be forgotten, I will be remembered." Cursed Arm said as he threw his dirks at them.

"Hey, I remember you, buddy!" Andy yelled as he did his damndest to dodge/Mash blocked most of the Dirks.

"I can hear, I can hear it. The Evening Bell ringing, have I failed o Great Founder have you come to take mine head." Cursed Arm sputtered madly.

"Okay, looks like it would be a mercy killing at this point. Kiyo, you wanna do it this time?" Andy asked, a bit saddened and a lot more mad(dend) at the state his Servants were being reduced to by this building.

"Okay, Andy I'll do it," Kiyohime said as she breathed and her flames consumed the Assassin before quickly dying. "This is just getting sad, especially to one such as him. Do you know that he follows you around most the time with Presence Concealment Andy, like a dog ready to come at the slightest whistle of his Master."

"Oh yeah, I've just gotten so used to that I kind of forg…" He stopped himself before finishing that sentence, suddenly feeling rather bad. "Okay, let's just move on the next one."

"Rargh!" Roared Medusa as she rushed out of the apartment to attack the group the moment the door was opened. And Andy easily saw that her body was starting to be covered in shiny scales. Her hair had turned into the classic snakes that she was so usually depicted with.

"Shit shit shit kill her now!" Andy ordered frantically, recognizing the form from how Medusa had described it when he had asked about why she didn't have snake hair.

Hercules roared as he swung his mighty golden axe at the gorgonfied Medusa, though she proved nimble and dodged the swing, but Herc had only swung with one hand. And his left arm grabbed Medusa by the head as she tried to go for his throat. Threw her down to the ground before delivering the killing blow by crushing her head.

"Why can't we just burn this whole place to the ground, exactly?" Andy asked, progressively getting more sickened at seeing his Servants brutalize his own Servants, and progressively angrier at the situation for the same reasons.

"Said before, the situation would become even worse, here it is controlled, and we can fine comb the entire place," Shiki answered.

"...I suppose that makes sense." Andy said. "Let's just get through this as quickly as possible then." He said again, soon opening the next door.

"We got a little piggy here, cut off the hand feet and cock the little piggy, the girls shall make for some nice bathing blood," Liz said insanely finishing of her sentence with a demented giggle.

"Georgios," Andy said with what was either very little emotion or far too much, but either way was cold.

The knight nodded and utilized the dragon-slaying aspect of Ascalon to basically one hit Liz. "Am I going back to the room?" She asked as she vanished in golden motes.

"My hasn't this been a depressing ride, though despite what you may think Mr. Andy this is a good thing to do. If they aren't taken care of now the mutations of their psyche could become permanent." Mephisto said as he swung around his giant scissors.

"Oh, I know we're doing the right thing. I'd just prefer if we didn't have to do it at all. And if I could, I would personally rip out the throat of the one who caused this." Andy said 'calmly.'

"Do try contain your hate, the more there is, the more powerful this prison Hell becomes," Mephisto warned.

"The sheer fact this building is still here and not a pile of ash should be proof enough I'm capable of 'containing my hatred,' Meph."

"I see your point. Now the third floor and more despair await us." He said.


	75. Apartment of Evil

Going to the third floor had them encountering more ghosts and ghouls though they were more mosquitoes than a threat when it came to the power of Herc Smash.

And once again opened an apartment door to the exact same looking apartment interior as the others down below.

"You know, I never thought I'd hate standardized architecture as much as I do right now," Andy commented.

"Your majesty where are you? Why did you leave me to die to these boars, is this punishment? I am sorry. Cursed be this mark!" Shouted Diarmuid as he swung his spears around wildly at an enemy that was not there.

"Saber."

"Yes." She responded with cold emotions as rushed at Diarmuid and cut him down before he had a chance to realize they were there. "I hate this place," Arturia muttered as returned to Andy's side.

Andy put his hand on her shoulder in silent sympathy, since he had very few words for the situation he hadn't already used and weren't 'repeatedly cursing out the maker of the building.'

They soon opened the next door, all ready to put the next Servant out of their misery.

"Brother, brother is that you? May I have your traitorous filthy head!" Shouted Ushiwakamaru as she drew her blade and charged at them.

"Shiki-san, if your technique doesn't actually hurt them, you can have this one," Andy said, really not wanting to see Ushiwakamaru be pulverized or obliterated.

"If you say so." She responded and vaulted over Ushi's slash landing behind her and stabbing her in the heart from behind. Where after the Rider dissipated into the usual gold particles.

"Okay, that was almost worse since I could see her face. I fucking hate this place." Andy said, his hands clenched tightly into fists.

Luckily for Andy's pent-up aggression, a zombie shambled up to him at that moment, and he turned and punched it straight through the skull, which almost exploded in a cloud of viscera. "How did that get so close?" He asked, confused.

"It looked like you needed something to punch, so we let one get close for you," Kiyohime answered.

"Oh. Thanks for that." Andy said. "That really helped." Soon however they were at the next door once more, which Andy opened.

"Down with the tyrant for freedom! Yehaha!" Spartacus shouted and began running at them his eyes completely white and not a lick of sanity or rationality to be found.

"Herc, liberate him."

Herc smacked the charging Berserker with his axe, reducing him to half the person he used to be. Though that didn't last long as Spartacus left side began to regenerate and growing even larger than it had been before.

"Okay, Herc, Spartacus is too tough, you're gonna have to mince," Andy said reluctantly.

"Hmm… Nine… Lives." He grunted out, and a second later only a blood stain was left of Spartacus, along with a very ruined apartment entrance they now all stood in front of.

Andy sighed once more and moved on to the next room. "Next up is…" He said without emotion.

"Master if you do not wish to continue you can wait here, and we shall clean up this hellish place, you do not need to suffer," George said before he managed to open the door.

Andy paused with his hand on the doorknob. "...No. No, I need to be here for this. To show them the respect they deserve, the dignity they're being denied. And in case there's something new, like Meph."

"Aww, thank you for that compliment mister," Mephisto said in response.

Andy was about to say it wasn't a compliment, before deciding to roll with it. "But don't worry. I'll be fine. For right now we should focus on whoever's in here." He said, motioning with his head towards the door.

"Argh, Roman filthy, Romans, die die. Die for defiling my daughters, die for defiling my nation. Burn, burn I shall see you all burned." Boudica howled frothing at the mouth with rage.

"Kiyohime, if you would."

"This going to be unfunnily ironic." She responded as she conjured up more lances and coated them in fire before hurling them at Boudica impaling the Celtic Queen multiple times ultimately killing her.

"You know I'm kinda happy this place made them all more nuts than usual or else doing this would be more of a nightmare than it already is," Kiyohime said bitterly as she despawned her summoned weapons.

"Indeed. Also, I'd say it's more 'tragically ironic.'" Andy said as he looked down the hallway and confirmed that this was the last door for the floor. "Speaking of tragedy looks like we're heading up another floor."

"Up further we go this tower of despair. This is starting to feel like Stephen King Novel Senpai." Mash said they all walked up the stairs to the next floor.

"Silly Kouhai, this is nothing like a Stephen King Novel. We're in Japan, not Maine." Andy joked, quick to distract himself from what was happening.

"Right, about that though we do have an evil clown."

"Hey, I'm the good Mephisto, not the evil one." Said clown complained.

"Still called yourself a demon." Andy reminded half-jokingly as he was still a tad wary of that, especially due to the similarities to the Nobu situation considering they switched at some point. And for some reason, at thinking of Nobu, he felt a strange anger at...himself? No, that couldn't be right, he wasn't here because he wanted to be, that would be ridiculous, he needed to focus his anger on the real threat.

"Yep, but a demon can have a single good heart can't it?" He asked.

"Oh I didn't say that made you bad, I'm gonna be a demon-y fellow too soon enough," Andy said. "The real ones you gotta watch out for are the Demon Pillars, those things are really evil bastards."

"Right they are." He responded.

"Now then, which Servant's going to make me feel like the worst Master next?" Andy asked as they reached the first door of the fourth floor, which he opened as soon as his Servants were close enough to respond.

"Mine, mine, mine! Everything here is going to be conquered by me." Alexander said with mad laughter at the end. "And you my enemy shall not take from me!" The small Servant rushed at the group as he took notice of them.

"I suppose you're up again Darius," Andy said, figuring it only fair that Alexander goes down against his rival, considering the circumstances.

"Arhh." The Berserker grunted out as he brought both his axes down on the now delusional Chibi King of Conquerors. "Hmm." He said as he turned away from the body.

"Sweaters. When we get back, I'm making everyone sweaters." Andy said out of nowhere. "Big, super-comfy sweaters."

"Yes, that sounds very nice and a big hearty feast. Though I currently don't feel like eating for the next week or so." Arturia added.

"Same," Andy said almost literally reflexively as they began moving towards the next door, which was soon opened.

"Forgety, forgety, we all forget sooner or later. Blank titles are all we're going to be." Alice said creepily as she swung upon swing inside her apartment like a creepy horror movie child. And then repeated.

"Do what needs to be done. I don't care who." Andy ordered. "Just make it quick."

"Hmm, forgive me, my lord," George said as he walked forward and closed the apartment door behind him. Andy heard the sound of flesh being cut and a few seconds later the Saint stepped back out and closed the door again.

"You are forgiven," Andy replied when George closed the door. "But you absolutely must attend the tea party which we'll be holding after the feast once I've made everyone sweaters, yes?"

"Yes, of course, Master I shall attend," George responded.

"Good, good. Everyone else is invited as well, of course." Andy said as they walked towards the next door.

Andy opened the door, hoping it wouldn't be another child Servant.

"Yes, all bow down before your goddess and offer yourself up to me." Stheno declared to an empty audience.

"Shiki-san, you wanna give it a go?"

"Well haven't knifed one of her kind before." She said with a nonchalant tone as walked up and cut down the preachy goddess of personified beauty.

"At least it's quick," Andy told himself as they swiftly moved on to the last room for this floor, the door soon opening.

To see the unarmored form of Lancer Arturia Alter sitting on the floor in casual clothes, her surroundings covered in trash. With the dark horse Llamrei standing over in the corner still wearing her armor.

"Oh my god, it's a horse!" Came the shocked exclamation from Shiki.

Which got the attention of the Doom Arturia who turned her head slowly around to face them, while in her mouth hung a potato chip. Her face slowly became red as she just stared at the group.

"Uhm. Hello? Sorry to intrude, I think we've got the wrong apartment, sorry." Andy apologized, manners overriding his confusion as he closed the door and backed away before going behind Mash, just in case.

"I think I know what boob envy finally feels like mom, and it's of myself. Why does she have a rack that matches Morgan's and not me!" Arturia complained.

Andy shrugged. "I dunno. Maybe it's the lance? Could be part of the 'Alter' thing too, if you ignore Salter."

"No, I think it's Rhon." She responded all the while they could hear movement from inside the apartment and as she finished up her sentence, Lancer Alter stepped outside in full armor minus helmet. With Llamrei's head poking over her shoulder.

"Didn't expect you to arrive here so soon." She said with a much smaller blush on her face.

"But you _were_ expecting us. Does that mean you're in league with the ones behind this?" Andy asked, hoping she was but equally hoping she could be swayed if she wasn't.

"More like a toy discarded after use after I lost to you in London the King of Mages imprisoned me here after he recovered this place from incinerated history and make it a Singularity. But that did not come to pass as he sent the wrong Servant to finish the job." She explained. "Though this place will eventually become Singularity named Hell, though it will have no bearing on Human History. This place in it of itself is harmless to the Human Order."

"I see," Andy said as he used his Stat-o-Vision to check who her Master was, to find that it had been Solomon. As on the little stat screen that he saw the Caster's name had been crossed over. He also took that moment to check Meph's Master, since he hadn't really done that.

And it seemed that the clown had spoken the truth about breaking his contract with the King of Mages as it was the exact same as Lancer Alter's. "Does that mean, if I offered to be your Master and welcome you to Chaldea, which has much much better amenities than this hellhole, you would be willing to entertain such an offer?" Andy asked.

"I very much would, the King of Storms accepts your offer. And I would very much like this opportunity to give that man the middle finger." Arturia Alter? Andy needed a nickname for this Saberface, he wanted to differentiate between the clone army he had gathered. Maybe… Darth Arturia? Arturia of the Wild Hunt? Storm Arturia? Lalter? The last one felt too derivative, but honestly, it fits the nicknaming scheme, so he settled on Lalter.

" _Ex_ cellent. Then, would you help us clear out this hellhole to do exactly that, Lancer Arturia Pendragon Alter?" Andy asked, figuring he should say her full name/title at least once.

"Yes, I will." She answered. "The Servants trapped shall be freed and what maintains this place destroyed."

"Fantastic. Also, pink works really well for you." Andy said with a massive grin under his helmet.

Which got the blush that had vanished to return in full force. "To tease a king like should be punished." She grumbled. "If you're done let us head to the next floor."

"Now why do you all wish to destroy this place?" Spoke a distorted voice.

Andy whirled around to face the source of the voice, a _very_ threatening looking mass of inky darkness that was just...standing there, menacingly. "Oh, I dunno, probably because so many of my friends are trapped here." He said, trying to take the mass in stride but still a bit thrown off. It looked like the whole thing was just a cut out of the universe, like Vantablack or something. Advanced darkness, more like.

"They are needed, for if Hell rejects the dead, then I shall create a new one to contain their hatred and suffering. For I shall give, those that had none, something. And the grudges of this place and your Servants shall create it. But if you wish to win, just **Wait and Hope**." At that, the darkness covered man disappeared.

"Well, that was weird. Andy, if you want to know that was a Servant, but he was using something similar to Lancelot's for Someone's Glory so I couldn't read what his Saint Graph consisted of." Came Roman's words through the armband. "But those words he just activated a Noble Phantasm. So watch out."

"Oh, great. Maybe if we're lucky, that means all of the rest will just come at as all at once." Andy said half-sarcastically. "Alright, Mash get ready to do your thing. Everyone else, get ready to smash."

"Ryougi Shiki." Spoke a heavy male voice that sounded familiar to Andy's ears. And a second later Andy saw what looked to be a multilayered magic circle appear under their feet. "I shall have my vengeance. SHO!" The voice shouted, and a second later the feeling of gravity was increased making them all fall to their knees as a man walked out of the wall.

"Who...the _fuck_...are you?" Andy demanded, struggling to speak from the increased G-forces on his body. He had a feeling if it weren't for Tenfold Shields he probably would have been crushed already.

"Has she not told you about me? I am Souren Araya, brought back to life by the one who has taken over my workshop." He spoke.

"Oh...in fact...she _has_ …" Andy said, only slightly confused why the monk sounded almost exactly like how he remembered Kirei's voice, the issue at hand taking precedence. "I would... _love_ to...shake your hand...as it were."

"Do you take me for a fool? I can see your power psychic. Oh, my what an interesting Origin you have. Capable of so many things." He spoke with a tone that should have held fascination, but he just sounded bored.

"Oh...in that case...you should know…you're in an Apartment...building." Andy said, a spark flying off his gauntlet.

"Of course I do. What sort of game are you playing at, boy?"

"Then...you'd know...this place…" Andy began to spark as he spoke. " _Is wired to the core_." With his words, the light fixtures above Souren's head _exploded_ , as a massive looking current shot down from them and hit the monk.

"Arrh!" He screamed in pain as he was fried, and he quickly sunk into the ground again. Though thankfully his attack did break the circle and they were freed from the effects of the spell.

Andy was panting from exertion as the gravity went back to normal. Turned out even magical electricity was affected by magical gravity. He hadn't used up his reserves by far, but he still felt like he was going to explode, metaphorically. "Okay... _fuck_ that guy...everyone...okay?"

"I'm fine Senpai," Mash said as she stood up.

The rest quickly following with yeses and grunts.

"Okay...good, good," Andy said as he finally gained control of his breathing. "Okay. He didn't leave a corpse, meaning he'll be back, but I think I fried him pretty good. We should go and send as many Servants home while we can before he gets back on his feet."

"Yes, Souren is incredibly difficult to kill, even with my eyes due to the effects of his Origin and magecraft based on it," Shiki told them.

"And those would be?" Andy asked, wanting whatever information he could get. He'd also been really creeped out with how the bastard could just _see_ his Origin when he didn't know it himself.

"Touko told me that his Origin was Stillness and is an expert in Bounded Fields, capable of making ones that are able to physically move on their own." She exposited.

"Boss, how hard would that be to do?" Andy asked, needing context for that, and Roman was Chaldea's best with Bounded Fields.

"Even I can't do that, though that is to be expected from a man that has lived as long as he has. And yes a man with an Origin of Stillness would be hard to kill. Heck, that could probably also allow him to avoid Soul Rot, as he is constantly the 'same' as always." Roman explained.

"Agh, stupid Origin bullshit," Andy complained. "Hopefully that means he'll stay 'still crispy' for a while, at least."

"Yes, it is hard to hurt him on a spiritual level, though it seems whatever form of resurrection that man used. Souren is closer to flesh than pure spirit right now. Am I correct in that assumption Mr. Sounds like a coward?"

"Please don't call me that," Roman responded. "Yes, my instruments gave the same results. Though we need to go up to the next floor, as when he went into the ground. I got a brief more detailed echo of the building, and the source of this Distortion is there."

"Oh, goody, let's go there now and fuck this place up," Andy said, a tad more chipper now he had a face to blame and high off the bolt he'd fried the bastard with. "Everyone, onwards and upwards!"

"We hear you, Master." Said Lalter as she rode on top of Llamrei now as they all went upstairs.

"How are you...nevermind." Andy said, having been about to ask how she was keeping her balance on a horse on stairs before remembering 'Servant.' Honestly, it was the little weird things that made him forget sometimes.

As they went up, he transmitted the plan to his Servants telepathically for when Souren showed up. It was basically 'hit him ASAP,' but it was better than the previous 'no plan at all.'

They eventually reached the top of what Andy hoped was the last of the seemingly endless staircases, and entered yet another absurdly long hallway, though this time they knew where to go instead of just blindly opening doors.

"The Source is at the end of it though I'm still detecting three Servants on this floor and more above us." Came Roman's voice. "Though if you just destroy it you can just return back and the Servants will return when the Distortion collapses in a few hours after the core is destroyed going by the dispersal calculations."

"Question. Once the core is destroyed, is there any reason not to destroy the building since this whole thing will be gone anyway?" Andy asked neutrally.

"There shouldn't be from what I can gather. And that's why I didn't want you to break it earlier as now I can clearly tell that the core is capable of movement. There would have been an extremely high chance of it escaping if you had Arturia Excalibur it." Roman answered.

"Good, good. Then let's get this over with, shall we?" Andy said as they rapidly approached the room containing the core and opened the door.

"Oh hello!" Said Mephisto standing on the other side of the door, even though he was standing right behind them too.

"Ahh, it's evil me." The clown on their side responded seeing the doppelganger.

"There were two evil yous?" Andy asked, only marginally surprised. "Oh, wait, almost forgot, that doesn't actually matter. Evil Meph, out of the way, or return to the throne."

"A Demon can only have one good heart, but many evil ones." The Evil Meph responded as many more appeared behind him. "But, before we fight. We have a question for you Andy. Do you hate Evil? For you must have noticed the theme of all the Servants that was taken from Chaldea." Spoke the clowns in unison.

"Depends on the definition, cause I'm pretty sure a ton of my Servants are 'evil,' but like, Gilgamesh is 'Good,' so that's bullshit. And no, not really. And as we all know, if you have to explain the joke, it isn't funny, clowns." Andy said.

"You must be joking, they are killers, and kinslayers they committed great sins. How many innocent people do you think they have killed. So why did you come to rescue them?" They asked.

"I mean, for one thing, I _need_ killers right now, considering I'm trying to save all of Human History. And for the 'sins' they have committed...I dunno, they're doing the right thing now. They're already in a permanent hell of being Servants, that should be punishment enough. I mean, don't get me wrong, if I got like Hitler or Columbus or something I'd make them go back to the Throne and never come back, but for others...ehh." Andy explained with a shrug. "Oh, and I hope you're including yourselves in that, Crossroad Demons who killed their creator."

"So, you fight against Evil, but able to work with it for the 'Greater Good' if it is needed. Even if it is us. My what an interesting position. Behind us is the Great Avici Hell, a ghost of magnificent power that is the source of this place. The Good is free, but Evil is still bound, so we must fight."

"I see, I see," Andy said, nodding. "Lancer, eradicate them."

"Yes, my Master I shall enjoy their eradication." She said as she summoned her Lance and fired a tornado of dark magical energy from it that consumed the Evil Mephistos. "It is done."

"Good. Now then, everyone, that 'Avici Hell' thing. Destroy it." Andy said, pointing at the gruesome-looking 'ghost' that was kind of just floating there (menacingly) as he spoke. "But no Excaliblasting. That's for later."

"It seems I need this to beat you." Came the voice of Souren as he came out the floor beside the ghost and touched it, and it seemingly flowed into him. "Now then I can truly destroy you Shiki and you pesky Ser-." His speech was cut off as he found himself with Shiki's knife right where he his heart was.

"You monologue too much," Shiki said her arm outstretched, Andy could easily guess that she had thrown the weapon. "Andy ordered us to destroy you the ghost and you. So you don't get your epic fight scene." She said as the resurrected man crumbled into dust. "Honestly him doing that was stupid, I was much better able to see his lines."

"Aww, I wanted to rip out his throat," Andy said half-jokingly. "Oh well, he's better dead anyway. Let's get out of here, I wanna see this happen properly."

" _Yeah, you go do that now Andy, though if you want to know, I did get a little information regarding Souren if you wish to hear it._ " Came Roman's voice from inside his helmet this time.

"I'll walk you talk boss," Andy replied through the comm, before addressing the Servants. "Alright, we're leaving. Who wants to take the quick way out?"

"Yes, I can't wait to blow this place to kingdom come," Arturia said as she uncloaked her golden blade.

"And I can't wait to see it," Kiyohime added. "So, let's get down."

"Alrighty then. I believe that walls the one closest to the outside." Andy said as he pointed at a wall that looked like it should have had a window before Souren did his shit to the place.

" _Ah, okay then. So as Shiki said earlier he was a monk from a Buddhist sect that got excommunicated from it, and walked around the planet for a good three hundred years, before he ended up in the Clocktower and studied there for a few years, along with Cornelius Alba got a picture of him here, and Touko Aozaki the top magi the three of them. With Touko being known as the Red and the sister of the Blue the Magician of the Fifth Magic. However, in 1998 both Cornelius Alba and Souren were killed, which the Association believed to be the doing of Aozaki."_ Roman exposited. _"Though from Shiki's earlier words she was probably the one that killed Souren."_

"Mhm. I see." Andy replied. They'd already busted out of the building as Roman was speaking, and now Saber was lining up the perfect angle to get the whole building. She soon nodded to signal she was in position. "Hold that thought boss. And make sure to watch this." He said before clearing his throat. "Saber, by this Command Seal, _leave no trace_."

"As you command Master," Saber responded as she lifted the holy sword above her head, Andy felt a feeling of serenity as he watched the golden blade come down the beam was unleashed on the accursed building before them.

And soon there was only a ravine where the Apartment Complex used to be.

It was _glorious_.

"Can I just that was completely and utterly unexpected on my end of you doing that." Spoke the darkness clad Servant spoke as he appeared before the group.

"You made me hate everything about that building dude, how would we _not_ want to destroy it?" Andy asked of the shadowy Servant. "Also, what _are_ you even doing? If you're here to kill us let's just get this over with. Otherwise, you can come with us if you want."

"Even if I could fight you, I wouldn't be able too, this is just a shadow of me, projected from another place. I was tasked by your enemy to turn this place into a proper Singularity. But I went against those orders, to use it for my own need for vengeance. But if you want me to be your ally well. Attendre et esperer." He said as he vanished.

"...Cool." Andy said after a moment. "Hey, Boss, all the missing Servants have returned now, right?"

"They, have and the Distortion is dissipating now, and I'm ready to Rayshift you out now. And your new friends if they want to make a contract with you." He responded.

"Meph? Lancer? You wanna come back with me?" Andy asked them, extending a hand to both.

"Well I need a place to crash, and if you need it, I shall lend you my lance to blow away any enemy," Lalter responded as she took Andy's hand.

"Excellent. Meph?"

"I've had my fun and besides saving the world is not something, for someone like me. And besides only half of myself, and I feel rather empty." He responded.

"So that's a no?"

"Yep, though I think Miss Killer Eyes, wants to go with you. You haven't made a contract with her?" The clown spoke.

"Yes, but I was getting to her, I only have two hands (for now) y'know," Andy said, before turning and extending his hand to Shiki. "Well, Shiki-san, would you like to join us? Perhaps the dream of「」 could continue, as it were." He said, putting to the test his theory about how similar Shiki and「」appeared.

"So, you know of the other me? Well why not you guys are a cool bunch, so why not stick around." She responded.

"Fantastic. Then I, Andy Murphy, will be your Master." He said to the two.

"We'll accept your contract." The two responded.

"The contract is sealed. The forces of fate have brought us together; may we triumph in our fight to save Human History." Andy said, finishing the ritual and contracting both. "And there we go. Everyone's all contracted...Meph, do you want to eventually come to Chaldea? Cause you could probably give me your scissors and I can use those." He said, getting distracted by the idea.

"Well, if you insist on it." He said as he threw the weapon at Andy who grabbed it in the air and then storing it.

"Alrighty then. Boss, get us the hell out of this place, please." Andy said, absolutely more than ready to leave.

"Rayshifting in 3...2...1...0." Roman counted down, and then a second later Andy walked out of the Rayshift Coffin and out onto the main platform where his two new Servants were waiting along with his team. Mash coming out of hers.

"I think that might have been the most mentally exhausting one of these yet," Andy said as he stowed away Tenfold Shields. "I think I might need a full day or two just to unwind from that bullshit."

"Yes, it was not physically exhaustive, but mentally it was tiring. You should have some rest Master." Herc spoke.

"Yeah. Oh, but speaking of rest, Shiki, Lancer, you can each claim an unclaimed room then if you'd like. Here." He handed each an armband, figuring he might as well get this part over with sooner than later. "These have a map so you can find an unclaimed room, so you both can relax too. Which reminds me. Lancer, there are several iterations of 'Arturia Pendragon' here in Chaldea, so henceforth I'm going to be calling you 'Lalter' so you aren't confused for the others."

"I accept a nickname, but with that one, I feel like your taking the piss out of me." She responded.

Andy grinned wide. "Oh, no, if I were making fun of you I'd be saying about how you seem to prefer pink bikini cuts, or about the utter mess your room was in, ooh ooh or maybe that dakimakura-"

"BE QUIET! Well if you're going to going to call me anything call me Storm then, as I am the Storm King of the Wyld Hunt." She with an embarrassed blush.

"Mom, with how easy you're able to tease a Pendragon. I might begin to think that you're related to Merlin. Now how did you get a chest that big?"

"I used Rhon all the time, and it forced my body to 'grow up' before freezing my age." Storm responded. Though a second later her face became confused as she seemed to finally realize how Arturia had addressed him.

"I will hurt Merlin." Came Arturia's cold voice.

"I think we all want to, sweetie," Andy said sagely.

"I'm not going to comment on it, but you two are weird, is she really another me?" Storm asked the group.

"Yes, Miss Storm, though it's only a matter of time before you get drawn into Senpai's weirdness," Mash responded though now she looked, very, very tired.

"Oi, I was drawn into this weirdness first, I'm just making the whole situation more fun, alright?" Andy defended himself. "Anyway, you're one to talk, miss 'call someone Senpai when speaking English.'"

That caused Mash to blush. "That's the doctor's fault."

"Hey, don't blame me, Mash, I didn't force you to refer to people like that." Responded Roman from his chair looking down on all of them from the Command Center.

"You're still the weeb who told her to do it. What else did you teach her, you otaku in doctor's clothing?" Andy accused.

"I might be a weeb, but I still have a doctorate, can you say the same? Nope, I thought not. Okay, enough for now. Get to bed, everybody." He ordered.

"But daaad, I don't wanna go to bed." Andy gripped jokingly. "But actually though that is a good idea. I think I'm going to go do that."

"See, you later Senpai and goodnight once more."

"Yes, sleep well Master." Said the rest.

"Goodnight."

Andy returned to his room, and as he was about to lay down and sleep the door opened up and in walked Jack and Alice in their sleepwear. "Mommy, we had a bad dream could we sleep with you?" The Assassin asked.

"Oh, of course, sweetie, Mommy's always here for you." Andy said as comfortingly as possible, not skipping a beat at referring to himself as 'Mommy' which was much much weirder than being called Mom. He'd had to adapt quickly since Jack's summoning.

"Thank you." They both responded, and quickly they were clutching Andy's sides. He gave them a few pats on the head each as they all went to sleep.


	76. Introducing Marik Ishtar

February 22

"Alright, let's see if we can maybe get one of the authors back," Andy said as he summoned the newest addition to Chaldea. Mostly, he was hoping to get Hans to make Mash happy, but Shakes would also be good with his Enchantment.

"Servant Ruler, true name Amakusa Shirou Tokisada answers your summon, Master." Spoke the Japanese Saint.

"Thank you for answering the call to save Human History, Amakusa Shirou Tokisada," Andy said, have been expecting this to happen for a while but also having forgotten Jeanne wasn't the only Ruler. As he did, he also realized he had very little idea what the 'Saint' was capable of and used his Stat-o-Vision to check.

[spoiler=Amakusa's Stat Sheet]

True Name: Amakusa Shirou Tokisada

Class: Ruler

Master: Andy Murphy

 **Parameters**

Strength: C

Endurance: C

Agility: B

Mana: A

Luck: B

Noble Phantasm: EX

 **Class Skills:**

Magic Resistance: A

True Name Discernment: B

God's Resolution(False): C++

 **Personal Skills:**

Revelation: A

Charisma: C-

Baptism Rite: B+

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Twin Arm - Big Crunch: Dual Arm Zero-Order Convergence(Anti-Army): EX

Right Hand - Evil Eater: Right Arm - Wickedness Predation(Anti-Unit): D

Left Hand - Xanadu Matrix: Left Arm - Foundation of Heaven's Blessing(Anti-Unit): D

[/spoiler]

"Of course, Master." He responded.

"Well, for now, you can get settled in here in Chaldea until the next mission, but before that, your 'God's Resolution (False)' skill, and your Noble Phantasm. Would you mind explaining those to me?" Andy asked.

"Of course not Master, you need to know what I am capable of for proper use. As you know God's Resolution is the Skill which gives a Ruler two Command Seals to use in a normal Holy Grail War. But since this isn't one it has been changed to suit me. So with and utilizing my right and left arm, I can cast a Curse that has similar effects as a Command Seal, but not at the same level of effectiveness. Like, say I could stop an enemy from using their Noble Phantasm. But it would only last for a few seconds. But that would be enough wouldn't it?" He asked.

"Yes, yes I do believe it would," Andy said as he imagined how much that could have helped them in the past. "Oh, right, that reminds me. Amakusa, you are not the first Ruler we have summoned to Chaldea. Jeanne D'Arc is also here, as are many of the other Servants from the Great Holy Grail War. That won't cause any issues, right?"

"Oh? The holy maiden, we might have different views of the world, but we both wish for peace, so no Master there won't be any problems." He answered. "As, long as you walk this path of saving history we won't have a problem. Though I will recommend using a Command Seal on me not to try to use any Grails we run into. I have… Poor impulse control when it comes to wish granting devices." He said with an utterly cheeky smile on his face.

"Yes, you do seem incapable of thinking through the consequences for your wishes," Andy said only half-jokingly. "Though I don't think I'll use a Command Seal for it. Yet. I'll give you a chance first."

"I appreciate your trust in me, Master." He answered.

"Don't worry about it. I'm sure your Saintly instincts know about giving people second chances." Andy said. "Oh, actually, on that note, are you able to bless things?"

"No, sadly the Lord has not blessed me to create such miracles. Though with my Baptism Rite skill I can make you some Black Keys. And my Noble Phantasms gives me Skeleton Key, that allows me to use any and all Modern Magecraft as long as I practice with it."

Andy's eyes widened at that before his face gained a dangerous expression. "Any and all, you say, hmm?"

"As long as I am connected to a Foundation, though I can not utilize two Foundation at the same time, so I have to switch, and that takes some time. So compared to a proper Caster, my abilities are mediocre." He explained.

"That still sounds like a handy ability, and you're making Senpai jealous." Mash commented.

"Why thank you for the compliment Miss Kyrielight or do you prefer Sir Galahad as that is the name of the Servant that has gifted you a copy of his Spiritual Foundation?" Amakusa asked.

"Mash please, and I am not Galahad, he has just shared his power with me." She responded.

"Also, I'm not jealous." Andy lied, as he put his arm around Amakusa's shoulders to lead him off to god knows where. "Buuut, I think I've found the best damn proxy to continue my work for me, without sidetracking the actual Casters. Tell me, what do you know about sewing, Amakusa?"

"Why do I feel like something terrible shall happen to me if I respond?" Amakusa asked into the air.

"Oh, don't worry. I can just teach you everything you'll need to know~." Andy said with a wide, almost manic grin.

"I need an adult."

"I am an adult!"

Xxx

February 25

It had been three days since Amakusa had been summoned, and practically every minute of those days was spent cramming his head with Andy's knowledge. And since Andy had familiars who could work while he slept, Amakusa ended up on the downside of Servants not technically needing sleeping, the Stuffys carrying out their teaching duties to a, t.

Andy, now female, entered her Workshop which had been the main (only) location of Amakusa the last three days almost immediately after breakfast, having passed the Brownies who had delivered the Ruler's food on the way in as they took back the dishes. "Alright Amakusa, how much progress did you make on last night's lesson plan?" She asked as she entered. He'd been making astounding progress compared to her own, which she chalked up to 'Servant Bullshit,' but they were still rapidly approaching the extent of her knowledge, which was good in her book.

"Oh Master what have I done to deserve this hell," he moaned as he leaned back across the chair he was sitting on his eyes meeting hers. "...Ehhh? Master is that you?"

"No, I'm Andy's twin sister, also named Andy," Andy said with only a bit of sarcasm, wondering if he would be the first to actually fall for that.

"Master, if you wish to trick me you have to work better than that. But I will say that if you attempt to seduce it will end in failure; the Queen of Babylon has tried, and failed, to gain my heart." He responded with that cheeky smile of his.

Andy's face scrunched up in disgust at the suggestion. "Eww, what, no, gross, you're like, 12." She said with audible disgust.

"Seventeen Master, physically. Though I did spend sixty years in the world after my summoning in the Third War. But that is another life. Though I finished what you wanted made." He said as he sat back upright.

"Oh, you completed your first one? Lemme see I need to assess it." Andy said eagerly.

Amakusa smiled as he held out a small dove that began to flap about in the air. "For a first try, I think this is acceptable. I haven't really used my abilities in this vein before."

Andy observed the dove plush in flight for a few moments before coming to a conclusion. "Oh, this is _more_ than acceptable. You just need to work a bit on your craftsmanship, but that'll come with experience." She said, before grinning. "And of course, the only way to gain experience is with practice~!"

"Of course, though what is with the change?" He asked.

"Well, you need to catch up, to the point you can help with the projects I had that were cut short, so to do that…" Her grin widened, filling Amakusa with dread. "I'll need about 30 more of these by tomorrow."

"You're satan in disguise aren't you. Though I was asking more about the gender change really, you do not have to answer it is not my business to know. But I am curious. And I am still sorry about what happened to your Circuits." He said.

"Oh, that. I just change that every Sunday. It's just a thing I do." Andy explained. "And anyway, the other Shirou is Actually Satan, I'm just teaching you the way I was taught." She said with a shrug, before 'grinning' again. "Which also means you shouldn't have pressed that button. 49 more by tomorrow."

"...Fine, I do it. Also, that is not how you're supposed to train, who taught you?" He asked.

"Let's see, two Cu Chulainns, Waver Velvet with the powers of Zhuge Liang, Chiron as in actual mythical Chiron, Leonidas of Sparta, and Vlad the Impaler." She listed off.

"Yeah, yeah you make a whole lot more sense now Master." He responded.

"Well, speaking of more, you might want to get to work on those plushies, since the clocks already ticking," Andy said, only feeling slightly sorry about compressing her past several months of Training from Hell into a few days time. The results would be worth it, and hey, it wasn't like she wasn't working hard either.

"Hear, you Master," Amakusa said as he took out needle and thread.

"Well, I suppose this means I'll get back to my training. Good luck, my apprentice~." Andy said as she left the room, figuring there wasn't much point to standing around watching the Saint work. Soon after leaving the Workshop, she pulled out the Hades Cap and put it on. _"Alright, Hassan, who'll be the next target?"_ Andy asked the Assassin telepathically. She'd felt bad about having neglected him, so she was having Hassan teach her the ways of stealth. Mostly moving silently, since Hades Cap took care of the visuals.

" _You're still a novice in the art of stealth Contractor so we shall build up your expertise, as shall be done with all skills. So I suggest trailing some of the staff and make them not hear you. That cap shall serve as a good beginners tool."_ The assassin responded.

" _Right. I'll just follow the first staff members I see then._ " Andy said, walking as silently as she could through the hall in search of her targets. After a few corridors, she eventually found her first target: a staff member she'd seen in the Command Room often but never actually talked to. She felt a little bad for not even knowing the guy's name, but at the same time, she'd been herding cats for the last several months trying to save the world, so she didn't feel that bad for not knowing.

She followed the staff member as silently as she could, though at one point he had looked behind him, causing her to freeze up, but thankfully he dismissed it and kept walking.

Eventually, a few minutes later, he'd made it to what seemed his destination- the Command Room. Which, if Andy wanted to keep following him, she'd need to enter while the door was still open from his entering, before it would have shut automatically. Great.

Really, she'd been planning on something like this, but not so soon in her stealth training. Oh well.

The staff member opened the door, and as soon as he was inside Andy followed through behind him, barely restraining herself from sighing in relief afterward. Of course, now she was in the proverbial Lion's Den since there were 10 people in here, but of course, none of them were the 'Final Boss' of this whole endeavor. She stayed in there for about twenty minutes before getting bored since no one was really moving about enough for her to trail them, and she'd even made a game of standing in front of the staff members and then walking backward while still remaining hidden.

Eventually, someone decided to leave for one reason or another, and she followed them out. She'd gotten out of the frying pan, now to jump into the fire.

She closed her eyes and focused on the strands in her mind representing each Team Scarf and singled out the one she'd marked as 'Roman.' It seemed he was...in David's room? Odd. She knew the Servants and the staff had interactions without her, but she wouldn't have thought those two would hang out. She shrugged and headed up towards David's room anyway, still moving silent as the grave.

A few minutes later she eventually made it up to David's room, but the door was closed. She could barely hear the muffled conversation (the soundproofing on these rooms was amazing), but she couldn't make it in unless one left or opened the door or some such. Well, time to improvise.

A few moments later, there was a knock at David's door, a Stuffy standing there holding a package.

A few seconds later the door opened with David standing behind it. "Is this another present from Master? Honestly, if he keeps this up I will have to give a concert, this scarf should have been enough."

The Stuffy nodded, before 'speaking' in its synthesized 'voice.' "Package for 'David,' confirmed." It said, the word 'David' very obviously being in Andy's own voice. "Contents, unknown. Please confirm receiving of package."

"Yeah, I'm taking it geez, Master certainly made you persistent," David said as he took the package.

"Package confirmed delivered. Thank you for your time." The Stuffy said with a bow before turning away...but for some reason, it paused, and turned back. "Thank you for the compliment." It said, which legitimately surprised Andy, considering she had not ordered it to do so, and she could have sworn she'd designed the Stuffy's to be unthinking drones who just followed preset orders.

"...Thank you. Wonder what Master made for us this time?"

"What is it, your Majesty?" Asked Roman's voice from inside the room.

"Just another gift from Master, want to see what is?"

"Sure. Sometimes though I think Andy is working a little bit too hard. Maybe I should force another vacation." Roman said.

"Shouldn't you be the one taking one, you're working yourself to the bone too," David said as he turned around.

As soon as he went through the door, Andy followed behind him, and then stood silently at the point farthest from the two that she could, for now. David would need to open the box first. For now, she would just stand by and observe the 'Final Boss' of her 'training.'

"Alright let's see what we got here," David said as he opened the box and took out the gift that she had prepared for him.

Which got Roman to laugh as he saw the cd. "Oh, that is perfect."

"I think I'm missing out on… Oh, now I get it. That FATE System is pretty useful sometimes and…" David stopped speaking as he took notice of the message that Andy had left on the inside of the box written in Hebrew. להמשיך. לא מגיבים. It was extremely simple since Andy didn't know a lick of written Hebrew, but he got the gist of it. "Continue. Don't react." Or at least, that was what David assumed she'd meant, considering she'd mangled it a bit, but he decided to listen.

"What is it?" Roman asked.

"Master just wrote a bad joke on the inside of the box." He answered.

"Okay, what is it."

"Father of Salmon." David obviously lied, but he did crack a grin at his own joke.

"Urgh." Came the grunt from the Doctor. "Speaking of, David. Was that him?"

"Yeah, that was definitely his face." He answered.

As they spoke, Andy silently crept closer to Roman, until she was just barely within his reach the way he was sitting, and decided to stay there for a few minutes, listen in on the conversation. She needed to get good at staying still and silent anyway, and she figured it would be easier to do with the 'Final Boss' than the 'mooks' (as much as it pained her to think of the Staff that way, it was the only term that fit the analogy).

"Well, hopefully, we will be able to beat him. Just have to come up with a working strategy. So far the only good idea I've had is just to hook Heracles up the Mana Generators themselves and just throw him at the problem. But something is telling me that we won't win with pure force." Roman said.

"That's probably the most correct thing you've said the last few months."

"Probably, well thanks for the coffee David." Said, Roman, as he stood up.

"You're welcome Doctor," David responded as the doctor began to walk towards the door of the Servants room.

Andy, of course, followed behind him as he passed her previous hiding spot. She had to keep after her 'Final Boss' after all.

" _Impressive so far Contractor."_ Came the compliment from Hassan.

" _Thank you, Hassan. If it weren't for what you taught me, especially that breathing trick, I'm pretty sure I wouldn't be doing anywhere near as well._ " Andy replied as she did her best to stay focused on staying silent as she followed Roman down the hall. She then sent a quick telepathic message to David to explain. _"Special training, following the Boss_ , _will explain later._ "

" _Never a dull moment with you around Master. And already working on the next thing. You should try and relax it's only the end of the world and it us Servants that should be pulling most the weight in this endeavor, not you."_

" _This is relaxing for me, you know. Or at least, it's fun._ " Andy replied as she continued to follow Roman. _"Now shush please, trying to focus."_

Though the man just returned to the Command Room where he sat down in his chair in front of many monitors that contained lines of code and so much information and mathematical formulas. She didn't know how the man was keeping up with it, he certainly had many other skills outside of being a doctor.

She stood there looking over his shoulder, trying to understand even a bit of what was going on for a few minutes before deciding to watch the Command Room as a whole. Everyone was busy and working away at whatever they were doing (Andy could make about as much sense out of most of the other work going on as she could Roman's). They moved like clockwork, and it was fascinating to watch. She almost regretted only ever being here for minutes at a time before for missions. Almost, but not quite considering she _had_ had legitimately more important things to do at those times.

Of course, a few minutes later she decided to up the ante of her current 'game.' She silently moved to the Doctor's left, before lightly, ever so lightly, tapping his right shoulder to test for a reaction.

He reacted as she had expected with him turning his head around, only to look confused. "They better not start pranking me. It isn't April 1st yet." He said as he turned back around and continued to work.

Andy did her best to stay silent and decided to wait a few minutes to make him think it was just his imagination. Then, when he seemed to be once more engrossed in his work, she tapped his right shoulder ever so lightly once more.

"Okay, who is touching my shoulder?" He asked into the room.

"Not me."

"Not me either."

"I did not Boss."

Came the responses from the staff that was in the room at the moment.

"Okay then." He responded as he turned back around.

This time, Andy waited a full ten minutes after he seemed to have refocused on his work before her next move. And this time, she pulled the height lever on his swivel chair, causing him to suddenly drop down a few good inches in said chair.

Roman didn't react this time he just pushed the height lever and put the chair back into its proper height.

And now, for the coup-de-grace. She waited a full twenty minutes after he got back into things, before activating the voice mimicry device Da Vinci had included at her behest and then leaned in close to Roman. "Ro~man~i~kun~." Whispered Magi-Mari into Roman's ear. "You're my favorite piece of trash~."

And a second later Andy found her ear pinched by two of Roman's fingers, while Hades's Cap was in his other hand had pulled it off her. "Nice try Andy, but better luck next time." He said as he let go.

"Aww, Romani-kun, what gave it away?" She asked, still speaking in Magi-Mari's voice since she thought it was funny.

"I'm not telling." He responded.

"You're no fun," Andy said as she turned off the modulator. "Also, can I have my hat back? I'm kinda doing some special training right now with Hassan." As soon as she mentioned the Assassin, a hologram of big bold letters saying 'MISSION FAILED' popped up in front of her accompanied by a familiar sound. "Why did I give him that…" She half-jokingly lamented.

"Because when you make fun with others, you can't help but include yourself. Though I think it's time for us to grab some food. What is the time?" Roman asked.

"Half past 1. Technically, we already missed lunch." Andy said. "Actually, that reminds me, why didn't you eat already? I was postponing lunch cause of the training, you could have at least had the Brownies bring you something up if you were busy."

"I forget really." He responded with an embarrassing hand behind his head.

"Well, that ain't good! You need to take care of yourself, Boss!" Andy said a bit angry he was apparently neglecting his needs. She then switched the voice modulator back to Magi-Mari. "Just because your trash, doesn't mean you should treat yourself like trash~!"

"Okay, stop that it's creepy when you do it. It's not really on purpose, though most of the time Da Vinci sends them up with food." He responded.

"Well, good, at least someone is remembering to take care of you," Andy said in her own voice, before a devious smile came across it, as she switched to a very different voice. "But, is this more or less creepy?" She asked in Roman's own voice.

"More definitely more don't do that."

Andy cackled with laughter. "Alright, alright, I won't do it again (for now)." She said. "Now, let's get some grub."

"Yeah, lead the way, Andy."

Xxx

[spoiler=No Passive]Next up is a place beyond love and hate and god writing Roman hurts so much now.[/spoiler]


	77. Prison Tower

February 27

Andy was walking through the halls of Chaldea with Mash by her side as the two of them were heading down to the Dining Hall for lunch.

"So, Senpai how has working with Amakusa been for you? You've been so busy since you've summoned him that we haven't been able to talk much." Mash asked.

"Oh, sorry about that Kouhai, I was trying to cram everything into a small timeframe now to have more time later, which seems to be working well. And I learned Servants can, in fact, suffer from sleep deprivation, so that's a plus." Andy said. "But, yeah, sorry about not talking much Kouhai. Was there something, in particular, you wanted to discuss or did you just want to talk?"

"Nothing particular, I just like talking to you about anything." She responded with a smile, her eyes closed behind those fashion glasses of hers.

Andy was about to respond but as she took a single step the world around her seemed to glitch as the shiny white walls of Chaldea became brown and grimy, even the window that showed the everlasting snowstorm outside was gone.

"What the?" Andy said, caught completely off guard. "Kouhai-" she said as she turned around to face Mash, who was not there. She tried when to call upon Tenfold Shields, but the armor did not appear. And there was no response from her Servants either, only what she could call telepathy static; her armband also only got static.

Honestly, she was starting to panic a little. She hadn't been alone like this at all since this whole mess started, and now she was alone in an unknown, likely hostile area, and had been sent her practically instantly. In other words, a perfect way to kill her off nice and easy.

She looked around to see if there was anything useful in the dingy corridor.

The only things that were out of place were the torches that hung on the walls lighting up the corridor which she realized smelled of seawater.

"Arrrrgh." Came the pained scream from behind, she turned around to see a grotesque looking monster limping towards her. Though despite it being so grotesquely mutated she could still see that the thing had once been human.

"Nope," Andy said as she turned the opposite direction of the creature and started running. "Nope, nope, nope, nope, nope." She repeated as she ran, sparks flying off of her body as she accelerated. A good few minutes later she came to a halt and looked back, to see that the monster wasn't behind her, but it was moving towards her at a faster speed as she could hear the sound of something slapping against the floor.

"Ah, it seems that the new prisoner has arrived." Spoke a suave voice that sounded of high upbringing.

Andy turned towards the voice on her left side and saw a person sitting on a bed inside what she could only describe as a cell.

The bars kinda gave it away.

"Prisoner? The hell? What is this place -and don't just say 'a prison' or I swear to god- and where are we?" Andy asked, figuring the fact she wasn't already dead meant this guy could potentially help her out.

"What is this place you ask? Quite simple this a place beyond love and hate. Welcome Master of Chaldea, welcome to this Prison Tower. Welcome to Hell. Welcome to Château d'If!" He announced with a maniacal laugh.

"Cool," Andy said, unimpressed. "Since you seem to know who I am, I'm guessing you're the one who brought me here then? Is it because you need my help, because you have a grudge against Chaldea or me, or because your boss told you to?"

"I did not make you come here to this tower, no the Mage King cursed your soul to be entrapped here the moment you locked eyes with him." He answered.

"Oh. Great. Greeeat." Andy said, stretching out the word as the feeling of panic returned. "Lemme guess: the only way out is for the bastard to let me go."

"No quite the contrary there is a way to escape, this is Chateau d'If after all." He responded.

"Oh thank goodness." Andy sighed in relief. "I'm guessing you wanna break out too, right? Maybe we can work together?"

"If you were to contract with me I could be your Abbe Faria." He said playfully as he stood up. "But let me introduce myself." He vanished in the blink of an eye as he reappeared right by Andy's side. And thrusted his hand out and a black beam of what looked to be fire incinerated the creature that she had run into earlier. The thing had snuck up on them while they had talked. "I am a Servant of the Extra-Classes. I am Avenger, my hate shall never be forgotten. I am under no obligation to help you, but I will. To escape this prison that has entrapped your soul, you must pass through the seven Halls of Judgment and face their challenges. But if you idle around and do not beat them in seven days, you will die." He said as he held out his hand. "Now shall get going, Master?"

Andy took a moment to process all of that, before shaking his hand. "Yes, lets. You said I have seven days, so time is of the essence." She said resolutely, the panic from earlier mostly subsiding with a Servant at her side and a clear goal for how to get out. "Let's get to the first of these so-called 'Halls of Judgement' and kick some ass, Avenger."

"Well, it seems I've made the right decision." He responded, and the two of them began running down the corridor towards the first hall. "As you have probably guessed this Chateau d'If is very different from the historical one."

"To be honest, I don't know what the historical one was like either, but continue."

"This place is more like the concept of the prison made manifest it is like a Singularity but something entirely else. More like a hunting ground created by the Mage King. But first Master I would like to ask you a question?"

"Go ahead Avenger, it's not like there's anything else to do right now."

"Have you ever envied someone? Have you ever faced someone with the talent, opportunity, and riches that you lacked, and knelt down before them in defeat? This world is rife with inequality, and so we shed our tears as we ruminate on the sanctity of fairness. Have you experienced that?"

"...Yeah, I guess. To be honest, I kinda envied the other Masters, at first. Cause literally any of them would have been better than me, at first. And yet I'm the one who survived? The nobody from America?" She shook her head as if to physically clear her thoughts. "So, yeah, I did feel that way before. Why are these based on the Seven Deadly Sins, and I have to fight some manifestation of my envy or something?"

"No you have overcome Envy now we must face the Lord of the first hall one consumed utterly and totally by the Sin of Envy. And he like the others are itching to kill you. Sing Phantom of the Opera, monster of Envy with a beautiful voice." Avenger announced as they entered a circular room, with the Assassin Servant standing in the middle.

"Christine, Christine. I shall sing to you in your sleep… With all the love in my heart. Ah, but tonight a new star stands upon the stage! Who are you? You are not Christine! Here, my soul and voice are bound up as one! Which is to say…" He lashed out with his Edward Scissorhands, which was quickly caught by Avenger who retaliated with a punch which sent the man flying backward to the other side of the room.

"Didn't I just tell you, Master, that they were itching to kill you?" Avenger said sarcastically.

"Oh, I believed you. Fry his ass, Avenger." Andy said, eager to be free.

"As you command Master." He responded as dark flames sprung up across his body.

"You're not my Christine, you are not. I want, I want, I want her. **Christine Christine!** " He shouted as he activated his Noble Phantasm summoning a massive organ.

"Burn," Avenger stated as he simply blinked out of existence and was right in front of Phantom thrusting his arm into his chest. And then reappearing beside Andy with his back to her.

"Impressive, Avenger," Andy said as the Phantom faded away. "Now we just need to do that six more times for the other Sins I'd assume?"

"Correct, now we just wait for Phantom to vanish, my vengeance strike has shattered his spirit core, so he has little time. But even when he still continues to sing." Avenger said as they heard the melody coming from Phantom as he vanished it ending as his head disappeared. "Such devotion to a single woman is that either obsession or love. When does one end and the other begin?" He simply stated.

"Probably when it starts to get creepy. Like stalking. Or anything that could be described as yandere." Andy said with a shrug.

"True enough. There is a limit." Avenger said. "Now shall we continue on Master?"

"Lead the way, Avenger. Which sin shall we slay next?" Andy asked.

"Heeelp!" Shouted a female voice from down the corridor they were now walking.

"That question shall have to wait for now Master." He responded.

"Right," Andy said as they rushed to the end of the corridor to find the source of the cry for help.

A woman running away from another monster.

"Avenger, stop the monster if you would," Andy ordered.

"As you wish Master." And a second later the monster was being consumed by Avenger's black flames. "Now then woman who are you and what are you doing here?" He asked as he pulled the woman up on her feet after having fallen.

"Thank you, but I don't know, I was looking for something important, but now I don't remember anything at all." She spoke like she was on the verge of a nervous breakdown.

Andy approached the obviously frightened woman. "Hey, Miss, I know this isn't a good situation, but your safe with us now, so take a deep breath for me okay?" Andy said, hoping to help calm her down.

She breathed heavily as she tried to get her pulse under control as she nodded at Andy. "Thank you for saving me."

"Tch, it was nothing now it seems we have a guest on our escape, though since she is a woman that has lost everything, but still seek it your name, for now, shall be Mercedes," Avenger stated.

"Hmm, thank you?" The now dubbed Mercedes responded.

"So, umm, Miss Mercedes then. Were you suddenly just, here, being chased by that thing?" Andy asked the newly named Mercedes.

"I woke up in this place, and I came across that thing, so yeah kinda." She responded.

Andy nodded sympathetically. "Something similar happened to me too, just a little while ago. I got lucky and ran into tall green and handsome over there."

"You messed that up on purpose."

Andy cracked a grin at the Avenger. "You know it's true though~."

Which caused Mercedes to let out a chuckle.

"Women, now the next Hall and it's Lord awaits us," Avenger said. "Now tell me Master have you ever felt lust?"

"My boyfriend is one of the Paladins of Charlemagne, whom I had a crush on for a while, so, yeah," Andy said. "But if we're including 'bloodlust' in that, then I do have a bit of trouble with that sometimes, but that might be more of a 'wrath' issue."

"That is the more normal kind of lust ones feel for their partner. But to be so consumed by it, that you gave into those bestial urges and forced them upon another regardless of their consent?"

"YES I HAVE!" Shouted the familiar voice of Fergus as they entered the hall. "For I love women, I love the feel of their bodies against mine. For they shall all come to love it as I make them mine. Now you, are you taking those two women of mine! Arggh I won't let you!" He roared as he brought out his massive sword. Thankfully, it was the metal one.

Andy's face showed absolute disgust. "Avenger, rid this world of that... _thing_."

"As you command."

" **Calad-**." He was about to activate his Noble Phantasm but just like with Phantom, he was cut off as Avenger quite simply speed blitzed him to the point that it looked like there were multiple Avenger's attacking Fergus.

"Good riddance." Andy said, disgust and anger still evident as the 'Fergus' faded away.

"You have overcome the second hall Master, but it seems that is the limit of your soul to act for now," Avenger spoke.

And at those words, Andy's vision went dark.


	78. An Avenger's Requiem

"Are you ready to continue my Master?" Avenger asked as Andy woke up in what looked to be the same prison cell that she had found the Servant. Though this time with the addition of the woman now named Mercedes just standing rather awkwardly over in the corner looking at the two of them as Andy sat up on the bed.

She stretched for a moment -these prison beds were worse than sleeping on concrete- before answering. "Yeah, yeah I'm ready. But, is that going to happen every two halls?"

"Yes, that seems to be the limit of your soul's capability to endure before running out and having to recharge, as you know a living human's Soul is not meant to exist outside of a proper container for very long," Avenger spoke while moving his arms about for dramatic effect as he spoke.

"Oh. _Fuck_." She said under her breath at the realization her soul had most likely been _ripped from her body_ and shoved into the prison. It hadn't really clicked previously. "Well, if anything, that means we have even more reason to keep going right? If you're right, the longer I don't have a body-" and wasn't that a thing to say "-the worse off I'll be. So we should probably get moving."

"If that is your command Master, though luckily only a single day has passed so this is the second day. So, if you manage to a day, you will win before time runs out." Avenger responded.

"I hope you two won't have anything against me coming along I do not want to be alone in this place?" Mercedes asked.

"Oh, of course, I don't mind, this place is creepy as all hell, it's better for us to stick together," Andy said.

"Thank you." She responded.

"I do not care, she can come if she wishes," Avenger said as he began walking over to the cell's door.

Andy got up and followed after him. "Y'know, Avenger, I've been thinking about something." She said after a bit of walking in silence towards the next hall.

"Ask your question Master, and maybe you can hope for an answer."

"You keep calling yourself an Avenger, right? So...what are you trying to avenge?" Andy asked.

"...That is both easy and difficult to answer Master." He responded. "But to simplify it is to avenge those that have been wronged by others. I am one born of love that speaks of hate, so I see the evil of humanity and strike against it with rage and hatred. Is that a good enough answer for you Master?"

"I suppose so," Andy said, finally getting a feel for what kind of person Avenger was. "But I do have a follow-up question. I know I'm here because of the bastard, but… Why are _you_ here?"

"There was no other more appropriate place to put me." He answered with a voice that brimmed with smug.

"Alright, keep your secrets," Andy said with only a touch of sarcasm while wondering if that meant he was damned in general or tied to the Chateau d'If itself.

"You just lack knowledge Master, now the next hall is coming up now Master can you tell me the true definition of Sloth?" He asked.

"You calling me stupid?" Andy asked jokingly. "But, ah, no, actually. Please go on."

"The true meaning of Sloth is not pure laziness or wanting to do nothing. But to go against one's internal nature so hard that your soul itself becomes a pile of rot. As he is the obvious example of." Avenger spoke.

"Jeanne, Jeanne, Jeanne, look at this blasphemy I shall show you and reveal the true nature of God so that you shall abandon your faith and come to me." 'Preached' Bluebeard as he spoke to people that were not there.

"You get my words? Do you not Master." Avenger asked.

"Oh, yeah, I definitely understand," Andy said, rather unhappy to see Bluebeard at all. "You'll probably want to take him out before he does anything with that book. And then we should probably be on the lookout for tentacle monsters afterward regardless."

"Ah, it seems that we have guests watch Jeanne as I torture their souls to despair." He cackled.

"Hmm, he truly is the epitome of human waste," Avenger spoke as his flames appeared and launched it at Bluebeard in the form of a beam. But before it hit him, it collided with one of his Sea Demons. "I see that you mean Master."

"Ah, you fool you cannot kill my dear creatures for it shall regenerate and spawn more with every drop of blood it spills… No that is wrong." Bluebeard said the octopus in front of him just turned to cinders instead of doing like he said.

"It's you that is the fool my flames of hatred burns everything even the soul." At that Avenger did his fast movement thing and grabbed Bluebeard by the head, and then it was over as he immolated the Caster turning him into dust.

"Oof, be careful there Avenger, you might cut yourself on all that edge," Andy said once Bluebeard had fully disappeared.

"Every word I speak is the truth Master. Now onto the next Hall of Judgement."

"Never said it wasn't true," Andy said as she followed the Avenger onwards to the next Hall. As they were walking, Andy decided to turn her focus to her other 'companion' for this 'journey.' "So, Mercedes. Have you remembered anything while I was out?" She asked the amnesiac.

"Not much but I think I used to be a nurse." She responded.

"Oh, nice. My mom's a nurse. Do you remember what type?" Andy asked, hoping conversation might help jog Mercedes memories.

"I think a medical one, cause I got a brief flash of treating burns." She responded. "Nothing else has come."

"Mhm. Based on your outfit...maybe, you were a field nurse? Like someone who helped soldiers on a battlefield? Your outfit look kind of military-ish, so it makes sense to me at least." Andy speculated aloud, hoping any of the words she was saying would help.

"I think that's probably right, think that the man I was treating was wearing a uniform," Mercedes responded.

"We are at the Hall of Wrath, and you're at the same time the one and not the one that should be here False Servant," Avenger spoke as they entered the hall.

"Hey, it's not my fault this stupid ass place summoned me to this shitty ass job, thing and I think wrath suits me much better than it does her." Jeanne Alter spoke with a smug smile as she leaned back against her banner that she had planted in the ground.

Andy grinned wide at seeing Jalter. "Well if it isn't Miss Holy Maiden! A shame we had to meet again like this, Miss Holy Maiden."

"Okay, I'm fully onboard now to punch that idiot Master in the face. Also if you want her, I think she is down at the sixth hall with the guy that got greed." Jeanne Alter spoke.

"Even if you're not the proper Avatar of Wrath you have taken up that role and so beating you shall allow us to proceed," Avenger spoke as his flames surrounded him.

"I've got plenty of wrath of for you Cavern King, mine may not be of hate, but they are hell's flames!" Jalter shouted as she threw a fireball made of out more purplish flames that collide with Dante's black ones.

And so the fight was on, as Jalter actually seemed capable of fighting against Avenger and able to react to his speed blitzing.

"Ha, I thought that you said you would beat me Avenger or was that just hot air." Jalter boasted as she slammed her banner into Avenger's side and send him flying into the wall. "And that was that."

"You're strong, you know you would make for a perfect Avenger yourself, but this fight is over for I shall now unleash the full power of my Noble Phantasm. **Enfer Château d'If**!" He announced, and when all around Jalter multiple Avenger's appeared surrounding her.

" **La Gro-**." She was about to use her own Noble Phantasm, but it was a few seconds too late as the multiple Avenger's bombarded her with the black flames.

"And that was that," Avenger spoke as he appeared in front of Andy.

With no sign of Jalter behind him.

"Let us speak tomorrow, Master." And Andy felt her vision go dark once again.

Xxx

Andy awoke blearily feeling like she'd slept on a concrete trampoline. In other words, every bone in her body hurt. "Ugh, why are these beds so tough? I feel worse every time I wake up in one." She complained as she got up to stretch her everything, ignoring the looks she was getting from the other occupants of the cell.

"Well, this is prison miss," Mercedes spoke.

"Yeah, I know, I know. But I have seriously slept on concrete more comfortable than these things." Andy said.

"Prison." She just said again.

"If you're done complaining Master, we shall be off to the Hall of Gluttony, and this one shall be probably just as easy as the first three," Avenger said.

"Alright, yeah, better to get it over with sooner rather than later," Andy said as she finished her stretches, only feeling marginally better as she followed Avenger's lead.

"Mister Avenger I have to ask you I ran into them, but why on our way to these Halls haven't we run into more of those monsters?" Mercedes asked.

"Now that she mentions it, same question," Andy said, haven't been thinking much of it.

"I, I do not actually know why we have not. We should have encountered a few more condemned souls that the prison has trapped." He spoke with a bit of worry in his voice. "But right now that is not important. We just need to beat the Halls."

"Well, that's not worrying at all," Andy said. "But it does seem like the best route is to deal with the halls, so...you said Gluttony was next? Is it Caesar? I bet it's Caesar."

"We shall see," Avenger responded as they entered the hall.

"Ah, NERO MY BEAUTIFUL NIECE WHERE ARE YOU!" Shouted Caligula as ran around the room.

"Gluttony to consume all and be consumed by all. Though when you get down to it, there is not much difference between it, lust and greed. All just different expressions of the greater sin of uncontrolled Want. What do you think Master?" Avenger asked.

"Well, I'm pretty sure most of the Seven Deadly Sins can be consolidated down to two or three, so, yeah." Andy shrugged, not really sure what else to say. "Oh yeah, be careful though his presence induces literal Lunacy or whatever."

"Yes, but in here the light of Diana does not shine." And with no effort, Avenger decapitated Caligula after he appeared behind the former Emperor, and a second later he was back by her side. "Most Berserkers are easy to deal with."

"Because of the madness?"

"Namely for most of them, and the ones we meet in this tower are only shards of their true selves. Only that fake had the most of her here." Avenger said.

"Ah, I see," Andy said. "So, which of the last two is next?"

"Next up is the Hall of Greed, the last of the three wants," Avenger responded.

"Thankfully that means we'll be out by tomorrow right?" Mercedes asked.

"Correct." Was the edgelord's simple response.

"Well, that's good at least. Though, didn't Miss Holy Maiden say something about the 'real' Jeanne being in Greed? We should probably see what she meant about that." Andy said, relief evident in her voice that the end of this ordeal was in sight.

"Yes, let's see what the Saint that brought salvation to France is doing," Avenger spoke.

Andy followed behind the Avenger as he lead them swiftly to greed's hall.

Though right outside of the open door to the Hall of Judgement stood Jeanne and Saber Gilles side by side.

"It seems I finally get to meet you, Avenger." Spoke Jeanne while Gilles stood silent.

"And what do you desire out this meeting Saint? You're not one of the judges, so why are you here?" Avenger asked.

"Excuse me, are you my Jeanne, and that's why you're here?" Andy interrupted.

"I am sorry, but I do believe we have never met each other, I am just here for a singular purpose," Jeanne answered.

"I see," Andy said, having mostly expected that response. "And that purpose is?"

"As Avenger said I am not a judge as I lack the right and will to condemn another, but what I bring is salvation, I wish to save the soul of Avenger. As it is written." She responded.

"Then you're a fool saint this instance of me cannot be saved as I was in life. As long as I am an Avenger my hate can never be forgotten. So shut your mouth and let us pass."

"Do not insult Lady Jeanne." Said, Gilles, as he drew his sword. "You tried to offer your help Jeanne, but he has rejected you, for a man like him can never reach salvation."

"Gilles does not fight please."

"He is correct Saint, perhaps if Abbe Faria and Hayede were here, it could be possible. But you're not her Saint, and you would never be able to fulfill that role." Avenger responded as his flames began to surge around him.

"Huphuphup, hold it hotshot, if we don't need to fight than we won't fight," Andy said, trying to deescalate the situation even a little bit.

But she was blatantly ignored as Jeanne responded. "Even with all that wrath inside of you Avenger you can still receive forgiveness. Though the only way to truly save and help someone like you is to beat it into you." Jeanne said as she readied her banner.

"Foolish Saint I am the Count of Monte Christo my rage and vengeance can never be quelled." And like that Avenger blasted of first going for Gilles, the Saber getting blasted into the wall with a resounding crack before he unleashed his flames on Jeanne. But the black fire just passed right through the Ruler.

"Tch, it seems that Magic Resistance and faith of yours are able to nullify my flames. So that just means I have to get a bit more physical." Avenger said.

Jeanne didn't respond as she swung her banner at Avenger, but the man caught it and before she could react he speed forward, and with a gut punch sent her flying straight into the Hall of Judgement.

"Didn't mean to do that." He commented.

"Like how you 'didn't mean' to ignore me?" Andy asked indignantly, upset at having been ignored. "I suppose now we need to finish what _you_ started, but at least _try_ to listen to me next time."

"I'm sorry Master, but do you hear a fly buzzing about?"

"Please don't fight you two." Mercedes said as she walked in between the two of them before Andy could respond to his words.

"Fine, though with my accidental slip earlier, I guess you've realized who I am?" Avenger asked.

"That I have, Edmond. _Little_ weird for you to have given Mercedes here that name though, in retrospect." Andy said. "Otherwise, honestly I don't care, other than how I didn't figure it out earlier given all the clues right in front of my face."

"Well, let's just say that you're... whats the modern word for it? A little dense?" He said with a cheeky smile. "But let's establish one thing first Master, I am not Edmond Dantes I am not the man that achieved happiness and salvation at the end of his story. I am the Count of Monte Cristo, I am Gankutsuou. The middle of the story."

"Ah, I see, like with Elisabeth and Carmilla," Andy said before a grin grew on her face. "You know that means I'm going to call you Gank from now on though, right?"

"My hate for you burns with the fury of thousand suns. Though let's finish this we have now Greed to deal with also."

"Right, right. Wonder who it'll be this time. A dragon, maybe?" Andy asked as they entered the hall.

"Avenger I believe in you, in what you tried to do." Spoke Amakusa as an injured Jeanne held her bruised stomach.

"I'm sorry what?" Avenger asked with confusion.

"Oh great," Andy said with a sigh. "Gank, whatever he's about to say, please ignore it."

"Oh, that's some scorn lady. Avenger, you're a person that understands what is the most important things in the world, due to having lived a full life. That is why you flopped your orders and didn't join the King of Mages side." Amakusa spoke.

"He was a bore, why would I ever listen to a man without hate in their being," Avenger responded.

"A man without hate?" Andy asked in confusion, more to herself than anything. He had looked _pretty hateful_ when she (foolishly) looked him in the eye. But who would know hate better than an Avenger?

"But enough about him, what about you a man that tried to save everyone, but ended up saving no one, and so developed insatiable greed for salvation itself for others and the world itself," Avenger said.

"True, and that is why I am here and must fight you, so Jeanne d'Arc I ask for your assistance in this fight," Amakusa asked his fellow Ruler.

"I shall happily give it to you." She responded.

"Perhaps if you were your true realized self in this tower, you would be able to beat me. But you're not, and I have enough space now." Avenger said with a mad grin on his face. " **Enfer Château d'If!** " He announced, and suddenly various copies of Avenger ran around Jeanne and Amakusa in a circle.

From there they unleashed punches and kicks upon the two Saint who were unable to react fully to Avenger's what looked to be his highest speed.

And that continued before Andy's eyes for what felt like an eternity as the two tried to keep up with Avenger, but in the end, Avenger got his opening as he disarmed both of them.

"Time for the coup-de-grâce, Avenger!" Andy ordered.

And the Avenger obeyed by thrusting each of his hand into their respective chest and quite literally ripped out their 'hearts' and crushed them.

"Sorry, I could not save you, but Avenger at some point your flames will consume you too," Jeanne said before she and Amakusa vanished.

"As if my vengeance is eternal, not even God would be able to stop me," Avenger spoke before he turned around to face Andy.

"The flames of anger may warm your heart now, but will leave you cold in the grave." Andy quoted at him. "Though that doesn't apply either, considering you're alre-" Andy didn't get to finish her joke as she lost consciousness at that moment.

Xxx

"Good morning miss." Mercedes greeted Andy as she up on her shitty bed.

"Morning, Mercedes," Andy said, feeling like she had been hit by a truck. Which was odd, considering she'd just been sleeping. Then her mind kicked into full gear. "Oh, thank god, I just realized today's that last day, there's only one hall left." She said with relief.

"That's great you get out at least."

"Oh. Um. I mean, you did also face...most of the seven halls so you might be able to get out with us?" Andy said in an attempt to reassure the amnesiac.

"It's okay," Mercedes said with a sad smile as looked over to where Avenger was leaning against the wall of the cell.

"So the last Challenge is ahead of us." The Count stated.

"I suppose it is," Andy said as she got up and faced the Count. "Pride is the only one left, right? Are you up to handle Pride's champion, O Cavern King?"

"Of course no one can defeat me as long as I have you backing me, Master." He stated.

Andy grinned wide. "That's what I like to hear! Now then, let's go kick pride's butt, Avenger!"

At her declaration, they left the cell and head to the final Hall of Judgement with little conversation on the way until they arrived and walked into the hall.

Where they were when promptly met with one of the most disgusting creatures that Andy had ever seen. Of what looked to be humans fused together into a disgusting parody of a human fetus.

"Ah, I see the one who was Pride escaped from their post, and so the tower sought a replacement and fused together these damned Souls who know of love and hate together. Too bad that is the worst kind of being to use against me."

And with but a flick of his wrist a bolt of his flames were launched, and the creature was quickly consumed by the flames as it used the collection of souls to fuel itself.

"Wait, escaped?" Andy said, suddenly very worried about 'Mercedes' being right behind her and quickly moving so that Avenger was between her and the potential 'Pride.'

"Yes, but that is not important now. The monster became the Judge of Pride, as so now the prison can be escaped from by walking through that door." Avenger said as he pointed at the actual wooden door that was on the other side of the hall. "But as this is the Chateau d'If only one person can escape. And I shall not be your Abbe Faria." Andy saw his fist was now in her chest, seemingly ignoring the sudden shock sent through his system in retaliation. "Though to be honest I would have loved to truly work with you, but you would never be able to beat me." He pulled his fist out, and she collapsed to the ground.

"Miss!" Andy heard Mercedes shout as she ran over to her and began pressing her hands against her wound.

Andy tried to speak, but blood came gushing out of her mouth instead.

"Miss, please don't die please, you can't die here you were so close. I have to, I have to save you. Save… you…" Andy looked into Mercedes eyes as her own vision started fading to black, and they seemed to shrink in on themselves before a second later they were filled with determination. "Lung punctured and collapsed, blood filling sack and windpipe, commence operation. **Nightingale Pledge!** " She chanted and a second later Andy felt life flow into her body as the blood vanished and the wound healed up.

"Do not worry Miss, I shall remove the enemy present." Andy watched as 'Mercedes' launched herself from her position and reappeared right in front of Avenger. "Body analyzed reopening wounds." She stated as she used her fingers like claws and slashed at the man, causing blood to explode from his body.

"Such hubris." He stated as he tried to jump away, but Florence for that who she really was wasn't she. Just grabbed him by the leg and slammed him into the ground. Which she quickly followed up with by summoning a revolver into her hand fired into Avenger's torso.

Though with his free hand he blasted her with his flames and sent her flying a bit back. Though from where Andy was able to watch they didn't burn Florence like they had done to the others.

"Truly an Angel of Steel aren't you," Avenger said as he stood shakingly back up on his legs. He had just taken more from her than he had by any of the other Judges. "But my flames will kill you soon." And he was right they were spreading across her body.

"Then I shall just finish you off now," Florence stated. And a single blink later on Andy's part Avenger was impaled through the torso by a massive sword held by what looked to be a spectral nurse floating right behind Florence. "「Jutlandia」" She stated as the flames consumed her and she vanished leaving only Andy and a very much dying Avenger, going by the golden motes his body was slowly turning into.

"Thank you, Florence," Andy said as the nurse disappeared. She then proceeded to completely ignore the dying Avenger and walked to the wooden door. Only then did she turn back to the just moments from completely fading away Avenger. "Thank you, Edmond, for getting me this far. I wouldn't have made it out without you." She said softly. "But fuck you." she then opened the door and went through it quickly.

And as she did, she heard his laughter. "I am proud of you Master, you beat this Prison and me. If you wish to see me again. Just Wait and Hope."

 **To Be Continued**

Xxx

A/N: I am an evil bastard have fun speculating.


	79. Man-Human

March 3

"SENPAI!" Mash shouted as she gave Andy a bone-crushing hug the moment her eyes had fluttered open and greeted her adorable Kouhai.

"Kouhai….can't...breath…" Andy wheezed out as she was crushed in the vice-grip hug.

"Oh, sorry." Mash apologized as she let go and stood a bit away from Andy with an embarrassed blush on her face.

"Don't worry, it's fine," Andy said before she recalled what had happened. "Kouhai. How long was I out? And, do you guys know what happened?"

"Don't know you suddenly collapsed when we were walking together, and you didn't wake no matter what we did. And this is the fourth day. Do you know why that happened Senpai" Mash asked?

Andy sighed, before explaining. "I kinda had an out of body experience with my soul being stuck in 'Chateau d'If' and only escaped because the Count of Monte Cristo helped me through so that _he_ could try to escape but then amnesiac stand user Florence Nightingale saved me, and then I woke up."

"That sounds like a bizarre experience Senpai." Mash simply commented. "Still glad that you came out of that alive. Now you can go and pamper your boyfriend, he and the rest of your 'family' has been nervous and freaking out." She told her. "Me included."

"Sorry for worrying you, Mash," Andy said. "Next time, I won't stare Salmon in the eyes, since apparently, that's why this happened."

"Oh, yeah that explains a lot, so you meet Edmond Dantes how was he like?" Mash asked.

"Asshole edgelord pretty boy glass cannon," Andy said, doing what she thought was a pretty good summation of the Count's everything. "Also, he was from the middle of his story, so he's just The Count of Monte Cristo or Gankutsuou. I called him Gank...which in hindsight might have been why he ganked me."  
"Oh, well… Glad that you survived and maybe that should teach you not to insult people." Mash deadpanned with eyes of disappointment.

"But Kouhai, it wasn't an insult, it was an endearing nickname!" Andy whined, before grinning. "Man it feels good to be back hom-...huh. Yeah. Home." The revelation hit her like a truck, that yes, she had started to think of Chaldea as 'home.' Might have been tied to the (mostly quashed) despair over not being able to return to her actual home, but that wasn't important.

"Are you okay Senpai?" Mash with concern as she sat at her bedside.

"...Maybe?" Andy said as she quickly wiped away the forming tears at having accidentally brought back _that_ train of thought, refocusing on the here and now. "I think I need a soul doctor. I'm like 90% sure I could feel my soul pulling itself apart at the seams when I was in there."

"I don't think we have a certified spirit surgeon on staff even among your Servants, though maybe you just need some proper food and not nutrients," Mash said, and Andy took notice of the IV current on the side of her bed and the needle in her arm.

"Yeah, that's probably a good idea."

"Good, now after we've done that and you've given out sufficient hugs, I think your project had finished."

xxx

About seven hours later after _thoroughly_ reassuring everyone she was okay, as well as eating an absolutely massive meal, Andy was now walking down to Paracelsus's lab. For thematic reasons, on the way, she drank the potion and switched back to a he. Soon after, he reached the door, took a deep breath to calm his nerves, before entering the lab. Everyone was already there, the whole Meeting of Minds either running last minute checks or idling about talking to each other.

"Hey, everyone," Andy said as he entered, getting their attention. "Looks like everything's finally ready."

"It is Master, your new body is ready to be used. Though first, we, of course, need to transfer your soul and anchor it within your new vessel." Said Paracelsus checking a few things of a clipboard.

"Man that still sounds weird," Andy said under his breath, before nodding. "Right. I'm ready."

"Do not worry Master, with the machine Da Vinci and Paracelsus created, and my calculations nothing will go wrong." Spoke Babbage as he slowly walked his way over.

Andy smiled up at the steampunk cyborg. "I trust all of you implicitly, I'm not worried cause of that." He said. What he didn't say was that he was worried about how having a different body could potentially affect his mind. Not even in a 'body influences mind' way but in a literal sense, he would be letting go of the main thing that still connected him to his old life. "Just, y'know, I little excited," he lied.

"If you say so Master now please enter that capsule. And we shall begin the process." Babbage said as he pointed to the capsule that was connected to the machine that then connected to the tank that contained his new body.

Andy walked up to the empty capsule but didn't immediately step in. He took a few deep breaths, before having a thought and taking off the various necklaces and trinkets he'd taken to wearing since this whole thing started. The Babylon fragment, some of Medea's charms, Mash's shield pendant...and then, much slower than the rest, the silver cross, the other fragment of his old life; he took a bit of comfort in how he'd be able to keep wearing it. He put all of the various trinkets on a nearby table, before walking back to the capsule.

He took one last deep breath, likely the last he would take with these lungs, before entering the capsule.

Andy closed his eyes as the lid closed and opened his eyes as he coughed out liquid onto a metal surface. "The transfer was a complete success Master, here a towel." Said the voice of Tesla and Andy felt the soft material on his body.

"That was...quick," Andy said, though his voice sounded a bit odd. Probably because those were this body's first words. Of course, this fell to the wayside a bit as he could suddenly _feel_ all of the 'additions' to his body all at once. It was a little overwhelming.

Oh, wait, more than a little, considering he'd completely zoned out trying to process it all, finally snapping back to reality as Da Vinci waved her hand in front of his face. "Sorry, blanked a little. This all feels...really weird. Were you saying something?" He asked.

"Yeah, I've got your new clothes, unless you want to go around parading your stuff, well I do it, but I don't think you would want to. And if you would like to see your old body or not. And we just put in in storage." She said.

"Oh. Right." Andy said as he quickly took the proffered outfit -a new edition of the undersuit for Tenfold Shields, made to work better with his new body- and put it on, purposely ignoring the idea that the body he'd been using all his life up to now was in some freezer somewhere. "Um, does anyone have a mirror? I kind of want to see myself before we get to testing everything."

"Just a moment." Said Paracelsus and a second later he came with a hand mirror for him to use.

The most striking change, in Andy's mind, was the eyes. His facial structure was almost identical to what it had been before, which was good and made sense. But the eyes and the area around them were very different to what he'd remembered. Once brown eyes were now red and possessed slit pupils. Just as alarmingly, was that the skin around his eyes matched the rest of his face. None of the signs of tiredness he'd gotten used to over the years. And, just as importantly, it was free of the chemical burns from when he'd messed up a few years ago with that acne cream. He touched said areas to be sure- smooth. Not like the times he'd covered it up. They were just… gone. It looked odd to him, but in a good way.

His hair was brown again, and considerably shorter. He remembered one of the features he'd asked Medea to help implement, and focused on his hair. Slowly, the color shifted from brown to pink. And then to green. Then to purple. Then back to pink. He was grinning the whole time, distracted as he was.

He then looked away from the mirror, to see that most of the Meeting of Minds had just been staring at him like he'd been ready to either explode or collapse; both valid concerns. "Okay, I think I'm good... for now. Where are we testing the 'other stuff'?"

"Going down to the Danger Room, we have made some upgrades to it so that the Servants can get some more challenging training. And now it should be perfect." Da Vinci said. "But how _is_ the body so far, any problems, are your senses to sensitive. Can you find the functions?"

"I...think so? It's _very_ weird, suddenly having all these...new instincts and systems and...limbs? Oh, that is _so fucking weird_ I can move them in the fold, oh that feels so fucking weird." Andy said as he suddenly realized the 'other parts' were still very much so active even stowed away. "Sorry, um, yeah. It's all just overwhelming." He said as he went through all the systems he knew they installed and checked that they were all there, roughly, since he could really tell what was what until he tried to use it, mostly going off of the 'where.' "Everything seems to be accessible though."

"That's good, and it will probably get easier to handle with time and a bit of meditation, and it will be second nature." Da Vinci said. "Now we are going off, while you all can start cleaning up."

"Yes, Ma'am." They responded.

Andy soon found himself with Da Vinci in the Danger Room, having mostly adjusted to the brightness of Chaldea on the walk; they'd taken the long way to make sure of it.

"Sooo...can I choose the order we test things in, or did you already have a plan, Leo?" Andy asked once they were inside.

"You have the floor Andy, just go with what you feel you want to do, I just set up targets." She responded holding up the tablet that controlled the Danger Room. "Cause, you can't plan for the stuff that goes through your head."

"I feel like that's an insult," Andy said, before going quickly deciding how he wanted to do this. Escalation seemed like a good plan, starting small and all. "Could you set up a few stationary targets? I just want to see if the firing mechanism works, I can practice aiming later."

Da Vinci nodded and tapped the tablet screen, and a moment later 5 Shadow Servants (all Solomon shaped, go figure) popped into existence. He held out his right arm at the closest one and activated the new sensation in his arm. His hand disappeared, replaced with the end of a short cannon barrel, and a glowing red bullet was fired out of it at speeds Andy would have needed Tenfold Shields to process before, but now he could kind of see it in flight.

When it impacted the lead Solomon, it pierced right through it into the next one and exploded in a fireball.

"Nice!" Andy said, before actually looking at his arm. Much like everything else, it felt _weird_ simultaneously having and not having a hand. Was this what Megaman felt like?

He focused on it for a moment, and his hand was a hand again. He made it go back and forth a few times to get used to the sensation.

He then pointed at another with his left hand, shaped like a gun, and 'fired,' and with a much more familiar sensation, the electro-laser did its thing, zapping the target into oblivion. Downsizing that had been a bit of a pain, considering its mostly mundane basis, but they had managed to mostly do it.

"Okay, 'small' weapon systems are working okay, Circuits still work, that's good." He said aloud, just as much for Da Vinci's benefit as his own. He then walked straight up to one of the last two targets and punched it through the face, making it dissipate. Which was good, considering previously he couldn't do that without assistance. "Stronger, that's good." He said, before punching the other one through the gut just because, and then moving back closer to Da Vinci.

"Alright, Leo, I'm going to try and transform now." He informed her.

"Okay, just remember this is a major deviation from your 'normal-self' appearance. So your Soul will force it back to what it should be quickly, so the transformation won't last for long a maximum of five minutes. Though during this time you will have strength and power to fight an A-Rank Servant. So, happy fighting Devilman." Da Vinci said. "Though I'm pretty sure I've explained this to you before?"

"Yeah, I remember," Andy said. He then took a deep breath, reached inside himself, and flipped the mental 'switch' he could feel in his head. He-wait, no, she. Wrong switch. Good to note though that both were the same height now. "Whoops. Well, good to know that works though." She said, before switching back and 'reaching' for the other 'switch.'

This time, the change was unlike anything he'd ever experienced. The gender switch, he'd only felt a little bit different, even with the initial Ishtar potion. This? It was like his body ripping itself apart at the seems. Extra mass came into being from the folded space now attached to his body. He could literally _feel_ the new muscles building themselves up. But just as quickly as it started, it was over.

It took a moment for him to realize he was on his hands and knees on the floor, breathing heavily. He shakily -for once not from tiredness but from _excitement_ \- got up, and stood to his new full height. "Leo, do you have a mirror or something?" He asked in what was definitely a deeper version of his voice.

"Just a second, let the system project one for you." She said, and Andy watched a full-length mirror materialize in front of him.

And what Andy looked like at this moment could most definitely be called demonic, though not in the same vein as the Archdemon this body had been made out of. More similar in style to Satyr Satan with how his lower body looked like, but his face had wing-like protrusions coming out, and his eyes were glowing a solid red. When Da Vinci had said Devilman, she had meant Devilman. Andy both loved and hated the renaissance (wo)man turned Otaku for that. Though where there should have been wings, his dragon arms were instead giving him four instead of two.

"So, how does it feel Andy?" Da Vinci asked.

"It feels...good. Surprisingly natural." Andy said as he looked at his new blue(ish) body. The extra arms were _weird_ but in a good way. The weirdest part was probably more the size since they were still significantly bigger than his 'normal' arms even in this form. He flexed all four at once -which felt weird considering the different muscles in his back, but oh well- and grinned a much sharper grin than before. "I think I want to give this a proper test. I'd say...one on one of these guys, for now. Full combat mode."

"Now when it's time for Mortal Kombat!" Da Vinci shouted as the Shadow Servants went on the offensive.

Andy 'grinned' wide -really, more baring his teeth at the 'enemy'- and leaped straight at the closest one, grabbing on with his normal arms in a bear-hug and then ripping its head off with the bigger arms, and watched as it faded to oblivion. He then turned to the others, a wild look in his eyes, before leaping at the next nearest one.

It seemed the combat upgrade meant they adapted though, as this time the various Solomons dodged (or tried too, in the case of an unlucky one who got grabbed by one of his larger arms by the head, which was promptly crushed) and fired beams of shadow-stuff at him. He dodged most of them, but one hit him dead on in the chest as he dodged another.

He looked down at the point of impact, where his skin had darkened, before fading back to its new blue normal. He then looked back up at the Shadows, grinning wider as he decided to shoot back, extending a fist-turned-cannon at one, a blue bullet firing out this time instead, encasing the Shadow in ice.

Which Andy then used as a shield from another onslaught of beams, before lifting and hurling the frozen Solomon at the others, destroying three on impact. This was followed up with a few electro-laser blasts to take out the survivors of that cluster.

With no more Shadows in front of him, he turned around to find another group of them materializing and already firing beams at him. And they were all tightly clustered, so with a laugh that sounded nothing like Andy's normal one, he held out all four arms in front of himself. A small metal sphere floating between them, excess electricity sparking wildly off him, before firing the modified 'rail' gun with a thunderous boom at the crowd of Shadows, obliterating most of them in one go, the stragglers being pounced upon and destroyed.

He then turned towards Da Vinci, not noticing the look on her face. "Gimme something _big_ , Leo!" Andy said, his voice definitely sounding different from earlier.

"You asked for it, but I will say you've spent to much time with those muscleheads." She said, and in front of Andy, a copy of Fafnir was generated. "Have fun." She said with a gleeful laugh.

Andy laughed as well. "Ooohh, I think I will!" He said excitedly as he pounced at the shadow dragon, but it knocked him out of his short 'flight' with its tail as it moved much faster than something of its size had any means to.

Andy rolled with the landing and sprung back up to his feet, staring down the fake Fafnir. Said dragon then roared at him, and Andy roared back with his new demonic vocal cords. Instead of leaping at the dragon this time, he rapidly fired shots at it from his arm cannons as he ran around it to get at its back, but the dragon was both much tougher and much faster than the other shadows as it either took the exploding hits dodged them entirely.

Andy didn't manage to dodge a shadow-version of its fiery breath, taking the attack in full, his body darkening to shield him even as he protected his face with his arms, and when the attack ended he began running again.

Of course, Andy was still faster on account for not having all that bulk, and made it around to its back, the tail whipping out at him again. This time, he caught it and pushed it the ground, before raising one of his larger arms, a metallic point exiting from the wrist as he slammed the palm into its tail, causing it to roar as the tail was pinned by the Black Key now lodged into the floor.

With the tail pinned, the fake Fafnir's maneuverability had been lost, and this time when Andy lept at its back, he was able to grab on to its wings, which were beating furiously to knock him off. Andy held on tight though, and his larger clawed arms dug into the shadowy muscle at the base of the wings, and with a heave he ripped them off, watching as they dissipated.

The Fake Fafnir let out another roar, this time one of pain, as Andy made his way up to the neck on the thrashing dragon. He soon had his larger claws digging into the fake Fafnir's neck, and he let out another of those unsettling laughs. "Cast in the name of God, YE NOT GUILTY!" He yelled as the Black Keys rammed through the shadow dragon's neck, causing the whole thing to dissipate this time, and Andy to fall to the ground in the superhero pose, the bigger arms mimicking the movement, just because he could. He then stood back up, leaned back, and roared once more in victory.

A moment later Andy felt like his body was turning in on itself as he hit the time limit and the transformation reversed, and he was back his normal form.

"You okay Andy?" Da Vinci asked with concern as she walked over to him.

"Not...sure," Andy said, his eyes still glowing, though it was now fading.

"Do, you need a checkup?"

"Probably for the best, make sure I didn't mess something up," Andy said, one hand on his head. "Quick question, do demons have adrenaline?"

"Depending on the demon, though that belongs more to Ogres, or Oni as they are more commonly known as. And not the kind we used to make your body. But those with that kind of blood suffer from a condition known as Inversion-impulse which you probably suffered a version of. So, maybe next time revert back before the time limit. It will be better for you." She explained.

"Got it," Andy said, his head still pounding. "It's weird though. Every else I feel like I just got down with a really good workout. Is that related, or just a side-effect of transforming?"

"Could be either, this is new territory for me. Try to talk to Kintoki about it, he is an expert when comes to Demons, Oni and things you're now more closely related to." She said. "Now we give you a look over. Get dinner, and then you and Astolfo can have your fun."

Andy, to his credit, only blushed a bit at that.


	80. Shota disses Milf

March 4

"Alright, let's see who we get this time," Andy said as he summoned the latest Servant to come to Chaldea, Mash having already set everything up.

"I'm hoping for Mr. Andersen, though the last few times that hasn't worked out," Mash grumbled as she went over by his side. "Feel like I should set up a superstitious ritual or something to make it happen like pressing B to make sure the pokemon is caught."

"So you _did_ play Pokemon then!" Andy said with a grin. "Which one did you end up playing?"

"Moon finally got around to it, and booh yeah!" Mash yelled as they saw Andersen stand upon the summoning circle.

"Just shove me into a room." The author said as he looked at them.

"Hold your horses, Hans, need to check something real quick," Andy said as he used Stat-o-Vision on the author.

[spoiler= Andersen's Stat Sheet]

True Name: H.C Andersen

Class: Caster

Master: Andy Murphy

 **Parameters:**

Strength: E

Endurance: E

Agility: E

Mana: EX

Luck: E

Noble Phantasm: C+

 **Class Skills:**

Item Creation: C

Territory Creation: D

 **Personal Skills:**

High-Speed Incantation: E

Innocent Monster: D

Human Observation: A

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Märchen Meines Lebens: A Story Just For You(Anti-Unit): C+

[/spoiler]

"So are you done?" He asked.

"Ah, sorry, yeah." Andy said, a bit startled as he had been confused and thus focusing on the 'innocent monster' thing. "Um, could you explain what your Noble Phantasm does? And, not to be rude, how you have Innocent Monster?"

"All stories are alternate versions of their author, you can find me in all my works, and so all my works can be found in me." Andersen lifted up his shirt, and Andy saw fish scales adorning his abdomen. "Guess where that came from?" He said as he pulled it back down.

"You're not going to turn into seafoam, are you?" Andy asked, legitimately unsure if that was a potential issue.

"No, I'm not, just a little bit of their characteristics on my person. My hair is not normally blue you know." He grumbled.

"I thought it was." Mash quietly muttered.

"Anyway onto my Noble Phantasm, god why is its name in German, I'm danish for fuck's sake, I know that during my time German was considered a high society language but still. Well in its basic form it's a Mana Reactor like the book that Bluebeard possess allowing for basic manipulation of ether for attacks. But it's true power is that I can allow me to make a person into a leading character." He explained.

"Really? How does that work?" Andy asked.

"Via my third skill, I write down my observation about people and after I write over it so to say, with new information making the person become part of a new story. Can make someone just a strong as the King of Mages" Andersen exposited.

"That sounds really broken." Mash simply stated.

"...What's the catch?" Andy asked, only just barely holding himself back from ordering Andersen to immediately use the Noble Phantasm on him.

"As it is a story it is at the hands of a fickle author. I need to be motivated in what I write about, and like all stories, it must have an ending. And well there is no finale besides death that humans are happy with. And besides it would never be usable for you Master, you're just a bore. An uninteresting human, not special in any regards, ones whose story is only followed because he surrounds himself with far more interesting people."

"..." Andy glared at the tiny author as his words bounced around in his mind before he grinned. "Y'know, a few days ago I would have completely agreed with you there. But, at the very least, Andersen, you're Observation seems to have missed a crucial detail."

"And that is? I see no difference in your personality from when we met in London, though you do look a bit more angsty. Though congratulations on your new body though. And entirely unoriginal." He said.

Andy deflated. "Okay, fuck you for ruining my cool moment. But, anyway, we actually do have the _real_ hero of the 'story' on our side, y'know."

"Who Senpai, is it Roman he does seem like a protagonist, though for a harem comedy. You could be his gay best friend." Mash said with the smuggest of smiles.

"See! She even has a biting wit to contrast with her incredible kindness. You tell me that doesn't make a good hero." Andy said, seemingly ignoring her statement as he motioned at her to Hans.

"That's because you've corrupted me Senpai. I might just go Alter soon… Wait did you just?" She asked as she realized what he had just said.

"She could work, tragic backstory, desire to prove herself, a hero's journey and she is already dying so the after effects of my Phantasm won't be a problem." And like that Andersen brought the mood down to zero.

"You know damn well that last one didn't even cross my mind," Andy said, his glare with the slitted pupils actually looking menacing this time. "And anyway, technically every living thing in Chaldea is 'already dying' by virtue of being alive. That's how living works." He said, ignoring the fact that certain people would far outlive certain others if they didn't fix that problem soon.

"Yeah, but we go from years to months or even a few days. Like I've said to my previous Masters I'm a third-rate useless Servant best dumped into a room. I can't even do what normal Casters do in regards to Item Creation unless you want a pen with infinite ink." He said.

"It's okay Senpai, I'm sure Mr. Andersen didn't bring it up out of malice, and I would rather like such a pen."

"Hmm… I'll let it go, but only on two conditions. One, you won't stay cooped up in your room 24/7, you need to at least eat 1 meal a day with other people, understood? No isolating yourself, you won't have any feedback with whatever you end up writing otherwise." Andy said.

"Hmm, fine though I do hope Shakespeare is summoned soon, as we found out in London there is some compatibility in our abilities." He said. "And what is the other one?"

"I want you to say the word 'useless' as many times as you can, as quickly as you can, right now," Andy said, grinning.

"...Seriously?"

"Yup," Andy said, nodding. "Seriously. Don't worry though, this will be the only time I ask this of you."

"Hmmm, fine. Might as well go all in to satisfy you just to make sure. MUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDA. There done." The shota grumbled.

Andy had a very large, very stupid grin on his face. "Perfect." He said, before the exact same chain of 'Muda's chorused out from his armband, the grin getting wider. "That's now in the Chaldea databanks for public use. Thanks for your contributions, Andersen!"

"Senpai, that is mean."

"Well I never got into writing revenge stories, but there is a first time for everything, and I am feeling inspired. I need to drink." Andersen grumbled even harder.

"Hup, hup, hup, minors aren't allowed to touch the alcohol," Andy said, grinning even wider.

"I am seventy years old boy, surprised I managed to live that long even without getting liver cancer."

"Alright, fine, fine." Andy acquiesced, before continuing telepathically. _"Never make my Kouhai sad again, do you understand? If you do, you'll_ wish _the Mage King had you again."_

" _Perhaps, I need to reconsider my stance Master. Very well I won't, perhaps an Autograph would make her feel better."_ He responded.

" _Good idea,"_ Andy said, before continuing aloud. "Hey, Kouhai, how about you give Andersen a tour of Chaldea? I'm sure he'd be glad to have you show him around, right?"

"Ahh, sure thing Senpai," Mash responded. "You do have your schedule to keep up with, and we don't want to make Leonidas make it double." She said with a shudder.

Andy was about to shudder with her, before remembering they were still figuring out the (current) limitations of his new body, which caused a different shudder as they were doing _that_ by pushing him to his limits. Partially, by making him fight his Servants head on. He then quickly checked the time. "Yeah, you're right. See you two later!" He said before rushing off towards the Danger Room, where they'd been performing the majority of his limit testing, sparks flying off him as he ran.

He arrived in practically no time at all, at least compared to how long it would have taken before. Leonidas was already waiting for him, as usual. "Hey Coach, hope I didn't keep you waiting too long, the new Servant's a _bit_ of a talker."

"Ah, if that was the case when it is fine." Said the walking, talking Spartan Muscle. "Now then are you ready to begin. From yesterday's assessment, we can say that in your current human form your physical attributes are all E-Rank according to the Servant scale which is very impressive. Even if it has been engineered that way. But that is just praise to the Magi, who has worked on that fine body of yours. So I must ask, is your partner satisfied with it?"

Andy turned a bright shade of red. "Why does everyone keep asking that!?" He said, obviously embarrassed.

"Gossip." Was the King's simple answer. "We Servants already know a lot about each other due to the knowledge granted by the FATE System. So getting information about you Andy is a great source of entertainment. And we hope your cordial relationship with the paladin is going great."

"...Well, if you have to know, things are going, as you put it, 'great.'" He said, turning a shade of red that matched his new eye color. "But that's not what either of us are here for right now, Coach, and you know it! Let's get to the training! Glorious Spartan Training!" He said, in an attempt to get Leonidas back on a track he knew how to deal with.

"Yes, that we shall my Master. Now get down and give me twenty and then stretches." Leonidas bellowed.

"Yes, Sir!" Andy said as he threw himself into the training.

Xxx

March 5

"Oh, uh, Storm, can I help you?" Andy asked as he was stopped in his walk to the Dining Hall by said Pendragon.

"That you can my Master, I have been num about this subject for a while, as I did not know how to approach you about this, but I must ask, and finally ask." She paused. "What is this 'mom' business, and why is that me like that when she shouldn't be?" Storm asked.

"Oh, okay, this conversation, gotcha," Andy said, having been expecting this eventually. He was honestly surprised Santa hadn't said anything (he knew why Salter hadn't), but he'd been expecting this. "Do you want me to start from the beginning, or just give the quick answer?"

"An explanation from the beginning would be best, but shall we move the conversation to somewhere else. As it is rather awkward to stand and talk?" She asked.

"Ah, right, sorry. You okay with talking in the Dining Hall? I was kind of heading there to get lunch."

"That is fine, I wish to fill my stomach up with the things created by that red Archer, he seems to know exactly what I want." She said.

"Yeah, the Pendragon Palate seems pretty universal across the different versions of you, and Emiya probably has more experience with satisfying it than most of the Knights of the Round Table, combined," Andy said as they walked, completely believing in the words he was saying. Because they were true.

"Yes, that is true… So very true. But during our time we didn't have the wide array of things that you do. So we made do with what could be hunted and grown." Storm said as they walked.

"Well, I'm sure some of those must of tasted good. What about that bigass boar thing, uh, what was it called…" Andy said, unsure as to its name.

"Its name was Twrch Trwyth, and it was a menace."

"But did it taste good?"

"Never ate it as it fell into the sea, though I'm pretty sure if we had it would have counted as cannibalism due to having been a human. And thinking back on it, it was probably one of my sisters weird as schemes." She explained.

"Oh. Uh. Sorry for suggesting that then, didn't know." Andy said awkwardly. They continued in silence for a moment before mercifully reaching the Dining Hall. After getting some food (or, in Storm's case, a mountain of it) they sat down at one of the tables and began digging in, Storm's Pendragon instincts kicking in and Andy capitalizing on that to get a few bites in before the conversation started.

Much like Storm's first helping, this did not last long.

"So, 'mom' thing explain."

"Okay, right, so you said to start from the beginning, and honestly you're gonna need it for the context," Andy said as he put down his fork. "So. To start with, Arturia was my very first summoned Servant, but at that time she was summoned in her Lily state. Also at that time, I was fully 'male.'" He said, flipping the switch and turning to female to illustrate. "We were already close due to her being my first summon, and soon after I turned female, we had an emotional moment, and she jokingly called me 'mom' because I kept calling her 'sweetie,' and it kind of...stuck, from there. And then more recently she got loaded with Arturium and upgraded to her 'proper' Saint Graph while retaining her memories. So, yeah." She finished explaining. "Thinking about it, you probably didn't have the same issue about womanhood, considering your, um, _wild_ _growth spurt_ you had that she didn't."

"No I do not, these things kept it rather difficult to hide my gender." She said.

Andy nodded. "Yeah, I get that feeling now." She said, motioning at her own body, before shaking her head. "But, anyway, yeah that's why she calls me 'mom.'"

"I see thank you for explaining." Storm said as she took a sip of her drink.

Andy blinked owlishly. "That's it? Normally when I explain things like this, it's followed by some sort of big reaction or something." She then realized she had said that out loud. "N-Not that I'm complaining, of course!"

"That seems unnecessarily dramatic." She responded. "Now, is there perhaps anything you wish to ask me perhaps?" She asked.

"Uhm...I know you call yourself the Storm King of the Wyld Hunt but were you actually involved with the Fae?" Andy asked, curious.

"Besides the occasional conversation with Vivian, no. Storm King is a title that. 'King Arthur' gained after death. One that I get the title of when summoned as a Servant due to wielding Rhongomyniad." She explained.

"Oh. Ok." Andy said awkwardly before the conversation fell into less important topics.

xxx

Andy was, for the first time in a few days, completely alone. He was now in his room, alone, standing in front of his mirror observing his new body properly for the first time. He traced the intricate golden patterns that now covered a much larger area of his body with his finger, feeling the part of his new skin where fleece became flesh, trying to see how many he recognized and how many he didn't. Due to the collaborative nature of the new design, there was plenty unfamiliar about it, but there were still the Runes he was familiar with here and there in complex combinations.

His newly heightened hearing meant he could hear the thrum of electricity now constantly flowing through him, a byproduct of the wiring he knew ran under his skin and through his muscles. He could feel the current under his skin, if he focused, and if when he put his fingers to his wrist, he could feel it like a second pulse.

Something Andy kept forgetting and kept being reminded of, was that his scars were gone. He noticed it this time when he realized the one he'd had on his left arm, just a small crescent from when he had gotten burned once when he was younger, was gone, replaced by the intricate golden traceries. His new body was exactly that, _new_ , and that meant all the little marks he'd gained over the years were gone. That wasn't necessarily a bad thing, he was very glad about losing the ones around the eyes, but all those little reminders of his old life were gone as if they'd never happened.

He unthinkingly reached towards his eyes again to once more touch the now smooth skin, before stopping as he noticed his hands themselves, looking at all the little circles on them. One at the end of each finger, one in each palm, one in each knuckle. These ones blended in better with his skin, but to him, the electrolaser emitters were as obvious as a slap in the face. He was very grateful his sense of touch wasn't affected by them, but they still felt weird when he touched them together.

The Command Seals were still the same, and in the same place (much to his derision; he could lose his hand much easier than he could lose his head or chest, and if he lost the latter two he'd be dead anyway so it'd be moot. Stupid tattoos working like real ones even when changing bodies and refusing to move) as they'd been for the last 9 months.

He looked down at his chest, the much more densely packed patterns evident, and at the tiny little gemstone inlaid in his chest. Huh. He was basically an FMA Homunculus, now that he thought about it, having a Philosopher's Stone embedded in him and having been created artificially. He hadn't even done that on purpose.

He sighed to himself at having not thought of it sooner, before taking a deep breath. He'd only transformed twice at this point, and so far it hurt every time. He knew the only way to change that was to keep doing it, and he did want to take a closer look at himself in his new shape.

Andy reached in and flipped the switch.

A mercifully short moment later, he was standing taller and bluer. This time, with no combat in his immediate future, he looked over himself more closely. He noted how the thrum of electricity beneath his now-thickened skin got stronger as he looked himself over, also noting how the designs of the fleece in his skin had apparently taken advantage of having more space to more densely pack in the Runes and other things.

Andy then clasped his hands together, one small hand to one large hand, testing his sense of touch through each. It felt almost exactly like how it normally would, but he was now getting four sets of input instead of two, and he could feel the claws in his larger arms.

The arms themselves had probably been the part he'd had the most input on with this shape, though they'd ended up fitting the aesthetic anyway, just looking like bigger, longer, clawed versions of his 'normal' arms. All in all, almost exactly what he'd been expecting. The legs were still weird though.

As Andy moved to switch it back off, having learned from the first time about staying till his limit, he had a thought and instead flipped the other switch.

Barely anything changed if one ignored the... _redistribution_ of _fat_ , which was more or less what she'd expected. She then braced herself for the sensation before turning off the transformation, and like the previous two times, she was left gasping for air after it was done, though this time the rest of her body felt fine.

After she regained her breath, she saw herself in the mirror and realized she hadn't checked out her female form at all, which was a shame considering it was very much so her body. She straightened up and looked herself over, noting the only real difference between this version and the old potion versions was the same differences from the male form. Though, it looked like her boobs were a bit bigger? She couldn't tell.

Andy then remembered the one last difference in the new body she'd almost forgotten to check and flexed the muscles of her left arm the specific way they'd worked out, and it was suddenly a cannon. And, by far and away, this was the _weirdest_ difference. She knew her hand was still there, she could feel it, but the blue cannon was still there instead, merging into her arm because it _was_ her arm. She turned it off and flexed her hand, the sensation of switching them still novel.

Andy sighed once more, before giving herself her best smile in the mirror. This was her body now, and it would take some getting used to, but by god, she was going to do it if it meant saving the world.

Satisfied, she went over and collapsed into bed. There was one of the nicer changes completely unrelated to combat or survivability that Da Vinci, god bless her genius, had thought to include, that made it so so so _so_ much easier to fall asleep.

As she drifted off, she thought about busting out that white dress for tomorrow before her thoughts drifted back to yesterday, and what Andersen had said.

Andy would do it, regardless of what the author thought. Not every story needed to end in tragedy. And, well, even if worst case scenario came to be, she knew one thing.

They were going to save the world, and Mash was going to survive. Even if that meant the death of the Master of Chaldea.


	81. Dreaming of Mashmellows

March 14

"So, Senpai do we hope for Mr. Shakespeare with one of those two tickets?" Mash asked as she finished up the circle like usual.

"We can hope, dear Kouhai," Andy said, sighing internally. Hans hadn't stopped complaining about Shakespeare not being here, so of course, it had led to Mash asking her the same given the amount of time Mash had been spending with the author. "I did bring a copy of Much Ado About Nothing to use as a catalyst. Hopefully, that works." Andy continued as she tried to do exactly that, summoning the newest addition.

"Ha, ha. You can't keep a writer down for long. Andy and Mash it is good to see both of you." Shakespeare greeted them.

"Shakes, good to have you with us. Hans got here just before you did, he's been waiting for you very 'patiently,' for him at least." Andy welcomed the playwright into Chaldea.

"So, not very I'm guessing. We only spend a little while together, but we became friends. Something I did not think possible, due to weather being too similar or to opposite one another. So I thank you, my Master. Perhaps I shall write you sonnet in thanks." He thanked Andy.

"Honestly, I'd be honored if you did," Andy said. "Oh, right, but you might have to redo the story you used for Enchantment, since you kind of...disintegrated, and we changed the design since then too, so I'm not sure if it would apply anyway."

"Ah, I see." The writer said thoughtfully. "Now I'm, guessing that Andersen has set himself up in the library?" He asked.

"He actually has his own Workshop, you can set yours up too once you've got a room. If you want, they can even be next to each other." Andy answered while palming an armband. "You can use this armband to navigate Chaldea, and after you go surprised Hans, you can pick a room." She said as she held out said armband to Shakespeare.

"Ah, thank you, Master. Then I shall be gone, I have plot hooks that need to be explored. I shall speak with you and Mash at a later time." Shakespeare said as he took the armband and left the Summoning Chamber.

"Well, he seemed happy," Mash said as she looked at the closing door.

"Heh, yeah, writing out stories with a friend always got me excited too," Andy said, before turning back to the circle. "Now, for the one, we're leaving to Fate. Let's see who we get!" She said as she summoned the next new Servant.

"Servant Lancer, True Name Brynhildr, please do not treat me kindly Master." The newly summoned Servant stated as she appeared.

"Is she wearing some kind of sailor uniform Senpai or is just me," Mash whispered as she looked upon Brynhildr.

"No, no she is definitely wearing a seifuku...for some reason. Just ignore it, for now, Kouhai." Andy whispered back, before processing the Lancer's introduction and addressing her. "Welcome to Chaldea, Brynhildr. I, ah, just want to make sure I heard you right, did you just ask me to _not_ treated you kindly?" Andy asked, confusion evident in her voice.

"Yes, please do that, interact with me minimally and only use me for battle. I am just a tool to be used, treat me as nothing else." She simply stated with no emotion in her voice, Andy could tell she was trying to appear as doll-like as possible.

"Nope, not having another one," Andy said, before telepathically calling Ushiwakamaru herself down to the Summoning Room. Before Brynhildr could even react to Andy's statement, the Rider was there as the door opened. "Ushiwakamaru, this is Brynhildr. She's your new student/partner in the 'not a tool' club. Brynhildr, I'd like you to meet Ushiwakamaru, your new Senp-...Partner, she's going to show you around Chaldea." Andy said, cutting herself off from referring to anyone as Brynhildr's 'Senpai' because the emotionless white-haired girl in a seifuku with a heart-shaped spear just _screamed_ 'potential yandere' to Andy.

"Of course my Lord, I shall show our new comrade our operations," Ushi responded as she gave Andy a bow.

"...I shall go with her is that is what you wish Master." Brynhildr responded as she unsummoned her spear.

"After I ask you a few questions, yes," Andy said as she used her Stat-o-Vision on the Lancer.

[spoiler=Brynhildr's Star Sheet]

True Name: Brynhildr

Class: Lancer

Master: Andy Murphy

 **Parameters:**

Strength: B+

Endurance: A

Agility: A

Mana: C

Luck: E

Noble Phantasm: B+

 **Class Skills:**

Riding: A

Magic Resistance: B

 **Personal Skills:**

Divinity: E

Mana Burst(Flames): B

Primordial Runes: -

Hero's Bridesmaid: C

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Brynhildr Romantia: Until Death Divide the Two Apart(Anti-Unit): B+

[/spoiler]

"I shall answer any and all questions that you have Master." She responded.

"Good. To start with, why is your Primordial Runes '-,' and what does your 'Hero's Bridesmaid' skill do?" Andy asked.

"It is simply not Ranked due to its nature. These are the original ones created by my father Odin, though I can not use their true might due to my low level of Divinity as a Lancer. My Hero's Bridesmaid skill is a symbol of my status as a Valkyrie, to lead heroes to victory as their w-w-wi-wif-wife." She managed to stammer out, before neutralizing her face.

"Aww, how romantic," Andy said. "And on that note, what does your Noble Phantasm do?"

"It kills which I love, so that's why you need not be kind to Master, or I end up liking you, loving you, and then killing you. As the last hero and Master that humanity has, it seems likely. So please do not be kind like him."

"...Quick question, are you Sigurd's or Siegfried's version?" Andy asked, recalling how those were apparently two different sets of events.

"It was Sigurd who rescued me from my prison, he I loved, he I killed. He who I hate for betraying me." She stated while trying to remain as cold faced as possible.

" _Senpai, what's with you attracting the crazy ones."_

" _...Shit might be because of what happened before Chaldea._ " Andy realized, before quickly trying to re-suppress those memories. "I think it's in your best interest to stay away from Siegfried regardless, for both of your sakes." She said aloud to the Lancer.

"Yes, that would be for the best. I know that that Dragonslayer is different, but I do not know my instincts will react to his presence."

Andy nodded, happy Brynhildr was following her logic. "Alright, then one last thing before I let Ushi show you around." With that, she flipped the switch, and Andy was male. "Does this form cause any reaction? I want to know right now before anything could happen later on."

"Your gender does not matter to me, though what an interesting trick." Curiosity seeped into her tone of voice. "Only thought Loki indulged in such body changes. Though I will say as a woman, you like a mix between my sisters Thrúd and Hildr."

"Oh, I'm flattered, but I have nothing on Loki's ability," Andy said, deciding to take that as a compliment. "The only other real thing I can do outside of my battle form is this." She said, her hair shifting from pink to the blue and then to the same white as Brynhildr's, though obviously lacking the green portions due to not having that much control. It wouldn't even have been seen anyway, considering how his hair was currently pulled back. With his new glasses (purely aesthetic, considering his now much better than human eyesight) it made him look like some young-old librarian.

"Yes, only a few others had the same magical talent and shapeshifting abilities he had." Brynhildr stated. "But after Ushiwakamaru have shown me around where do I stay afterward? Though I'm perfectly acceptable with staying outside of your room Master."

Andy gave her a flat look. "You get your own room, Brynhildr. I was going to let Ushi show you around first, but I suppose it would be good if she showed you how to use this." Andy said, holding out another armband. "This will help you communicate and navigate, but Ushi's tour will likely help far more with the latter, and you'll be able to claim your room once you've seen everything."

"Ah, thank you for, your generosity Master," Brynhildr said.

"Then my Lord we shall take our leave," Ushi stated as she and Brynhildr left.

"Well, Senpai. I hope you somehow manage to Kiyohime this or your gonna end up a shishkebab. The signs are so obvious even I can read them." Mash said. "Which is your fault, by the way."

Andy gave Mash the flat look this time. "I am trying to nip it in the bud, as it were. Siegfried has white hair, so Sigurd probably does too, so if resembling him even tangentially doesn't do anything then as long as I tread carefully and make it abundantly clear that I'm not a suitable… 'target' for her 'affections' then I should be good." Andy said as he shifted his hair back to pink, though staying male for the moment.

"That was good thinking," Mash responded. "Just be careful Senpai." Her voice heavy with concern.

"Eh, I have a lot of experience with crazy older women Kouhai," Andy said with a shrug. "At least more experience than with Kiyo's dealio. Worst comes to worst, I do have Command Seals."

"They are beyond handy those things aren't they?"

"Yeah, they really ar-...was that on purpose?" Andy asked, eyes narrowing at his Kouhai.

Who just turned on the Smug Kouhai face.

Andy was about to say something, before deciding to go down a different route, and instead patted his Kouhai's head, a smug smile on his own face. "Good Kouhai."

Which resulted in adorable flabbergasted sounds coming from her.

"So, Senpai," Mash said as she removed his hand from her head. "I think we should leave, I heard that Mr. Babbage and Mr. Tesla was setting up a spectacle for us and the others to see."

"Oh, really? This is the first I'm hearing of it." Andy said. "Do you know if there's any particular reason for it?"

"I think it was to settle a debate regarding something, involving whose power source was superior in some form of race. I think they are going to announce it during lunch, I overheard them this morning. And it's pretty soon." She said looking at the clock.

"Well, that sounds like the kind of thing we won't want to miss, and I am getting kinda hungry anyway," Andy said, and with that, they quickly cleaned up and were heading down to the Dining Hall right quick.

Xxx

 _I woke up at the same time today._

 _I checked my temperature. I checked my five senses. I said my name out loud so that I could understand it better._

 _I think I've gotten quite used to waking up like this. Previously, my wake-up was a bit more gradual._

 _It was as if I was walking on thin ice, or sneaking in front of an animal in a blissful sleep._

 _That's how I used to wake up. Like I was looking for my way in complete darkness._

 _Of course, it's different now. My self-consciousness is stable. I don't have to worry about my memory disappearing after each sleep._

 _I am who I am._

 _Today, too I can feel that I am myself._

" _Good morning. You're on time as usual. Ready for breakfast? Your brain waves are stable. If you continue like this, you won't need to stay in this sterile chamber anymore. Then you can finally be a researcher at Chaldea. I will throw a celebration for you when that day comes. Do you have any requests? I'll try to get you anything within my capabilities."_

 _I couldn't think of what I wanted, but I thought of something I wanted to do._

 _Though I knew this comfortable room was more than enough, I wanted to go outside, just this once._

" _Well. You'll get out pretty soon. What I want to give you is more like a gift, not something simple like what you just said…"_

 _I expressed my intention by shaking my head._

 _What I wanted to see was not outside my room, but Chaldea. I wanted to see the outside world with my own eyes, not through pictures._

" _Oh, I see… So you want to actually see the sea and the grass field from the VR program I showed you the other day. That'll be difficult. Chaldea is on top of a snowy mountain, 6000 meters above sea level. Part of it is to prevent top secrets from leaking. Either way, you'll see nothing but a blizzard if you go outside. Maybe you can see the ravine when the weather clears up once a year. Even so, your body can't withstand the outside world. I think it's best for you to change your way of thinking. If you want to see nature, then VR is enough. It's worth it for you to shorten your already short activation period."_

 _His smile seemed so troubled, he was sorry for me. His gaze avoided mine._

 _...it made me feel terrible sorry. I suppose what I said made him feel sad._

" _Oh, but you'll be free anywhere within Chaldea. I will take responsibility and make sure to get the Director's approval. You can rest assured and wait for that day to come. I think of a gift for you."_

" _Thank you," I replied. It was hard for me to think about what I wanted, but I was happy that anyone would care that much about me._

 _I am very, very happy._

 _Because today, I can spend another peaceful day without changes._

Xxx

March 15

Andy awoke from his dream with a shock, utter sadness seemed to fill his heart.

"Fou, fou!"

Andy looked at the furball who was currently pawing at his face. "I'm up, I'm up, Fouball," Andy said as he removed Fou from the side of his face and sat up, the weight of the dream hitting him as his conscious processed it. "That was...Mash's memory, huh." Andy said aloud, more to cement it as truth in his mind than anything. He'd thought it was weird he hadn't dreamed of his Servant's pasts before, chalked it up to having so many that it was causing some kind of conflict, or that the Lucid ones replaced it, or _something_ , but there was no denying this one.

"Fou, fouuu!" Fou said as he jumped off the bed.

"Something wrong?" Andy asked. He still wasn't sure if Fou was sapient or not, but he definitely understood Andy when he spoke, so he'd taken to just straight-up asking whenever he acted weird.

He responded by strutting of his room, Andy had to guess that something was about to happen or had happened. At that realization, he quickly got up and into the jumpsuit and checked to see if he had any messages as he went towards the Command Deck.

" _Hey, Andy hopefully you read this when you wake up, but I've got the coordinates for the next Singularity and ready to Rayshift you off - Romani Archaman."_

Andy stared at the message as he stopped for a moment, before switching from a walk to, had he still been human, breakneck speed, sparks flying off of him as he did.

He soon slid (as in actually slid as he bled off momentum) into the Command Deck, where most of the home team was already waiting, the only one missing being Mash.

"Ah, Andy good to see you awake." Roman greeted as his eyes met Andy's.

"Yeah, about that, why didn't someone wake me up as soon as you found the coordinates?" Andy asked, tone accusatory.

"Wanted you to get your full nights sleep. You might be a superhuman now Andy, but a nice long sleep is great before a mission. And I'm guessing you haven't even gotten breakfast yet?" He asked accusatorily.

Andy didn't break eye contact as he pulled a protein bar from his hammerspace and ate it in three seconds flat. "I have now, so tell me everything we know." He said, knowing fully well it wouldn't be much.

"As always Sheba has trouble seeing the internal workings of a Singularity until you enter, but we know that this one is going to take some time to complete due to the sheer size of the area. I would say as big as Septem was-."

"Sorry I am late, needed to get ready and had a weird dream," Mash said as she entered the room. "What did I miss Doctor, Da Vinci, hey Senpai."

"Nothing much Mash, Roman was just about to explain where you're heading." Da Vinci responded.

"Yep, congratulation Andy you're going 'home.'" Roman said with air quotes.

"Oh, gr _eat_. Do we know the approximate time period?" Andy asked, hoping it wouldn't be anything close to his lifetime so he wouldn't have to worry about running into some alternate version of his family.

"Yep, the Singularity spans the entirety of North America, as for the time period it's going to be 1783 a few months before the War for Independence ends," Roman explained.

Andy inhaled sharply. "Ooh, that's not going to be fun. Probably be in bad taste to bring any of the Arturia's then...hmm."

"Well, we know that we have to fight a Demon God Pillar at some point, and with that one defeated we have only 67 to go," Mash said with a bit of optimism.

Which made Romani's face turn sour like he had taken a bite out of a lemon.

The fact that, at this pace, they wouldn't be able to defeat them all in time was left unsaid.

"R-right, so one of the Pillars for sure, but...hmm, you said it's the _entirety_ of North America, during the War? I'm betting we'll have to fight some kind of army like with Septem." Andy postulated.

"High chance, and sorry to burst your bubble there Mash, but we managed to get a bit of info on the King of Mages when he showed himself, and well the 72 Demon Gods are not several but one concept. So as long as he is around, he can re-summon all of them indefinitely if he wished too."

Andy was just barely able to hold back from cursing at that. "Well, hopefully, he keeps toying with us like he was before and only sending one at a time until we can kick his ass directly."

"Yes, so far as he is concerned we are not a threat," Roman said.

"We need to hold on to that as long as possible," Andy said. "Do we know anything else about this one? Because if not, I'll go get the landing team."

"I can provide an accurate map when you enter, so go ahead and pick the team."

"Right, thanks," Andy said, about to go through and put together a team, before having a thought. "Hey, Kouhai, can I get your help with this?"

"Sure thing, Senpai."

As soon as the door to the Command Deck shut behind them, Andy sighed. "So, what did you see?"

"...What a bitch." She simply said. "There is nothing else to say to that Senpai, she is gone, and you never have to face her again. And sorry about my comment yesterday about you attracting the crazy ones. That, that was unthoughtful."

Andy's eyes widened as he realized what she must have seen. "U-uh, yeah, don't worry about it. You literally couldn't have known about it." He said, unsure how to react, especially as more memories came forth unbidden. "Just...please never talk about whichever part you saw, okay?"

"Of course, but if you want to talk about I am always there to listen, and probably way too many female Servants here knows what you're feeling. That's just what I wanted to say. I don't want to hurt you Senpai."

Andy flinched at the last part. "Bad word choice, Kouhai. But...thank you for the offer."

"Let's go get our World Police Senpai," Mash said quickly changing the topic.

That got a chuckle out of Andy. "'World Police'? That one's new. I like it."

"Yep, though I would say Time Cops is more accurate," Mash responded.

"...Now I _need_ to make Sentai suits so we can be Time Force." Andy said as inspiration struck him.

"No, Senpai, just no. It's team building time."


	82. Cowboys vs Celts

The space that Andy saw during Rayshift felt a bit more tranquil than usual, but the feeling was gone as, but a second later he felt the soft ground beneath his feet.

"Rayshift successful Senpai," Mash spoke as she stood together with the brought along Servants.

Andy nodded and did a headcount to make sure everyone made it through okay. Darius's horns were already on fire, meaning his Mad Enhancement had kicked back in, Caster Cu was already ready for a fight, Nobu was looking around excitedly, Anne and Mary were appraising the surroundings, and Carmilla was feigning disinterest with the landscape.

"Alright everyone, since we landed during the Revolutionary War, I'm willing to bet all we need to do to find the problem is find the nearest battle. Cu, can you feel any disturbances in the forest?" Andy asked, motioning to the many trees around them, on some level still not fully understanding the 'Druid' part of his powers since he never bothered to explain them.

"The Mana in the air is pretty sporadic at some points, probably due to this land converging into a more hospitable place for humans. And speaking of battles there is one going on at the outskirts of the forest, the numbers are massive ranging in the thousands." He explained as he pulled his hand from the tree he had been using as a divination tool.

Andy nodded. "Alright, then that's where we'll head first. I'm betting the divergence would be the colonists losing, so we'll help whichever side is made up of normal people. Cu, lead the way."

"Right this way Master," Cu said as he began to run and they followed him though as they did so, Mash began to speak.

"Hmm, Senpai I think the cause of the Singularity is more than the Colonist losing to the English, for with the War the people showed their need for independence and even if that is delayed by a few years. America for better or worse will become a world superpower, so think we're dealing with something that will destroy the very idea of the USA as a nation."

Andy made a so-so gesture. "That was kind of what I was thinking, considering some variety of magic is definitely going to be involved -because why wouldn't it be, Salmon's an asshole- so I was thinking either a third party of conquerors or a scorched earth situation."

"I'm going to with third-party Master, if it was scorched earth the forest we arrived in, it would already have been turned to cinders, as the battle we're heading to would in front of us, and if one were to invade they would go from east to west as that is where the central power is. At least that's I would do." Nobu said.

"Alright, so most likely a third party, who either has a Noble Phantasm that is an Army or one that makes people into an Army, which will hopefully mean they'll be the keystone we need to knock out to get the whole thing tumbling down." Andy speculated aloud as they ran, his newly enhanced senses just barely able to pick up the faint, indistinct sound of battle. "Everyone be ready to attack as soon as we get there, but wait for my order, we need to confirm the enemy first."

"Don't worry Master I'll snipe down anyone and provide covering fire, oh I'm so excited to be back here, too bad we aren't anywhere near the sea," Anne said with a pouty tone.

"Be quiet Anne you're disrupting our Master." The much shorter Mary responded to her partner.

"And I shall go after the general in charge of the enemy army, that shall disrupt their operation." Carmilla reaffirmed her role.

At that they burst out of the forest and right onto the massive field where the battle was taking place, and Cu had been right that there were a shit ton of combatants at least a thousand on each side and it was easy to distinguish who was who, but the participants weren't something he had expected. The one was the American side consisted out of humans with armaments and clothes that seemed much closer to what was found in the Civil War instead, but they only made up a small percentage of the army with the rest being.

"Oh my god Senpai are those Mr. Babbage's Helter Skelter with machine guns for hands? And why are they painted like Uncle Sam?"

"And this situation just became much worse." Cu said as he looked at the opposing army.

"...Okay, just making sure everyone else is seeing this, are those Helter Skelter rip-offs fighting… _Celts?!_ " Andy asked, having so not been expecting to see a Celtic army fighting anachronistic American army in the late 1770s that he actually yelled that last word a little.

"And to make it worse I know those warriors, Master, Andy send me the fuck back to Chaldea."

"Ahh, is the Druid scared?" Came the playful taunt from Nobu.

"A little bit those are Connacht warriors. Fucking Medb is here, those are her spawn." He said panicking.

"Okay, calm down Cu, and explain what you mean about 'spawn,' like are those her literal children?" Andy asked, suddenly wishing he had brought some cheese with.

"If you can consider them that, you see Medb has the uncanny ability after she drained a guy dry. Spill her blood onto the ground and make Homunculi that has the same abilities and strength as the guy she fucked."

Andy's eyes widened. "Okay, I'm sorry Cu, but if she isn't actively trying to kill us, I'm going to try to recruit her because that sounds like it would be an _amazing_ boon to us. Even if it didn't work with Servants, an army of me-strength foot soldiers would be…" Andy shuddered in ecstasy at the thought. "Okay, sorry, anything else you can tell us about her?"

"Master, there is something wrong with you. Not everything needs to be munchkined into oblivion for your power leveling. And Andy if you give her an inch, she will take everything. She is pure greed. And let's go defeat them now and help out the Americans, they probably got a Stray Caster Servant backing them to fight back against her." He said now with determination.

Andy gave him a flat look. "Still gonna try. I've got plenty of experience with greedy pink haired nymphomaniacs." He said, exaggerating a little, before sighing. "But, I guess it would probably be best to help the Americans for now since they do seem to be the natives. Everyone-" He deployed Tenfold Shields as he spoke, before pointing dramatically at the battlefield. "-let's raze some hell."

"Party Time!" Nobu shouted as began to summon muskets around her body and fired into the Celtic army while laughing like a lunatic. The others and Andy quickly following the self-proclaimed Demon King onto the battlefield.

Before they had jumped into the battle, it had been relatively even, maybe leaning slightly in favor of the Connachts. Now? It was a curbstomp.

Nobu was doing her best impression of a living machine gun, muskets firing as fast as she could summon them, which was indeed very fast, each hitting with what Nobu claimed to be 'expert precision' despite the reckless abandon with which she fired.

Darius literally leaped into the rear of the enemy forces before activating Athanaton mid-air, the elephant crushing a good chunk of Connacht bowmen and druids before the skeletal soldiers spread out and began to tear the enemy limb from limb as Darius plowed through them from the back.

Carmilla had disappeared, probably going off to find the General. Andy had told her to not attack if the 'general' she found was a pink-haired woman in white, but he had a feeling Carmilla would try to get first blood anyway.

Cu was of course burninating Connacht soldiers left, right and center, preventing them from escaping with literal rings of fire around them that allowed the American forces to fire freely into the enemy once they realized the Chaldeans were on their side.

Just as she had said, Anne was sniping the more resilient looking enemy soldiers after she eliminated the remaining druids to prevent their interference. Mary was sticking close to Anne for now, slicing any arrows the stray archers sent their way in twain with her cutlass.

Mash was right in the thick of the action, blocking the Connachts not on fire from advancing while others took them out, occasionally bashing some over the head with her shield.

And Andy was right there with her, zapping and shooting Celts so constantly he was like a living light and sound show. The rhythmic thumping of newly-charred Connacht soldiers hitting the ground was accompanied by the thunderous boom of the cannon on his left arm and the lightning from his right. Nothing compared to the Servant headcounts, but considerably better than what he had been capable of before.

As he fought, Andy felt a small bit of the same elation he felt when he fought in his Demon form. As he'd discovered after talking to Kintoki, his body was literally physically inclined to enjoy combat now.

Which meant, on some level, he was disappointed when the Connacht forces dwindled down to the few Cu had captured by wrapping them in vines for 'questioning.'

Andy turned to face the American army, who were already starting to celebrate if the cheer that had been choked off had been any indication, but they stopped as soon as Andy, and his Servants turned their attention on them. Fear was evident in the soldier's eyes, but also a grim determination, and a spark of hope. He needed to show them he was on their side.

Andy saluted the skeptical army before speaking. "So, you fine gentlemen mind catching us up on what's going on? Washington sent for us to act as your reinforcements, but his message didn't really explain much."

But that turned out to be the wrong thing to say as they immediately pointed their guns at them. "Washington is dead, so tell the truth, or we will open fire, we do not care if you have Servants with you." Spoke one of the soldiers that looked a bit more decorated than the others.

"Washington's dead?" Andy said with legitimate surprise. "Huh. We actually _did_ come to aid the American forces, I thought Washington was still...in charge." He said, before processing the rest of that statement. "Wait, if you know about Servants...and with those weapons...lemme guess, you guys have a future President summoned as a Servant who's currently leading you?"

"MI - 6572, do you have information regarding these unknowns?" The soldier asked, and the patriotic Helter Skelter responded.

"Unknowns has been identified as Chaldea by Madam Blavatsky, orders are to escort them and the Berserker Medic to her."

"Well that is good enough for me, so I disregard that earlier lie if you follow the MI - 6572 to the camp and hand over the captured Celts to us." The soldier said.

" _Orders Master?"_ Andy's various Servants asked.

Andy thought about it for about three seconds before nodding. "Caster, give 'em the Celts. We need to meet with 'Madam Blavatsky' to figure out our next move." He said aloud, in order to garner a bit of trust from the soldiers.

"So, you have some sense. The Camp is a half an hour walk from here, and Madam Blavatsky is currently in Riverton. So you head there after you've met with the Nurse." Spoke Soldier.

"Alright. MI-6572, lead on." Andy said, not knowing where 'Riverton' was, and having a sneaking suspicion that the 'Nurse' in question was Nightingale proper.

As they walked with the robot Roman chimed in over Tenfold Shields internal speakers. _"Well, Andy you're off to a good start right now, and I've got some information in regards to the Singularity and let me tell you it's a temporal mess."_

"Lemme guess," Andy said under his breath. "It's more of a wibbly wobbly ball that's all on fire instead of just a thread?"

" _Kinda accurate, while in the last few Singularities there have been a few displacements of things that shouldn't be there, like your encounter with Prelati from the future on your trip with Gilles to find Jeanne's sword. Here in America, a good deal of objects has been displaced so in terms of landmarks the current America you're in, is closer to the Wild West with towns that should only be created a hundred years from now being here."_ Roman informed him.

"Oh great. Anything else gone wrong?"

" _Nothing that I can tell at the moment, but I got an analysis of the Helter Skelters, and they are not the same as Babbage's own he creates with his Reality Marble. These run on electricity-Huah, wahh Tesla what are yo-"_

" _AH! Andy my Master, when you're able to switch me in, do so, for only I can defeat the obvious criminal that has defiled Mr. Babbage's copyrighted works. Only he would be as low as to do so."_ Tesla began to rant.

"...Hey, Anne, Mary, I'm swapping you out, is that okay?" Andy asked, able to see where this could go and honestly kind of wanting to see it happen, the metaphorical light bulb (ha!) lighting up in his head.

"Fooey, well this was fun while it lasted, but you owe us a treasure hunt when Master, we know where we can find one in France. So see you later then." Anne responded.

"What she said," Mary added.

"See ya," Andy said as he swapped them out for the Modern Pro...wait, wrong person, sticking with it though, the Modern Prometheus Tesla. "So, Nik, I take it this is your rival's handiwork?" He asked the Archer as soon as he appeared, motioning at the MI-6572.

"Yes, looking at it personally this obviously the work of inferior DC electricity. I shall have a talk with him about it, but first, we have to meet Helena." Tesla said with a nostalgic smile.

" _Yeah, you go do that me I have to clean up the coffee that Tesla made me spill talk to you later Andy,"_ Roman said, and the transmission was cut off.

"That we do Nik, so keep it under control until we actually meet 'him,'" Andy said, and as if on cue the MI-6572 began walking again. Soon, they arrived at their destination.

The camp was filled with soldiers, more robots and a female voice shouting so loud if they had been closer, Andy would have burst an eardrum.

"KEEP the dirt off the wounds, wash the tools, or they are going to get infected with clean water if so amputation is going to be required. I shall tend to the newest wounded, you Rush stay here."

And with that Andy saw Florence walk out of one the Tents and towards them.

"Madam Nightingale, it's a pleasure to meet you in person," Andy said as she approached them.

But she walked right past them and began to tend to the wounded that had been carried behind them.

"That woman is certainly a Berserker, such single-mindedness," Carmilla commented as the woman began to apply first aid to the wounded soldiers.

"Madness of Triage, I suppose," Andy said.

"Should we try again, Senpai?"

"Yeah, getting her on our side would be a boon, with how often you get wrecked Master," Nobu commented.

"Oh hush miss 'near-daily fights a saber with tuberculosis and comes out _bloodier_ ,'" Andy replied, causing Nobu to blush. "It would be for the best to get her on our side, but I'm betting she literally won't even notice us until there's no more injured, so looks like we'll have to wait till she's done...unless anyone here wants to volunteer to help her?" He asked, already deciding to do so himself.

"Do, we look like surgeons to you?" Cu asked sarcastically.

"Urgghhh." Said Darius.

"My healing runes works best on spiritual bodies, I don't want to accidentally turn people into lumps of cancer."

"Hmmm."

"Let, me try Senpai," Mash said as she walked over to Nightingale. But was stopped by Andy before she could interrupt Nightingale's work. "Senpai?"

"Let me introduce us, I already know how to stitch someone back together," Andy said to his Kouhai, before stowing Tenfold Shields and getting Nightingale's attention by standing in front of her next patient. "Madam Nightingale, my companion and I are here to help. She can be an extra pair of hands, while I am very good at cleaning and stitching wounds. Where would you have us start?" He asked as professionally as possible.

She gave Andy look turning her head to the side before responding. "You feel familiar have you've been my patient before, but if you wish to help make sure they do not have any life-threatening injuries." She said as she went around him. "Start at the other end."

"Right," Andy said, before doing just that and getting to work. He was very happy his squeamishness with the human body had died back with Janus, though Mash wasn't so lucky if her expression meant anything. He was also grateful for the same Janus's knowledge meant he knew how much anesthetic each patient needed to either numb the pain or knock them out. Soon he was done with the first patient, having removed a bullet from his arm and just barely saved it from amputation.

He looked down the long line of wounded soldiers. "This might take a while." He sighed, before getting to work on the next.

xxx

It was an hour an half later they were done with tending to all the wounded, and now finally Andy had the opportunity to talk with Nightingale. "So, Madam Nightingale, it's an honor to meet you properly. I'm Andy Murphy of Chaldea." He said, extending a hand to the nurse.

She returned the gesture. "So what is it you want with me?" She asked bluntly.

"For you to come with us to meet Madam Blavatsky, for now. I'm sure wherever she is will inevitably be close to the main battlefield." Andy mentioned off-hand, hoping that would be sufficient to get her to come with.

"No I shall remain here and attended to the wounded that shall arrive, this is the rear frontline." She responded.

"Ms. Nightingale we're here to deal with this Singularity, the root of this suffering, is that not what you nurses and healers, attack and deal with the root of the injury. If you help us more lives shall be saved." Tesla spoke.

Which did cause a reaction in Nightingale as her expression soured. But before she could respond to the lightning man's statement, a shout was heard throughout the camp. "The Celts are approaching with two Servants leading them!"

"They are here too early. They shall be dealt with before more are hurt." Nightingale said as she ran off towards where the shout had come from.

"No, rest for the wicked Master." Cu stated.

"Ain't that the truth," Andy said, shaking his head. Tenfold Shields once more deployed around him as they made their way to face the enemy. Immediately, Andy could pick out the two Servants with how much they stood out in the crowd of foot soldiers.

"See I told you the heroes would arrive here Diarmuid my divinations are as accurate as ever, though I still did not foresee you NTR'ing, my wife."

"It is my king, but please I am sorry."

"I kid, Diarmuid I kid, now let's take them down and bring them to Medb." The blond spear wielder said.

"Hey, I know you!" Andy said excitedly, recognizing the blonde from context clues. "You're Fi-onn Mac Cum-Hail, right?" He said, pronouncing it as it was spelled.

And that just seemed to piss him off based on the current expression his face held. "It's McCOOL! Pronounce it right, Diarmuid kill the electric man and Berserker, and knock the rest of them out Medb can have him and… Oh my, Cu Chulainn now this is just comedic. Not a Lancer I see? Where is that famed spear of yours?"

"I don't need to beat you Fionn."

"True, your appearance right now is the same as the druids of course your skill with Runes would allow you to be summoned as a Caster. Now as I said, I shall hand you over to Medb, and the women especially the one with the shield I shall give you the honor of becoming my brides. The children we shall have shall be strong."

Andy double checked with his female Servants that it was okay telepathically before speaking aloud. "Caster, by this Command Seal, I order you- **Och Deug Odin his ass into oblivion**."

"Oh, shit-" Was all Fionn managed to say before the magical energy beam of the gods, consumed him and a chunk of the army.

"Your Majesty!" Diarmuid shouted as the beam just missed him.

"And that was that." Cu said.

Andy dialed up his Diarmuid once the spectacle died down. "Hey, Diarmuid, you wanna fight an enemy version of yourself to the death?" He asked, knowing many of the blood-knight types would literally kill for such an opportunity.

" _Well, I've never killed myself on purpose before."_ He responded.

"Good enough for me," Andy said with a shrug, swapping out Carmilla for now to have the Double Diarmuid Death Battle. "Alright, there's your opponent, go kick your own ass Diarmuid!" He said as soon as the Lancer poofed into existence.

"I guess his Majesty said something, uncouth?" Diarmuid asked his enemy doppelganger.

"Yeah, he has always been to unfiltered with his desire for women in his younger years," E-Diarmuid responded as he brandished his spears.

And Diarmuid did the same.

"Cagh, Di-Diarmuid." Came the sputter from the side, and Andy looked to where Fionn had been standing and was now laying looking like Cell after having taken the Final Flash.

"You're Majesty you're still alive?" He asked with shock.

"I will be dead soon, but here is my final order for you, defeat them and here take the power of my Saint Graph." And when he spoke those words the entire area lit up, and seconds later the light died down, and Fionn was gone. But E-Diarmuid, he had changed dramatically.

"Diarmuid, why can't you do that?" Andy asked, on one level happy to see what were obviously Moralltach and Beagalltach, and on the other worried because they were being wielded by an enemy version.

"Difference is Saint Graph quality, it seemed his Majesty used his to power up the other me's. And I shall try my best my Lord."

As he said that Saber Diarmuid smirked, and a second later he appeared right in front of Lancer Diarmuid who quickly parried the downward strike. The ground beneath shattering due to the force of the blow.

And so the battle began with a flurry of sonic slash and strikes at one another. From his position, Andy could see that their skills were even and that his Diarmuid had a slightly higher reaction speed than Saber, but he had very obvious superior strength and endurance going for him instead.

"My counterpart this battle has been excellent, but my King gave me an order an I shall see it through to the end. **Swords which control destiny show the path to victory, Moral-** "

" **Sanat Kumara!** " Shouted a female voice and beam of magical energy cut Saber Diarmuid from finishing the activation of his Noble Phantasm.

"Tch, We shall have our fight another time Lancer me." And at that Saber Diarmuid simply jumped good, as with a single leap he disappeared into the horizon.

"Damn," Andy said as Saber Diarmuid lept, having been unable to zap him at the speeds he was moving.

"I apologize, my Lord," Diarmuid said apologetically as he returned to Andy's side.

"Well, you know the only way to remedy this is to kill yourself, Diarmuid," Andy said, knowing full what that sounded like out of context and not giving a single fuck.

That did cause the Celtic knight to laugh a little. "Yes, it is. Now we just need to deal with the rest of Medb's forces."

"Do not worry about that the Mechanized Infantry shall take care of the few that remains, as the majority died in your duel as collateral… Nikolai I did not expect to see you here." Spoke an aristocratic female voice.

The group turned around to face the woman that was obviously Blavatsky, Andy had expected an older lady not… this. Not magical girl Helena Blavatsky.

"Oh, does my appearance surprise you Master of Chaldea? I do look young for being 59 years old don't I?" She said with pride.

"Yeah, you don't look a day over _12,_ Madam," Andy said.

"Some magics, are great for freezing one's age, though due to that I had to wear that illusion you're probably thinking of when saying my name. But I am not here for small talk and flattery." She said.

"Right, yes, back to business. Thank you for your assistance, Madam. Would you mind explaining what's going on here? I'm afraid our intel is lacking." Andy said.

"Of course Master of Chaldea, right now America is in the middle of a war with the Celts, this one being the West versus East instead of North against South. We the west being, of course, being lead by the Presi-King."

"I'm sorry, the _what?_ " Andy asked incredulously.

"The Presidential-King he who leads the Resistance." She answered. "Now I would like for us to go to Denver and hatch out an alliance with him to defeat the Celts. Though Nightingale you shall stay here, and do your job, can't you running off again."

"No, I've decided to go with Mr. Andy and his Servants to end this Singularity." She responded.

Andy nodded at the nurse. "And that's that. So, Denver. How long do you think that'll take? Because I have some...methods to speed things up if the answer is in days."

"Very well, if that you wish. You seem to have chosen a good Master Nikolai, I would have thought he would have said no and I would have had to use force to bring him with us. Karna would have needed to nuke the area to knock you."

"You said my name, Madame." Said, Karna, as he materialized beside Helena. The pale as fuck Indian looking very bored.

Andy would be lying if he said his heart rate didn't skyrocket at seeing one of the strongest Servants he knew off just suddenly appearing like that, and was suddenly very happy he was still fully armored and thus able to hide that fact. "I-I see you have enough sheer firepower to actually back up that threat, Madam Blavatsky," Andy said, just barely managing to kill down his stuttering because holy fuck they just barely avoided getting Karna-nuked.

"I do, now Karna we need to get our guests to Denver, can you prepare the vehicle our Presi-King provided for us. My Noble Phantasm can only carry myself."

"Yes, Madame." He responded as he walked off.

"You're correct Helena my Master Andy has both a brain of wisdom and intelligence." Tesla complimented him.

"Don't hype me up too much now," Andy said, happy at being called smart and wise by one of history's smartest.

"Of course not at my level of genius only a few rival me." He added.

"Ah, Tesla." Helena bemoaned. "And it seems Karna has arrived with our ride." As she said that a goddamned train rolled up beside the group.

"Master correct me if I am wrong, but shouldn't that be running on tracks?" Nobu asked.

"I concur," Diarmuid added.

"Arghhh."

"Another one of his creations." Grumbled Tesla.

"How fast does that thing go?" Andy asked, deciding to shelf the disbelief and confusion for now.

"We should arrive in Denver in five hours. So decently fast. Not all Servants can run at uninterrupted speeds for long periods of time." She was probably referring to herself there. "So, enter one of the compartment, and we shall go."

"Alright," Andy said, deciding five hours was acceptable for now. "All aboard!" He said as he did exactly as she said, his Servants following in behind him, most shaking their heads.

Xxx

A/N: [spoiler]I keep waiting for Andy to mess up and say really the wrong thing, to derail shit, but he keeps making the logical decisions[/spoiler]


	83. Team America

Andy sat within the train's compartment with his Servants as it was driven by Karna towards their destination. Though it was a bit tight as Darius barely fit inside and had to sit down with his legs up to fit.

"You have been quiet for a long time Master of Chaldea, is there nothing on your mind?" Helena asked as she sat in front of him, with Mash and Tesla on his sides.

"I wouldn't say nothing," Andy said. "I've just been thinking about the situation is all. How to beat Saber Diarmuid, thinking of a way to _maybe_ solve a problem without destroying it, wondering if I'll be able to make it through this alive, y'know, strategy stuff."

"You can tone down the sarcasm." She responded.

"I was being serious," Andy said. He had legitimately been thinking through how to do each of those, they just weren't the _only_ things he'd been thinking about. "Especially the third one. If I die, we all lose, and Soloman burns everything to ash. Plus, I only just got this body, and it would be a shame if it only lasted a few weeks." He said, half-jokingly.

"Yes, that body of yours is good work, I can tell that is the creative work of several extraordinary Casters by just looking at it," Helena responded. "And technically everything is on fire already, and this and the many other Major Singularities which you have resolved is what enables it to be continuously on fire."

"And we're the firefighters," Andy said simply with a shrug.

"An apt description, though utterly mundane. And… well, we seemed to have arrived at Fort Denver." Helena announced as she stood up, and Andy could feel the train slowly losing speed.

"Have five hours already passed?" Mash asked. "It feels we just came on and took off."

"Huh. It's actually been 4 hours 57 minutes since we left." Andy said, checking his clock. It made sense he could get lost in his strategizing, but Mash too? "Neat." He said, hoping it was just some benign feature the Inventor had put in, but now he would be wary. Time dilation was a nasty business, after all.

"Don't be cheeky Senpai. Let's get off, I'm really curious about this whole Presi-King thing." She said as they began making their way outside, with Darius coming out last, the King having to crawl his way out of the metal box.

"You're right on track as always Kouhai," Andy said with a chuckle. "Madam Blavatsky, I believe you know the way already?"

"I do. Anyway, we had to relocate to here after the Celts took over the White House after it appeared within the Singularity." She explained as the entered the fort, which walls were adorned with the modern American flag with all fifty stars on them.

"So, Tesla," Andy said to the Archer as they walked. "I want you to be on your best behavior in here, understand? No zapping without permission, and please don't try to provoke him."

"I shall try Master, I will only retaliate if he starts shit first," Tesla responded.

"Do try for Nikolai. Well, the Presi-King is waiting for you beyond these doors." She said as the came a pair of large wooden doors which Karna pushed open and they all entered what Andy quickly recognized as the Oval Office, of course.

Right in front of them was a two meters tall leather chair with it's back turned to them so that they couldn't see who was sitting in the chair.

"Welcome Chaldea for accepting my invitation and you Miss Nightingale, while I am sad to see you leave the frontline I am glad that you are here." A deep masculine voice spoke that seemed to brim with power.

"I plan to deal with the injury to America directly and to do so I am following my new Master," Nightingale responded.

"I see when Chaldea allow me to introduce myself." At that, the chair spun around. "I am the Presi-King Thomas Edison. King of Inventors. RAGH!" He roared.

had crashed upon laying eyes on Edison. He hadn't been this utterly confused since he met Altera for the first time, and honestly, this was marginally more confounding. It took him a good minute to reboot as it were, and he was extremely grateful to be wearing his helmet, so the self-proclaimed Presi-King was unable to see his dumbfounded expression.

Eventually, he managed to get his mind back in order and simply pushed the questions to the side for now. "A pleasure to meet you, Presi-King Edison." He said, extending a hand on instinct.

"A pleasure to meet you too Master of Chaldea." He said as he responded in kind. After their shake, he pulled his hand away and began to address Tesla. "I did not expect to see you and your inferior AC current here."

"I could say the same about you and your DC current, and ripping of Babbage's work have you no shame."

"I own the patent." He responded, as his fist met Tesla's face. "Oops, my fist slipped."

"Oops, my lightning slipped," Tesla responded in kind as a burst of electricity hit Edison.

"Come here you," Edison said, and they began to fight, and by fight Andy meant them slapping their arms at each other like school children.

Andy sighed before stepping in between the two rivals, his hands pushing them apart. "Boys, boys, you're both geniuses, now could you please focus on the matter at hand before I'm forced to bust out _my_ lightning?" He said, the hands-on each Servant's chest sparking slightly.

"Right, I apologize, Master, I should not let myself get riled up by this DC loser."

"Yes, I should not lower myself to this AC idiot's level."

The two electricity nuts said as they disengaged.

"Alright, good," Andy said, before taking off his helmet and turning towards the Presi-King (god that was still super weird). "Presi-King Edison, I am Andy Murphy, and as you already know, I'm here to help. So, to do that, it would be useful to know everything about the current situation that you can tell us. Locations, enemy numbers, recognized Servants, the whole shebang."

"And if you give that I gladly give you the information you seek, I was able to take control and restructure what was left of the nation to produce my robots to fight the Celts own Mass Produced troops. Though that is not enough as even with the help of Karna I do not have a sufficient force multiplier to turn the tide."

"So, the mass production of the mechanized infantry. Is that the aim of this new America you have created?" Nightingale suddenly asked entering into the conversation.

"Yes, that is correct. I have united the remaining people under equal national service, they shall regardless of race and gender become a part of a machine to produce my MIs. They are and shall all become laborers working 20-hours a day."

"That does not take into account human limits at all," Mash said.

"They shall all be equally compensated of course for their hard work of course," Edison responded.

"Equally compensated my ass," Andy said under his breath.

"Even so, how do you intend to save the World with that plan?" Nightingale asked. Like she was fishing for a certain response.

"Well, that should be easy if we work with Edison despite his work ethics, we should be able to get the Grail from the Celts it obvious they have it. And then remove it from the Singularity it will turn back to normal." Mash said.

"Now why would I do such a thing." Came the words from Edison.

"Because otherwise, literally all of Human History goes up in flames," Andy said. Every word out of Edison's mouth made him more and more suspicious about the lion-headed man before him. "Like, nothing left whatsoever."

"Then I shall simply take the Grail and use its power to separate this Singularity from history and turn it into its own world own timeline. I shall make America the greatest it has ever been." He announced with a roar.

Andy flinched at the phrasing before his eyes narrowed at that and he realized he probably should have used his Stat-o-Vision earlier on the Presi-King, fixing that now and sneaking a glance at Helena and Florence as well. Something about this man just did not sit right with him.

[spoiler=Thomas Edison's Stat Sheet]

True Name: Thomas Edison

Class: Caster

Master:-

 **Parameters:**

Strength: E

Endurance: EX

Agility: E

Mana: EX

Luck: A

Noble Phantasm: EX

 **Skills:**

Territory Creation: EX(D)

Item Creation: EX(D)

Single-Mindedness: A

Mass Production: A

Conceptual Improvement: A+

Wizard of Menlo Park: A

 **Noble Phantasm:**

World Faith Domination: W.F.D(Anti-Populace): EX

[/spoiler]

[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Helena Blavatsky's Stat Sheet]

True Name: Helena Blavatsky

Class: Caster

Master: Edison

 **Parameters:**

Strength: E

Endurance: E

Agility: D

Mana: A

Luck: A

Noble Phantasm: A+

 **Skills:**

Territory Creation: A

Item Creation: B

Mana Tuning: C

Mahatma: A

Pursuit for the Unknown: B

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Sanat Kumara: Venusian God, Heavenly Lord of the Flame(Anti-Army): A+

[/spoiler]

[spoiler= Florence Nightingale's Stat Sheet]

True Name: Florence Nightingale

Class: Berserker

Master:-(Andy Murphy)

 **Parameters:**

Strength: B+

Endurance: A+

Agility: B+

Mana: D+

Luck: A+

Noble Phantasm: C+

 **Skills:**

Mad Enhancement: EX

Nurse of Steel: A+

Human Anatomy Understanding: A

Angel's Cry: EX

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Nightingale Pledge: I Will Abstain From Whatever Is Deleterious And Mischievous(Anti-Army): C+

[/spoiler]

"Edison, speaking of great, why are your stats so...off the charts?" Andy asked, doing his level best not to salivate at the sheer potential contained in the lion-headed man's skills alone, even the idea of 'Mass Production' was an extremely welcome one, but it did nothing to alleviate his suspicion.

"This form of mine is not how I looked in life, of course, it's due to a Mystic Code given to me by all of future presidents of the USA to enhance the concept of Thomas Edison. As they had decided that individually they could not fight against the Celt, but if they pooled their power into one Heroic Spirit a greater chance of victory could be achieved, and they chose me to be the ultimate representation of America in all its capitalist glory. But back to what we were discussing before. Yes, I will use the Grail to make the ideal America, though that will probably result in the destruction of all other era's though not like that matters. America number one."

"Then I declare you medically insane Edison. And to make it worse, you intend to ignore your duty as Heroic Spirit to defend all of humanity not just a part of it." Spoke Nightingale. "I shall now administer treatment. As a cure I recommend assisted suicide to end your suffering."

"WOah woah woah _woah_ there Nightingale, no need to be so hasty!" Andy said frantically, stepping between the two to at least marginally slow her down in case she decided to act on that. "I'll admit his plan is literal insanity, but you can't just go about telling an ally to kill themselves like that!" He then leaned in and whispered in her ear so Edison wouldn't hear. "Besides, a much better treatment with this case would be preventing him from holding the Grail and then putting his mind to work back in Chaldea."

"I see. But I do not wish to work with this man."

"Master of Chaldea, Andy I shall be generous and give you and your team three minutes to discuss if you wish to work with me or not," Edison stated.

"Quick, very hypothetical, extremely theoretical question before that, if we didn't would you let us leave peacefully?" Andy asked, wanting to at least have his bases covered.

"Of course not I'd throw you in the dungeon and let you out when this is over."

"Noted."

"Senpai, what should we do." Asked as they all huddled together. All the while Nightingale was giving him a look that said if you do not do the right thing I will not be angry but disappointed.

"Okay, I give my advice. We go along with Edison and betray him later." Said Roman, via a miniature screen in the middle of the huddle.

"I agree with the wimp." Said Nobu.

"Master, whatever you choose we will be by your side." Said Cu and with Tesla nodding.

Andy took a deep breath and thought it over. On the one hand, Edison had his amazing-looking bullshit item creation abilities, and he _really_ wanted that on his side. Plus there was freakin _Karna_ , but on the other hand the Celts had Medb who could produce an army for them with just one night of passion, and despite Cu's reservations if she was anything like how she was in myth she was probably a marginally better person than Edison, at least to get along with. He then let out the breath he took.

Before Andy was about to make his choice, it was like someone just spoke directly into his ear as words appeared in his mind.

 **If your heart wavers, do not choose if you do not choose a third path will open up.**

And the voice spoke was not Solomon's but one of pure and utter good. How he knew that he wasn't sure, but it was as certain as his eyes being red.

Andy froze as it spoke, and when it finished, he decided to take the leap of faith. He sighed before he spoke. "We won't side with him, or betray him, or anything like that." He said to his servants, before turning and addressing Edison directly. "We're going to walk out of here as a neutral party, and you won't stop us." He said with far more conviction than he had any right to, given the fact that Karna's glare could turn lethal at a moments notice, and for all, he knew Edison's could too.

"I am sad you chose that," Edison responded and pressed a remote in his hands. At that, Andy felt pain shoot through his Magic Circuits. "I just shut down your transfer of mana from Chaldea, if your Servants act and fight, they will drain you to death. Do not think I wasn't prepared for you ever since Helena told me about your eventual arrival."

Andy glared at Edison for a moment, before a look of smug satisfaction crossed his face. "Oh, is that all then? Good. Nightingale, Pledge if you would." Andy ordered, happy he had had her explain her Noble Phantasm on the way there.

" **Nightingale Pledge**!" She shouted as activated her Noble Phantasm, her Stand appearing over them all it was tied to her NP. And used it to break open the wall while Team America was unable to against them, though that was true the opposite way. But they all just needed to do like a Joestar and run away.

Which they all promptly did, quickly leaving behind the much lower-agility Casters. Though Karna was keeping pace with them, so Nightingale continued using her Noble Phantasm as they ran.

They did until they came to a forest where they heard a male voice shout. "Oh, great Elemental Spirit obscure the vision of mine enemy. **Tsago Degi Naleya**!" Those words made Andy's heart skip a beat.

"Quick come with me while the great Coyote protects us." Spoke the native American man that appeared before them.

Andy followed him without hesitation, his Servants following along behind him, Karna running face first into a tree as his vision was robbed.

They kept running for a bit until the obvious medicine man stopped.

"We should be safe for now, but we should not stay idle, I have a base with a few other rebels and another Servant that needs your medical attention, Miss Nightingale." He spoke.

"Thank you, good sir, but, if you don't mind me asking, are, are you him? Goyaałé?" Andy asked reverentially.

"Ah, that name, I have not been called that in a long time. Most people nowadays call me Geronimo." He responded with a smile.

"Wow, never thought I'd see Master fanboy like Mash does over Hans," Nobu said.

Which got a. "Me too." From the other Servants.

Andy gave them all a look. "Of course I am, he's _Goyaałé,_ I grew up hearing stories about him from my aunt. He's a household hero!" He said.

"Are, you a part of our culture then? Sorry I can not tell for that helmet of yours." Geronimo asked.

"R-right, sorry," Andy said, removing his helmet. "My family was from the Susquehannock on my mother's side. A lot of stuff was... _erased_ , from our history because of the government, but my great-aunt always told us about everything she knew about our history." He explained, overjoyed to actually be talking to Goyaałé in the flesh (well, spirit particles, whatever).

"Oh, wow I am so sorry to hear that Senpai, I guessed that was the case, but I didn't want to bring it up," Mash said.

"I suspected the too." Said, Roman, as he popped up. "But Geronimo, calling you that cause you can not get me to pronounce that and me not butchering it to hell and back. You mentioned you were a rebel. so you're not on the side of the Celts?"

"No of course not, they seek to destroy America, and so does Edison but in his own way. And I can not have that, as a Heroic Spirit or an Apache warrior. If I assisted in the destruction of Human History, even if it resulted in the tragedies our people faced. It would have been for nothing." He responded with a serious face.

"Right." Andy agreed near-instantly, having made a similar conclusion a while ago. "So, you said you have allies right? Are they…?"

"Four allied Servants at the moment, though technically three as one has been summoned as a pair of Heroic Spirits. Though our most powerful ally has been wounded and needs assistance. We're all currently held up in the town of Kearney." He told them.

"Well, if he's wounded, we should probably get going then, the sooner we deal with that, the better," Andy said, wondering at the identity of the other servants. "U-unless there was something else you need us to do?"

"We shall discuss a plan later, but if Miss Nightingale is able to heal my comrade. We shall have a much higher chance at winning." He said. "But before I ask that Caster, is he yours or is he a stray?" He asked as he looked at Caster Cu.

"Oh, he's mine," Andy said. "He was one of the first Servants I summoned, in fact, so he's definitely trustworthy, and he's loyal as a dog. No offense Cu."

"No offense taken to both remarks." He responded.

"That is good to hear let's go then," Geronimo said.

Xxx

As they entered the town of Kearney, it was like Roman had stated previously the town looked it didn't belong in this era of US History, being that it looked so fucking Wild Western it was insane.

"Everyone I have returned, and I brought more allies and the Angel of Crimea," Geronimo announced as they approached the Saloon.

"That's great. I'll bring out our reckless idiot for the lady." Said a young male voice and two figures exited the bar.

"Howdy, there folks names Billy the Kid famous outlaw you've probably heard of me."

"And I am Rama Saber Class Servant, read the Ramayana for more information." Said the Servant that had a massive gaping hole in his chest where his heart used to be.

"Damn!" Andy said involuntarily upon seeing, well, _through_ the Indian-Indian. "Florence, do you think you can fix that without assistance while keeping him alive?" Andy asked. "Because if not I can call in my best people."

"I shall try." She responded as she went over to Rama and took the Indian of the Cowboys shoulder.

"Well, hopefully, we can fix his wounds as Rama is one of the reincarnations of the Hindu God Vishnu." Roman popped up to exposit. "He is one the strongest Indian Heroes surpassing even the likes of Karna and Arjuna in proves according to his tale. Which is rather tragic as it about him searching for his kidnapped wife but both were cursed to never meet each other again after defeating the foe of his tale. Thankfully I never know what feels like cause bachelor for life." He said.

"Now don't lie like that doctor, you used to be married once right, you still have that gold ring hidden under your glove. That's a wedding ring right?" Mash asked.

Which caused Roman to turn off the transmission.

"Oof, sore spot I guess," Andy said, happy for the background info on Rama nonetheless, considering he'd literally only known his name and demi-god status prior.

"Ohh, I didn't mean to make him feel bad," Mash said with a sad tone of voice.

"It'll probably be fine Kouhai, you didn't know," Andy said, putting a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Just like, apologize or something later, the Doc's understanding like that."

"You're right like always Senpai."

"Miss Nightingale, can you heal Rama's wound?" Geronimo asked.

Which caused the Nurse to turn towards the group as she gave her diagnosis. "I can not heal the wound. The flesh has been cursed to never heal." She stated.

"As expected from that weapon wielded by that monster?" Rama stated.

"And what weapon was that, while my Gae Dearg, can create wounds which never heals. The, me on the enemy side should not have been able to fight one of your caliber while still being a lancer. And the wound looks too big for my spear to have made." Diarmuid said.

"No you didn't do this he did." He said as he pointed at Cu.

"Ah, now Fionn's comment makes more sense." Caster Cu responded to the accusation. "There is a good chance that Medb has Berserker me on her side. And wow, we are fucked."

"Hmm, do you have Servants that are capable of removing curses?" Nightingale asked.

"Iiii have a few that could work. Lemme just dial 'em in real quick." Andy said, not waiting for confirmation as he swapped out Oda and Darius for Medea and Amakusa. "Hey, sorry for the suddenness, Meds can you Rule Break the Curse on Rama here?" He asked, going with the tried and true method of 'stab it' first.

"No, This me can't actually deal with curses, you sadly haven't summoned my Younger-Self her Pain Breaker can erase it, as Curses are a fate written upon the target. As I can see Rama's body is now fated to never heal. Pain Breaker deals with it by turning back the clock on the target to before such a fate was inscribed. To deal with it, one has to move the curse to another target or kill it. Bring in that girl with the mystic eyes here."

"I agree with the Princess statement Master, but I can be of some use to prevent another incident like this from occurring by creating a blessing to counteract the curse from taking place at least once. As I said, my skills can improve with time Master."

"Y'know, I figured you were gonna say that Meds, but hot damn Shirou that sounds great," Andy said, not saying he had brought in the Ruler to help make a replacement heart. "Alright, sorry for jostling you around Meds." He said before swapping her out for Shiki. "Okay Shiki, quick version, we need you to kill the curse on the redhead with the hole in his chest."

"Sure thing, Master. Glad that I can be of use." She said as she went over to Rama and Nightingale and stabbed the Saber.

"ARRHH, FUCK THAT HURTS."

" **Nightingale Pledge**!" Nightingale said as she used her Noble Phantasm once again to heal Rama's wounds. "And I am spent, for now, my reserves are almost gone." She stated.

"We could probably do a mana transfer if you're really low, don't worry about it," Andy said unthinkingly.

"You do not need to disguise your desire to have sex with me like that Master if you wish I shall relieve you."

"Wh-wh-what? Wh-why? I was saying about a Mana Transfer, what does that have to do with s-sex?" Andy asked, flustered, his face reddening considerably.

"Andy let me explain, the exchange of fluids is an easy way to transfer Mana, sperm being one of the best." Cu said as he walked up beside Andy with a grin of glee as he patted his back.

"I-I thought blood was the best method? I was just thinking of letter her have some of it." Andy said, thinking back to the Vlads.

"It is if you're a bloodsucker." And now Andy could hear snickering coming from everyone around him.

A revelation came to Andy as horror crossed his face. "Oh god, I've been offering all of our allies Mana Transfers this whole time. _I_ probably look like a pink-haired nymphomaniac…"

"We already thought that with how you and Astolfo go at it."

"How scandalous of you Senpai."

Andy's look of horror grew at that, especially once he saw Geronimo's face was as stoic as ever but he could _tell_ the man was dying of laughter on the inside. Andy didn't know how but he could.

"Now that Rama is healed, how about we go inside and discuss our plans for both Medb and Edison," Geronimo said breaking the current atmosphere of pure Andy humiliation. "You still have to meet the last three. They are probably wondering what we are all doing."

"Y-yeah, let's do that," Andy said, thankful for Goyaałé putting them back on track. "I'm sure anyone allied with you are good, but knowing their abilities will be crucial."

"Then let's go inside then."

The group entered salon where Andy saw the other three companions sat by a table in the middle of a game of cards.

The first one Andy did recognize due having summoned the same green hooded Archer, but the other two.

"Everyone met Andy Murphy and his Servants. Andy this is…"

"Hey, names Robin Hood."

"Hey, names Gyro Zeppeli and this is my partner Johnny Joestar."

"Sup."

At that, Andy's brain could not handle it anymore, and he promptly fainted.

Xxx

A/N: I've been waiting for months for this unexpected crossover time.


	84. A Very Bizarre America

"Man is your Master a wimp or what?"

"Don't be an ass Gyro."

Andy groaned as he returned to consciousness. And then groaned again when he registered that yes, in fact, the cowboy JoJo and Zeppeli were still there. " _What the fuck."_ He breathed as he tried to get his thoughts in order. Jojo's were real. _Somehow_. He'd been expecting _some_ series other than Fate/Stay Night stuff to show up eventually, but not _Jojo's mother-fucking Bizarre Adventure_. And it figured it would be the ones from the part he only knew tidbits from.

"Senpai you okay."

"No. I don't think I am." Andy said, thinking over the implications of JoJo's being in the same- " _Oh fuck Solomon has a Stand doesn't he?"_ Andy asked no one as he realized that could very well be the case. " _Really_ don't think I'm okay now."

"So, your Master knows about stands?" Johnny asked Mash.

"It seems, so…. Oh, yeah Senpai. You did mention Nightingale having one after you woke up from the Nightmare." Mash answered, with Nightmare being the code name for his little trip into Chateau d'If.

"I was making a joke at the time, but I guess it was more accurate than I thought…" Andy said, before realizing that the JoJo was right there and he could just, y'know, ask him directly wtf was going on. "Okay, sorry for ignoring you there for a moment, Mr. Joestar, Mr. Zeppeli. Um, could you uh, maybe explain how you're here maybe, please? I, uh, don't _think_ this is your native universe?"

"Got that right, we are Servants but this, not our native universe, or the same World Tree, as Rama and Geronimo explained it to us. The knowledge in our head doesn't match up with our own." Johnny responded, with Gyro nodding.

Andy decided now would probably be the best time to try his Stat-o-Vision on the two with the confirmation that they were, in fact, Servants despite his prior doubt.

[spoiler= Gyro and Johnny's Stat Sheet]

True Name: Johnny Joestar and Gyro Zeppeli

Class: Rider

Master:-

 **Parameters:**

Strength: E

Endurance: C

Agility: D

Mana: C

Luck: EX

Noble Phantasm: EX

 **Skills:**

Riding: A

Independent Action: B

The Spin: EX

Intent to Kill: B

Combination: B

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Steel Ball Run: Slow Dance of Valkyrie(Anti-Unit): C

Lesson Five: The Roundabout Path Truly was the Shortest One: EX

[/spoiler]

"Huh. So, lemme guess, you got sent here by the President?" Andy asked, the words slipping out before he could think for even a moment 'hey maybe don't reveal your knowledge to strangers?'

That caused Gyro and Johnny to react, and the Joestar had his finger pointed at Andy something spinning around it. While in Gyro's hand was a steel ball.

"How do you know that?" He asked a feeling of menace in the Joestars voice. And Andy swore he could almost see black flames in his eyes.

"Zelretch. He's this multiversal singularity-kinda guy, and I apprenticed under him for a while and ended up seeing some different realities, and I saw just the barest tidbits of yours." Andy explained calmly, the context of 'weapon pointed at face' being a familiar one. "Just little bits. Scary Monsters, D4C that Spin exists, the concept of the Steel Ball Run. I don't even know the name of your Stands. And, somehow pieces of Jesus are involved? But that's basically it."

"Is he telling the truth, hey Geronimo is he lying?"

"Yes, we can confirm." Said the voice of Roman from somewhere.

"He is not lying take it easy, Gyro, Johnny." The calm voice of Geronimo said.

"Okay, that's good enough for us." The said and 'holstered' their weapons.

As they did Andy finally managed to stand up and saw the tensions in his Servants form like they were ready to pounce at the two. He gave them an appreciative nod. "So, back on topic. The President sent you here, right?"

"Not the way you think, I think we got summoned via some karmic connection to the man being here or else we wouldn't be. Man, this is a mess, all this magic and Servant stuff is too much. And Stands were already troublesome enough." Gyro complained as he sat down in a chair.

"How, do you deal with him," Tesla asked.

"I don't," Johnny responded.

"Alright, noted. Edison might have D4C. Gre _at_." Andy said, realizing that was very much, so a possibility with all the Presidential and Dimensional fuckery involved now. "So, let's get down to business. Three questions for you two. First, what do your noble phantasms do, if you don't mind me asking?"

"Under normal circumstances, we wouldn't divulge anything. But this isn't it a normal situation now is it." Johnny said as he to took a seat. "Our first Noble Phantasm is our loyal steeds."

"Makes sense."

"The second is the ultimate expression of the Spin, the final lesson to achieve infinite rotational power. Which was what allowed Johnny to defeat Valentine." Gyro finished. "And our 'Stands' seems to have been fused with that Noble Phantasm, and exists as a sub-ability."

"Ah. And your stands...what, lets you spin things with Spin? To be honest, I don't actually know." Andy said. He was really starting to regret not having read Part 7.

"Mine is Tusk, which lets me spin and shoot my nails, it has four different act forms," Johnny said with reluctance.

"Though I can only utilize Ball Breaker when I use the Infinite Rotation. It is more my steel balls' Stand." Gyro said. "Now are you done with this game of 21 and get down to dealing with your crazy clansmen, and another insane President."

"Actually, I had one more question that was, very much so tied into doing that. Two part question, actually." Andy said, slipping into SCIENCE! Mode, pulling out a small hand crank generator from his hammerspace. "Can you use Spin on this to keep it going, or does it have to be an Ideal shape like your balls?"

"Doesn't work that way." Was the simple response from Gyro. "And besides, even if could I would not disgrace my families art like that even if don't like them."

"Alright, sorry for asking, meant no offense," Andy said, putting it away again. "Second part of the question, I most likely know the answer. Would you be willing to teach me the Spin? It could greatly enhance our chances of winning if you did."

"No, you don't need it. Johnny was a special case only because doing so would stop him from being a little less reckless, and it did seem to heal him." Gyro said, with a tone of finality.

"Figured," Andy said cheerily, having gotten used to being denied at this point. "So, back to the war. Edison has Karna and Helena Blavatsky, the Celts have Medb, Berserker Cu Chulainn, and a Saber Diarmuid Ua Duibine. Both of them have armies, with the Celts being more easily replenishable given their method of creation, but Edison's Mechanized Infantry is surprisingly high quality for their quantity. Further complicating things, the Celts have a Holy Grail. Which is the extent of our intel on the enemy." Andy explained to the assembled Servants. "Do you all have any other pertinent information? Or a plan?"

"We actually have three objectives." Geronimo began to speak. "The first two are obvious to stop Edison and Medb. The third one should make you happy Rama. Thanks to the Spirits of the Land I was able to confirm the location of Sita."

"I see, where is my wife then."

"Alcatraz, which is being guarded by a powerful Servant who I do not know. But on the matter of Medb and Edison. I have no idea."

"Well, I think that I have a suggestion," Roman spoke up, appearing in his holographic form.

"Let's hear it Boss," Andy said, motioning for him to continue.

"When dealing with Rulers that are surrounded by their armies and rarely enter the battlefield, there is only one way to kill them. Assassination." He told them.

"Ah, you want me to bring in the Kill Squad. Makes sense." Andy said, nodding. "Though I did have an idea that might have worked to recruit Medb, it would probably be quicker to go for her and take the Grail so we can get out of here." Andy then remembered the reason Alcatraz was brought up. "After we get Sita, of course."

"We can go and do both at the same," said Robin Hood speaking up for the first time. "I know a Stray Servant that is wandering around that excels in assassination despite being a Saber. Though she has a rather troublesome personality."

Andy's eyes narrowed. "How troublesome? Because I'd rather split our forces to do both at the same time with reliable Servants than rely on a wild card who could fail, leaving the enemy on guard and preventing future attempts."

"Well, annoying is a better word to describe Nero really." He said in response.

"Wait, Nero as in Nero Claudius Germanicus?" Andy asked.

"The one and only met her a few months ago, she was apparently looking for Broadway. Missed that by a century and a half."

"Yeah, that fits," Andy said with a sigh. "So, what, we split up, send in...three? three of my Assassins with this Nero and I'd assume you to go in and get the grail while the rest of us go rescue Sita, then meet back up and blow this popsicle stand?"

"That sounds about right unless any of you guys wanna go with me," Robin asked as he turned to his comrades.

"No thank you, Robin, you have your No Face May King to hide yourself, better than I could with my magic. Me, Billy, Johnny, and Gyro would probably die."

"The medicine man is right, I shoot my gun really good, and that's about it," Billy responded.

Andy nodded. "Alright, then who to bring in for this...actual Assassins, hm. Hassan, Jekyll, and Shiki should do." He said, swapping out Diarmuid and Tesla for Jekyll and Hassan. "Alright, you four will go recruit the native Nero and then assassinate Queen Medb to get the grail. Hassan, as the only actual Assassin, you'll be in charge." He ordered.

"Of course contractor. I shall handle this mission as professionally as possible." The skull-masked man said. "You heard the Master's orders, we shall leave immediately to Washington, I heard the Blavatsky woman say they took it over. So, that will be the highest chance of her being there."

"Alright, Hassan's got that handled. So the rest of us are heading to Alcatraz, right? Unless one of you needs to stay here?" Andy said to the 'local' Servants.

"Nah, we got nothing here, this was just a place to stay and keep our formerly donuted Indian from dying." Said Johnny, which of course caused Gyro to laugh, and Rama to scowl.

"Alrighty then. To Alcatraz, we go then!" Andy said enthusiastically.

Xxx

March 22

It had taken them all about a week to travel to San Francisco as unlike his own Servants, the stray Servants summoned into this Singularity did not have basically an infinite pool to draw from through his connection to Chaldea. So they had to manage it, and so couldn't be running at two-hundred miles an hour constantly.

While they had encountered little in the way of opposition on only a few Mechanized Infantry, along with some demonic beasts that had awoken and were subsequently harvested.

The same could not have been said for the Assassination Squad that had run into an Enemy Fergus, that had been fighting Nero. Though thankfully he had been taken down by Cursed Arm's Arm. And now they were all close to Washington, with Plan A being to try and recreate her death for a sure kill.

" _Hey, Andy I finally managed to dig up all the information up regarding Stands, would you like me to tell you directly or just send you the documents."_ Roman chimed through the radio, as they were about a half an hour maybe less from entering San Francisco proper and then go to Alcatraz Island.

"Y'know what, tell it to me. I want to know sooner rather than later, and right now it's a little hard to read." Andy said as he piloted Hurricane Ride, pulling along the Servants who were currently resting in the 'chariot' borrowed from Gil. He really wished he'd of thought of it sooner, but the idea only came to him two days ago.

" _I hear you. So Stands have been categorized as a Psychic Phenomenon, the same as your lightning. The first known record of one is from the 1300s but, they have probably been around for way longer than if one were to look at some legends that match very well with how a Stand Works. They were relatively rare for the most part, with one showing up around every decade or so. But around the 1980s the association observed a boom in the appearance rate, and they managed to connect it with the circulation of an object known as the Arrow. Have you've heard of it?"_ Roman asked taking a break from his exposition.

"I think so. Has a beetle on the arrowhead and was made from...I think it was a meteor or something?" Andy said, unsure. "But I know if you get stabbed by one and are strong enough to survive you get a stand."

" _Yep, that's correct. The meteor and two of the six known arrows created from it are currently in possession of the Speedwagon Foundation, one has been confirmed to be destroyed to uselessness. Two of them are in the wild at the moment. But the one with the beetle figure on it is in possession of the Italian mobster gang Passione, and it's leader Giorno Giovanni. Any questions so far?"_

"Oh good, the Speedwagon Foundation is a thing," Andy said. "But uh, please continue."

" _Okay, Passione is a group that consist mostly out of Stand Users, which is why the Association has not procured their Arrow, and SWF is too influential to 'fuck with' as it were is too has a number of Arrow made and natural born Stand Users under their employ most notably one Jotaro Kujo. The Grandson of the former real estate tycoon Joseph Joestar. Who the association credits with the defeat of four powerful… they still don't know what they really were but credits them as something similar to True Ancestors. And that's really all I got."_ Roman finished. 

"Oh, the Pillar Men. Makes sense they're considered similar." Andy said. "Oh, but something you said earlier just clicked, you said Stands are classified as a Psychic phenomena right? Does that mean they're tied to mutated Magic Circuits too?"

" _One will think soo, but no the Clock Tower got confirmation after dissecting… Doesn't have a name for the user, but the Stand was named Death 13 after the Tarot Cards."_

Andy inhaled sharply at recognizing the name. "Poor thing." He said since despite having tried to murder the Crusaders, it had still been a _baby_ at the time (unless it was just some weird disguise or whatever). "But, that's interesting. So it's a psychic manifestation of power independent of Magic Circuits. Muy interesante."

" _Well, they know it has something do with the Soul of a person, and it's building blocks. As a Stand is a manifestation of a person's spirit fueled seemingly by pure will power. As what has been observed there is no apparent cost to using them."_

"Hmm. Sounds pretty useful. Especially since, if I remember correctly, they can have some truly outrageous powers, like erasing space or stopping time." Andy said, already knowing the answer but unsure as to any differences between realities.

" _Exactly though some of that can be achieved on very, very, very, very small scales through other methods. And that is why the Association doesn't go after Stand Users very much due to the effect they can have on the World."_ Roman answered.

"Gotcha," Andy said. "Was that all you had on Stands, Boss?"

" _Well, it's a little bit irrelevant, but in 2011 the American Magus Association confirmed that a Stand user by the name of Enrico Pucci, was going to do something that got Counter Guardians called down on him. Going by the crater that was formerly Green Dolphin Street Prison."_

"Oof. Hope Jolyne survived that." Andy said, leaving unsaid that he was pretty sure the entire Joestar line and Speedwagon foundation would probably fight The World (again, heh) itself if she didn't. "Though I suppose it makes sense. Alright, thanks for the info dump Boss. I think I can see the Bay, so I gotta get back to business."

" _You're welcome Andy, as this apparently part of my job now. God, I wish Olga was still here. So that she could deal with it instead of me."_ He said as he cut the call.

Andy felt a wave of guilt at that before he shook it off, focusing on the task at hand. "Alright everyone looks like we're approaching the island. Please keep your hands and feet inside the vehicle at all times and fasten your seatbelts, we're going to ramming speed!" He announced, having already talked over the plan of how to get in with his Servants as sparks began flying off of Andy and Hurricane Ride, worried expressions crossing most of the allied Servants faces as they accelerated even more, somehow speeding up when they got over the water. "EVERYONE HOLD ON!" He shouted excitedly as they approached Mach 1, and more worryingly, the stone walls of Alcatraz.

"SENPAI!"  
"DAMMIT ANDY!"

Andy cackled like a hyena. "BRACE FOR IMPACT!" He shouted as they slammed into and through the outer walls right as they hit Mach 1, the sonic boom blasting in behind them as they did. Hurricane Ride disappeared in a flash of golden motes as good news, they'd all made it in safely (or at least, intact). Bad news, they were now under the rubble from their dynamic entrance. Surprisingly, Andy was the first to recover. "WOOHOO! I've been wanting to do that for AGES!" He hollered, adrenaline pumping through his veins and sparks still flying off of him.

"Idiot!" Shouted both Johnny and Gyro as they began to throw bricks at him after they made their way out of the rubble.

"I would normally not curse the Lord's name, but JESUS FUCKING CHRIST what were you thinking!" Shouted Amakusa as he too came free, and so did the others.

"Next, time someone else drives." Said Cu as he dusted his blue robe off.

"Aw, C'mon, I'm allowed to do something crazy awesome every once in a while, right?" Andy said, still riding the high as he casually dodged the (thankfully not full strength or else he'd have probably lost his head) bricks. "Anyway, you all agreed beforehand that the best way to get into the island was to ram it, so I don't think you have anything to complain about!"

"NOT LIKE THIS!" The all shouted at him.

"Well, hate to interrupt you all." Said Roman as he popped up again. "What Andy did was probably the best idea as you've basically managed to avoid the proverbial army of Wyverns that are guarding the island along with a few dragons." Andy sent a smug look at the still fuming Servants. "And I can detect three Servants on the Islands. One is the Boss as that Saint Graph is unknown to our systems, the second is similar to Rama's, so that is probably Sita. And the third is… Elizabeth what the hell is she doing here?" Roman stopped to ask.

"Oh great, either she's the boss's assistant or was also looking for Broadway and got captured," Andy said with a sigh. "Either way, we need to find Sita and fight the Boss. Rama, can you feel her nearby or something?" Andy asked the Indian Saber who had seemed unfazed by their method of entry.

"She is currently below us." He said as he looked down.

"You wanna go in the normie way or the cool way?"

"Is there any other way?" He asked as he drew his blade, "I shall create a tunnel straight down to where she is. Ten percent should be enough power. **Bra-.** "

"Waitwaitwaitwait!" Andy interrupted Rama's noble phantasm, causing the Saber to give him an incredulous look. "Maybe do it a good few meters away from the person you're trying to save, considering we're 'directly above her' as you said?"

"..." Rama looked at Andy, and he slowly moved a few feet. " **Brahmastra!** " He shouted as he unleashed a blast of energy from his that made a hole that Darius and Asterios could have jumped into side by side.

"So, you're the one causing all this ruckus." Spoke a disgruntled male voice and turned their head to see the man walking down the prison's hall. "Man, I didn't expect all of you to come and save the princess only Mr. King."

"Heh. Yeah, we don't do anything lowkey." Andy said. "I take it you're the Warden then, pretty boy?"

"Correct, I was given this job by the Presi-King to contain any troublesome Servants that didn't get with the program. Though so far I've only got two prisoners." He spoke. "Well, guess it's time for introduction's the name is Beowulf and I am going to beat the shit out of you." He stated as he slung his weapons over his shoulders.

"Unfortunately, that won't be happening Bae-o-wolf today," Andy said, pointing at the enemy dramatically for a long moment, neither party moving. And then a bolt of lightning shot out following the much more ionized air that Andy had produced by pointing at him longer, allowing for something closer to the speed of an actual lightning bolt.

"Oh, tickles. Though now you've made me MAD." He said as he _crushed_ his weapons. " **Grendel Buster!** " He shouted and rushed at the group ready to deliver a haymaker.

"Shitshishitshit _someonedosomething!_ " Andy ordered as he jumped back, the lightning bolt having supposed to have been the signal for them to let loose but apparently, no one got the message.

Rama took the call and began to parry the apparently Berserker's fist with his blade. "ORAORAORAORA!" Beowulf roared, as his fists made contact.

"Okay, plan?" Billy asked as it looked like Rama was able to keep Beowulf occupied for the moment. Though their clashes were kinda shaking the building.

"Uh, try shooting him in either the chest or the face while he's distracted if you want to do something," Andy said to the Archer.

"Already did that's why I asked idjit, he apparently has Instinct as a skill."

"Mhm. Hey, Jojo, Gyro, I know you guys are against teaching Spin or disgracing it but are you cool with Combo Attacks?" Andy asked the joint-summoned Riders.

"Oh, yeah we are. Joint attacks are the best." Johnny said happily. "Though we do have an idea, my Tusk Act Three can be used to make a trap. But he needs to into the right position first."

"Hmm...Shirou that Lightning Fence technique we've been working on do you think we can use it to maneuver Beowulf to where Jojo needs him?" Andy asked the Ruler who'd had a resigned expression since they'd first started.

"We can." He responds as he drew out the Black Keys needed.

"Alright. Jojo, where do we need to get him?" Andy asked.

"One of the walls would be the best, which one doesn't matter," Johnny responded.

"Got it," Andy said, Shirou tossing Andy one of the Black Keys, this one with a yellow handle, before beginning to throw the rest at high speed near Beowulf's feet. Technically he was aiming to impale him but had accounted for Beowulf's apparent Instincts.

With Shirou making the Berserker dodge the keys and Rama's renewed pushback against the assault of Grendel Buster, they were steadily moving him back until he regained his footing and surged forward again, pushing Rama back. It was at this point that Andy did his part, and soon arcing across all of the Black Keys was a series of crisscrossing 'streams' of electricity that Beowulf dodged automatically, but with his dodging Rama was able to slam him back with a well placed swing, right into the wall they'd been leading him to.

And a second later, Andy could see the look on Beowulf's face as he seemed to finally register he had been caught in a trap. But it was too late as one Johnny's nails spun his way through his torso making a nice hole in his stomach. But the bullet had not come into his stomach but out of it. And as the man staggered forward. Andy saw on the wall Johnny's hand sticking out of it through some sort of black hole.

"Heh, this is nothing to be worried about I've got Battle Continuation this wound won't kill me." Said, Beowulf.

"Yeah, but my attack isn't done yet," Johnny responded.

And everyone watched as the bullet hole began to move towards his heart. "What the fuck!" Was all the Viking managed to say as he collapsed and disappeared when the wound reached its target.

"Okay, good work all of you. Now let's finish the current mission." Roman praised them. "That's strange?" Came the words of doom next.

"What's strange Boss?" Andy asked the dreaded question.

"I think you might need to hurry up cause I am detecting several new spiritual signatures, but they aren't Servants more like Wraiths."

"...Oh no. We're in a prison filled with anachronisms. Boss, remember that Green Dolphin Street Prison you were talking about earlier? The one you said got Counter-nuked?" Andy asked, having a pretty good feeling about what was about to arrive. "It was filled to the brim with somewhat well known criminal Stand Users. What are the chances that is what's coming?"

"I would say zero, as enacting simulacrum phenomenon like that shouldn't be that easy, but since this is a Singularity. All known theories goes out the fucking roof." Roman said in frustration. "Just hurry up."

"Right, sorry. Rama, go get yo gurl. Billy, Nightingale, go with him. The rest of us will go try to grab the Elizabeth...unless they're right next to each other?" Andy asked hopefully, considering Roman could track Saint Graphs.

"Sadly they are not, they are being held in opposite ends. Couldn't make it easy, fucking could they?"

"Right, so Rama, Billy, Florence you go for Sita the rest of us will go for Elizabeth, and then we'll regroup outside and figure out how to escape from there," Andy ordered.

"Hear you," They responded as they jumped down the hole.

"Alright, Boss, which direction is Elizabeth?"

Roman gave them the directions to the dragon girl's cell, they had managed to avoid the Wraiths on the way. Then they ran down the corridor where she was, what was her cell exploded.

And Andy saw Elizabeth get sent flying into the wall on the other side, the frilly as fuck dress that she looked to have been wearing was burnt a good deal.

"Oh, hey you're a little late my manager," Elizabeth grunted as she looked up at the group from her position on the floor.

"Sorry, had to be fashionably late, it's more dramatic that way." Andy joked as he helped the dragon idol off the floor. "We need to go if that wasn't abundantly clear btw."

"Yeah, let's before that thing knows we're here." She responded.

"HEY LOOK OVER!" Shouted a male voice from inside the cell and Andy looked to see a turtle on tank thread with a skull face. "OVER HERE LOOK AT ME!"

"Fuck. Sheer Heart Attack has no weakness." Andy said, which as far as he was concerned was technically true because he _didn't watch the fucking episode_ so now he had no idea what it did (beyond explode) or what its actual weakness was. "We need to run, like, _now_."

"Wait, you know that Stand!" Johnny asked as they took his advice and began to run.

"Yeah, its a sub-stand to one Yoshikage Kira's Killer Queen. It revolves around explosions, but I don't know what Sheer Heart Attack actually _does_ only that it exists." Andy explained as they ran. "Also, if it's here...if you see a blond twink-looking dude or a pink-cat like Stand, don't look them in the eye."

"Oh, okay." He responded, and as they took a step about to turn a corner, they saw a coin being thrown in front of them.

Andy stopped, causing the others to stop as well. He motioned for them to get ready to attack since he wasn't sure who this would be, and _then_ they turned the corner, Andy pointing a 'finger gun' at whoever it was.

And fired a lightning bolt at the Kira wraith that had been waiting to ambush them.

"So, that was the wraith of the Kira guy Senpai?" Mash asked.

"Yeah, that garish suit and the look in his eyes...definitely," Andy said. He then looked back, to find that the Sheer Heart Attack was gone, confirming it had been Kira. "Aaaaand we should probably go find the others because if they got Dio or...what was his name, Diavolo or something, they're in trouble."

Andy took a step and found himself at the other end of the corridor, and a second later he heard a scream of undiluted rage coming from inside the prison that he had belonged to Rama.

He was about to take another step and a second later the top of the prison was gone and the sun shined down on them all.

"Holy Shit." Came the statement from Gyro as he looked up.

"...I don't think Sita made it." Andy said, stating the obvious. "And neither did anything above us."

"Yeah, you're right about that Andy, I can't detect Sita and the Wraiths no more." Stated Roman with a nervous swallow.

"We should probably go to them now before Rama decides to... I don't even want to imagine what he might do." Andy said, knowing the sheer level of Pure Bullshit™ Indian deities could get up to, and going off the blast just now he still had pretty high levels of it as a Servant.

"I have never agreed with a statement more than that one." Said Geronimo. "This has been a terrible trip."

"Definitely," Andy said. "No offense Elizabeth."

"None, taken… Poor Sita, I've managed to talk with her a few times. And every time she hoped that Rama would come to save her. Even if their curse would not let them look at each other." She responded.

There was silence for a moment before everyone remembered they needed to get over there ASAP and ran off towards the source of the blast. The run wasn't long, with the now considerably more clear path they could take thanks to the blast.

Then they arrived they saw Billy, and Nightingale stands by Rama's side in pure silence. And as for him.

Andy had never seen anyone look so fucking pissed right now as he did. "Ah, Andy I see that you managed to save Elizabeth. Let's hope that your Assassins manage to kill Medb so that Cu Chulainn shall be forced to act." He said.

"Lemme just check in real quick," Andy said as he switched to Hassan's senses to see how things were going on his end.

And it was just in time to see Zabaniya being launched at Medb's chest and Andy got his first look at the Celtic Queen. Her looks weren't what he been expecting but not bad either.

But a second before the hand touched her, it was pinned to the ground by an arrow, and Andy felt Hassan's panic and quickly turned his to see who had shot and standing about a kilometer away.

Fuck that was Arjuna wasn't it?

And then Andy felt his connection with Hassan, Jekyll, and Shiki get cut off.

"Andy!" Shouted Romani bringing him to reality. "Hassan, Jekyll and Shiki are formatting inside Chaldea what happened?"

"Alright, bad news and worse news," Andy said, holding his head to try and assuage the headache from being suddenly cut off like that. "Bad news, the entire Assassination team just fell, meaning I'm stuck with two Servants and Mash until we can hit up a leyline. Worse news, Medb has what looks like Arjuna on her side."

"Okay, that is bad."

"Yeah, like you would not believe." Said Robin as his holographic image appeared beside Roman's. Right Mash, had given him her armband as a just in case.

"Okay, you probably know this, but the assassination attempt went FUBAR." He said.

"Please tell me there's a 'but' to that statement?" Andy asked hopefully.

"I am alive and currently running the fuck away from Arjuna and Medb's Cu Chulainn. Everyone else is dead. I'm only alive because I was in the middle of poisoning and ruining their supplies for their men." He said.

"Well f _uck_ ," Andy said emphatically. "Good luck Robin. Hope you make it out alive."

"Me too, if I do meet me in Des Moines, sending you the coordinates. I should arrive before you, and if I am not there, then you are I am dead. Robin Hood over and out." He finished as the transmission cut off.

"...Well shit. We...we need to find a leyline and then get to Des Moines." Andy said after a moment, more than a bit shaken that half his Servants had just been wiped out. Even knowing they were still safe, the fact that he hadn't even considered Arjuna being on Medb's side (which in hindsight was _hilariously obvious_ considering Karna and Rama) was the main reason the mission had failed.

"That sounds like a good idea...huh is that a flag Senpai?" Mash asked, as she looked into the air and Andy followed her eyes, and indeed a flag was floating down.

An American Flag.

And as it was about hit the ground.

"DOJYAAAN!" Said Funny Valentine as he appeared from it. "Before you go let's have a conversation."


	85. Light Novel Trash Arrives

Which caused an immediate reaction from everyone as they put their fingers on the metaphorical trigger ready to blast the eccentric president the moment he did anything shady.

"Such hostility." He spoke with a casual tone.

"Sorry about that, it's just that we've already encountered a less than helpful 'Presi-' whatever, so we're just a _little_ wary," Andy said. "But I'll at least have that conversation. So speak your piece."

"Ah, yes the fool enabled by other fools. I will say this I am not your enemy in this scenario. I wish to assist you in your endeavor to correct this Singularity. This might not be my America, but if this Tree of Time is not fixed, it will affect my own." He spoke.

"And how can we trust you on this Valentine, you've lied to me before." Responded Johnny.

And in reaction Valentine, reached into his coat and threw a revolver into the air, and as he did an identical one flew from Johnny's clothing.

"Oh okay, hey Andy we can trust him 110% in this case," Johnny said.

Andy blinked a few times as he tried to make sense of what the hell just happened with the revolvers, before deciding it wasn't worth thinking about for now, and he nodded. "Alright then. Stand down, everyone." He said, lowering his hand which had been ready to zap. "So, Mr. President. What do you know about the situation?"

"I take it that your assassination attempt of Medb was a failure?" He asked.

"How do you know?" Asked Mash.

"Tell me what things the Queen of Connacht is most famous for are? You should know better than anyone Hound of Ulster." Valentine said.

Which caused Cu to let out a curse.

"Um, I actually don't know, so could someone actually say how we dun fucked up?" Andy asked.

"Master, the things Medb are most known for is her Bulls, her liquor honey, and her habit of sleeping around." Cu said, and Valentine took over.

"That is correct her Bulls and alcohol are easy to assume to be her Noble Phantasms. But her sleeping around manifested in two aspects, first her ability to create homunculus clones of the men she just slept with. The second is to use the Noble Phantasms of her husband's. One of which is Conchobar who had the ability of clairvoyance, so she saw your attempt coming before you conceived it. And that is why Diarmuid Ua Duibhne is on his way here."

"Wait, Conchobar as one of her 'husbands'?" Andy asked in disgust, before registering the rest of that sentence. "Oh shit, clairvoyance is pretty bad. Though how do you know Diarmuid is inbound?"

"We were sent to off you by her, but I managed to make a shortcut. And now you have your warning. But her future vision is not omnipotent like the King of Mages possesses. She can only see the most likely action against her like being assassinated. So my advice does the unexpected."

"Wait, Mr. President, I have a question for you. How did you come here to this Singularity, while you're still a living human?" Asked Roman as he popped up.

"My the technology of the future is interesting. It's thanks to the ability of my Stand, it makes it so that I can travel between parallel worlds. I was trying to escape the effects of your spin Johnny Joestar and came here, and Medb used the grail to make stop spinning into oblivion. Though that will probably vanish the second the Grail is removed I get send back to our universe where you then probably proceed to kill me. Live your life and you die and become a Heroic Spirit and then get summoned to this Singularity, due to my presence."

"Okay, I think I just burnt a few brain cells there," Johnny said in response.

"Not like you had many, to begin with."

"Fuck you Gyro."

"Quick question, Mr. President," Andy said, having long ago figured out how to push aside his mental pain for later. "From what I can tell, you can basically pull out whatever you want from across dimensions, right?"

"It has to be nearby, and this Tree of time there technically nothing for me to pull." He responded.

"Damn, so you can't pull out a parallel corpse part or something?" Andy asked.

"No, there only exists one corpse part in a Tree of Time, but now every Tree of Time, something else is here that substitute it. The only parts that exist here right now are the heart with me, and the little bit of the spin in Johnny Joestar. But it is enough for them to act in this place, for you heard it haven't you? His voice I can tell."

"...That voice was Jesus?" Andy asked in awe. He'd been meaning to ask Geronimo what he had done to let him hear that, but now… "How?"

"I do not know, perhaps a connection something conceptual. I do not know, and I can't tell you. The Holy Corpse has its own will… and this is the end of our current conversation. Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap." Said as he vanished after having slung the flag over his body.

"What a cryptic asshole." Said Cu.

"Yes, but he was informative. Now an enemy Servant is approaching us." Spoke Geronimo.

"I'd assume that's the Saber Diarmuid," Andy said. "As soon as he shows up, everyone attacks him. Sorry Diarmuid, gotta focus on killing him." He apologized to the Lancer who he was 99% sure was watching from Chaldea. "Everyone, get ready."

And like a rocket Saber, Diarmuid burst from the small forest of that was on the island right towards them standing in the ruins that Rama had made.

He swung his blades down but was immediately blocked by Mash who parried him away.

A second later Tsago Degi Naleya manifested the Sun Elemental wolf, bringing down its maw onto Diarmuid trying to bite him in half.

He defended against the beast by inserting his blades into its mouth, to prevent the bite.

But doing so left him wide open for a single second, but that was the only second that was needed.

" **Thunderer!** " And three holes appeared in Diarmuid's torso. Blood spilling out at the same time a pair of steel balls slammed into his shoulders which caused them to twist making it, so his arms turned and stabbed his own blades into himself, while the Tsago bit down.

And in the coyote's jaw, Diarmuid disappeared leaving only a behind a Saint Quartz that dropped to the ground. Making it three.

Andy quickly took the Quartz before turning to face the Servants. "Alright, good job everyone. Our new objective from here is to harvest this island, and then find a Leyline so we can make our next move. Any objections or suggestions?"

"None from me right now." Said Rama.

"No that seems like the most optimal solution right now, but do remember to dispose properly of leftover materials. Rotten bodies do leave and create disease." Spoke Nightingale as put on a pair of gloves.

"I prepare the Rayshift for material retrieval. And there is a good Leyline in Seattle, too bad the Space Needle isn't there always wanted to see it. Also, Wyverns incoming guys." Announced Roman.

"Good. I need to punch something before my head explodes." Andy said eagerly as the wyverns came into view. Looked like a good 20 or so approaching, with a proper dragon ambling behind them as if they were insignificant pests.

About 5 minutes later, that dragon would have been begging for death if it could speak.

Unfortunately for it, Andy had had an idea, and Amakusa was currently in the process of sewing the still living pieces back together, with some extra bits thrown in. And when he was done, it wouldn't matter that Hurricane Ride was out of commission.

xxx

30 minutes later, they were flying out atop a now patchwork dragon being puppeted by Amakusa, Andy whooping and hollering over the fact that he was riding a _fucking dragon_ , regardless of how he'd already flown much faster before, the sheer awesomeness factor overpowering that.

"There is something wrong with your Master!" Shouted Rama.

"Senpai is just a little mad scientist, you get used to it." Mash praised him? Defended him?

"I'd say I'm more of a big mad scientist, but she's right!" Andy laughed, still caught up in the moment.

"That's what Astolfo said." Came the comment from Cu.

"Be quiet all of you. I am trying to drive!" Shouted Amakusa.

Andy just laughed harder at that, ignoring Cu's snark. A few minutes later, the novelty was starting to wear off a little, and considering how long this flight would take, he pulled up a little something from Chaldea's database to read while they flew.

Couldn't hurt to understand the Golden Rectangle, after all.

Xxx

March 23

The early morning sun shined upon Andy's face while Mash prepared the summoning circle to summon a new Servant and enhance the connection between them and Chaldea to allow for their rank to be replenished.

The had arrived in Seattle as it became night and they had decided to go to bed in the small settlement. And be fresh to do shit the morrow.

And now while he waited for Mash to finish her thing.

Andy was in the middle of getting a report from Jekyll regarding the failed assassination attempt. Though not really was the one that spoke was Hyde, as he in his own words. "Were to chicken shit embarrassed to talk with Andy."

" _So, yeah we tried to do the whole cheese thing, but as it turned out, she has apparently developed a sixth sense for thrown cheese, and flipped kicked the thing while bathing. And the rest went to shit. The bigger breasted Arturia faced girl used her Noble Phantasm to contain the Cu Chulainn on their side. And yeah, the dude was definitely a Berserker, but not the one our blued haired bastard talked about. He was more like goth Arturia an Alter. He looked like a fucking dinosaur. So, then Mountain Hobo tried to do his fab arm thing, but that failed as you saw us get pummeled by Mister Indian's arrows. Though I came out and I did manage to give miss bitch a broken nose. But she then shoots a laser from her crown thingy."_ Hyde exposited.

"Dinosaur? Let's hope its not Scary Monsters." Andy said more to himself, before properly addressing Hyde. "You did a good job figuring out some of their capabilities. Even that little bit we know now is more than before. Though, I don't suppose any of you were recording what you were seeing?"

" _Like I care about your praise asshole. The armband that you gave Robin probably does. See you later Master."_ Hyde said as he logged off the coms.

"Circle is ready now Senpai," Mash said.

"Right, thank you Mash," Andy said as he walked over, refocusing on the present instead of lingering on how he could have done that assassination better. "Alright, let's see who it'll be this time." He said as he activated the circle using the Leyline beneath them.

"Servant Assassin Li Shuwen has come in response to your summons Master." spoke the young looking Chinese man.

"Thank you for answering the call, Assassin," Andy said, using his Stat-o-Vision on him. He'd literally never heard of a 'Li Shuwen,' though if he was a proper assassin that might have been the point.

xxx

True Name: Li Shuwen

Class: Assassin

Master: Andy Murphy

 **Parameters:**

Strength: B

Endurance: C

Agility: A

Mana: E

Luck: E

Noble Phantasm: -

 **Skills:**

Presence Concealment: -

Chinese Martial Arts: A+++

Sphere Boundary: A

Juezhao: B

 **Noble Phantasm:**

No Second Strike(Anti-Unit):-

xxx

"Sorry for my brashness, but could you explain your 'Sphere Boundary' and 'Jues… Juesh… Jue _zhao_ '," he said, fumbling with the word, but pushing past it. "Skills, and your Noble Phantasm?"

"Bajiquan." Was the simple response.

"I'm sorry, I don't know what that means," Andy said.

"My Martial Arts, my techniques, the sphere substitute for concealment allowing complete invisibility and disconnect one from the world. Juezhao is the ultimate skill of Bajiquan enabling my Noble Phantasm. For Master do not fear a man that has practiced a thousand different hits, but a single hit a thousand times."

"Sounds impressive," Andy said, knowing well the virtue of mastering a single technique. "Now, I'll get you caught up on our situation in a moment, I'm just going to summon another Servant real quick and explain to both of you at once."

"Understood I shall commune with my fellow Heroic Spirits in the meantime," Li said as he walked over to the campsite they had set up a few meters from the Leyline access point.

"Alright. Let's hope we get another good one, we always have good luck with these Leylines." Andy said as he palmed the Saint Quartz and summoned the next Servant.

"Yahoo, hello there Master my name is Bradamante of the Paladins of Charlemagne, my class is Lancer." She introduced herself.

"Thank you for answering the call, Lancer," Andy said. "Quick question, what was your relation, if any, to your fellow Paladin Astolfo?"

"Oh, you've summoned A-chan already? Well, where is my cousin?" She asked as she looked from side to side.

"Ah, cousin, okay," Andy said in relief. He _really_ needed to read up on the Paladins sometime. "He's back at Chaldea right now, though I can switch him in in a bit, just need to fiddle with the Leyline first to re-establish the connection."

"That sounds great, though why did you ask like if I gave another answer, it would be bad… Hmm, who is the Shield Girl next to you she feels familiar."

Andy was silently thankful that Bradamante seemed to be easily distracted, though the fact she had referred to Astolfo as 'A-chan' had just registered since it was really fucking weird considering she was French. "Ah, right, sorry this is my Kouhai Mash. You are probably recognizing her benefactor."

"Yes, I am Demi-Servant a human fused with the power of the Heroic Spirit Galahad."

"Galahad? Ah, that's why you feel similar to Mr. Merlin. Got the same Aura of helpful kindness." She said.

"You know Merlin?" Andy asked, surprised.

"Well, know is a strong word he appeared before me and blessed my shield to help defeat the witch that had kidnapped my husband."

"...Huh." Andy said, taking that as his cue to use Stat-o-Vision on her.

xxx

True Name: Bradamante

Class: Lancer

Master: Andy Murphy

 **Parameters:**

Strength: B

Endurance: A+

Agility: A

Mana: C

Luck: D

Noble Phantasm: B

 **Skills:**

Magic Resistance: A

Merit of Clermont: B

Paladin of the White Feather: B+

Thaumaturgy Sanctification: A

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Angelica Cathay: Resplendent Is My Ring of Royalty(Anti-Unit): C

Bouclier de Atlante: Dazzlingly Beautiful is the Glint of the Magic Shield(Anti-Army): B

xxx

"Hey, Bradamante, would you mind explaining what your Skills and Phantasms do? Excluding Magic Resistance, of course, I understand what that is." Andy asked.

"Ah, sure it goes like this, decision stuff, defense stuff for me, and anti-magic stuff. My ring is what gives me these things really. And my shield I strip a bit to activate it and then I can stun a debuff them before bashing their heads in with the giant explosion it makes."

"I see, I see," Andy said, having learned how to understand this type of talk after months with Astolfo. "Real quick though, what do you mean by 'decision stuff'?"

"I am a knight of justice that punishes evil, so it makes better at making the right justice decision stuff. To know the merit of the situation, that what it means right?" She asked.

"Ah, gotcha reinforces your moral compass," Andy said, understanding the gist of it. "Alright, now that I know your capabilities, just need a moment, and then I can bring Astolfo in, and we can get back to business."

"Yeah, that sounds great."

A few minutes of connecting to the leyline later, Andy was connected to Chaldea once more. With a grin he swapped in the vacant spot for Astolfo, the Rider coming into existence a moment later. "Hey." He said with a grin, higher brain function still failing whenever he went too long without seeing Astolfo.

"Sup, my gbf… Brada."

"A-Chan." She shouted as she gave the smaller man a hug. "It's good to see you."

"Good, to see you here. Nice to finally have another knight. So is the Boss here too?" He asked.

"No, but our Master seems like a good substitute so far from what I can see by looking at him."

"Yep, Andy is the best Master. So, what's the situation?" Astolfo asked. "Cause Mr. Cursed Arm looked all kinds of disappointed in himself did something go wrong."

"Yeah, we tried to send in some assassins to gank Medb and get the Grail but turns out she's a little Clairvoyant and also has Arjuna on her side," Andy said. "Oh, wait, Li, I'm explaining things now." He said to the Assassin who was currently mingling with the others.

"I am here Master." He said a second later, as he appeared right beside the two paladins.

"Right, so here's the deal," Andy said, before taking a deep breath. "We've got a super-powered Thomas Edison on one side with Helena Blavatsky and Karna plus an army of robots, on the other side is Queen Medb who has some sort of altered Berserker Cu Chulainn and also Arjuna and an army of homunculi made from her spilled blood, and she also has the Grail. On our side we've got Goyaałé aka Geronimo, Billy the Kid, Rama, Florence Nightingale, Lancer Elizabeth Bathory, and then two Stand users from another universe named Johnny Joestar and Gyro Zeppeli. Edison tried to forcefully recruit us and failed, we only got out because of Goyaałé and _apparently_ the voice of Jesus himself, _somehow_ , and while we went to Alcatraz an assassin team went to get the grail and failed, which is why we're here at this Leyline. Also, we hijacked a Greater Dragon." He finished all in one breath and then proceeded to take several deep breaths. "Everyone got that?" he wheezed.

"Yes," Said the well-mannered Assassin.

"Huhah." Said the paladin pair.

"So, what's the next thing on the agenda Andy?" Astolfo asked.

"That's what we're trying to figure out right now. We need to do something that Medb would never see coming, which is actually the reason I brought you in babe, I don't think even Slutoman knows what you'll do next." Andy said.

"Because I am genius."

"That you are A-chan."

"But first Senpai, shouldn't we check up on Robin Hood to see if he made it?" Asked Mash.

"...Shit, I forgot to tell him we were going here."

"That terrible Senpai. Though if we hurry with the dragon, it shouldn't take too long to get us to Des Moines." She said. "And from there we can make the decision to make in regards to Medb and Edison."

"Yeah, that's probably the best plan," Andy said, feeling a little bad he'd forgotten, though it was alleviated somewhat over how he was pretty sure more than a few of his brain cells disintegrated yesterday with the all the Jojo stuff. "Welp. We have our next destination. To Des Moines!"

Xxx

March 25

It took them two days to travel to Des Moines, and in the meantime, Andy had spent the time hearing about the Paladins from Bradamante and Astolfo in more details.

"So, I've meant to ask. Are you two in a relationship?" Bradamante asked. "I think you are I just want confirmation."

"Yeah. We've been dating since October." Andy said after a moment, having been expecting that question.

"That's great to hear you certainly know how to pick them A-chan," Bradamante responded.

"He came onto me, not me onto him," Astolfo said.

"Shush," Andy said blushing before quickly changing the subject. "I've been meaning to ask you something as well, Bradamante. Why do you call Astolfo 'A-chan'? We aren't speaking Japanese, and I'm pretty sure you're both French."

"Got the modern knowledge, and it seemed appropriate as I only called him A. before, the chan makes it cuter."

"...You just called him 'A'?" Andy asked. That was somehow the weirdest thing he'd heard about the Paladins so far, _which was saying something_ , but still.

"Yep."

"Okay, everyone landing now!" Shouted Amakusa and second, later Dragon Air hit the ground with a shock.

"The landing needs to be worked on," Li commented.

"True, but it's still awesome," Andy said since really the Dragon's current design had been written up months ago by him but had only been put into use now. "Shirou, you got the Shrink Juice?"

"I do." He said as he pulled out the bottle.

Andy took the bottle with a quick 'thank you', jumped off the dragon, and then emptied the contents into the dragon's perpetually open mouth (the only real downside of the rush job was that little case of rigor mortis), causing it to shrink down to the size of a housecat, dropping its passengers to the ground. "Man, I've been wanting a dragon for _so long_ now." He said happily as he went to pet the now tiny dragon, though to his disappointment it proceeded to scramble up Amakusa's body and sit on his shoulders.

"Remember who the Master is here," Amakusa said with a smug smile, the priest seemed to way too much enjoyment out of this.

"Good, too see you all." Robin Hood spoke as he took off his invisibility hood.

"Ah, you're still alive," Geronimo said with a sigh of relief.

"Yep, though only thanks to her," Robin said.

"Who?" Mash asked.

But she soon got her answer as Andy heard a female voice shout. "SETANTA!" And a dozen red spears shot forth that pinned Cu to a nearby tree.

"Hey, teach how you doing." He said with a nervous swallow.

"Teach?" Andy asked, confusion being slowly overwritten by second-hand fear. "Madam Scathach?!"

"I am being disappointed in that animal version of you, so allow to take it out on you. So what is with that druid outfit, where is your spear?" She asked as she walked closer.

" _Christmas!"_ Andy said to Cu telepathically, hoping that would be a suitable substitute if Scathach would kill him without one. The thought to swap in Lancer Cu did not cross his mind once.

"I got summoned as a Caster, my Lancer-self is at our base." He responded.

"...Well, it seems you took to my lessons if you were able to be summoned as such." She then turned to Andy. "So, you're his Master?"

" _Yes, ma'am_!" Andy said, his voice definitely not cracking as he did. He coughed a bit to cover that up. "I mean, yes, I am his Master. I am Andy Murphy. It is an honor to meet you, Madam Scathach." He said, nervousness still present but more controlled.

"Respectable at least, so let me guess you want me to assist you in taking down my wayward student and Medb?"

"Indeed," Andy said. "Defeating Medb and retrieving the Grail is what we came here for, to fix this whole mess." He said, motioning around him to indicate the Singularity. "Your help would be more than welcome, Madam Scathach."

"If you want me to fight alongside you, then show me what you're made out of." She said as she summoned a spear into her hands and took a stance. "Do not worry I won't kill you. Normally I would be fighting your Servants, but I can see that you're different from most Masters."

Andy was screaming internally from the moment she said 'show.' "Just...just one moment please, Madam Scathach, and I'll be glad to." He said, taking a few calming deep breaths. "Okay. Alright. I'm ready." He said, calling forth Tenfold Shields and then flipping the switch.

A moment later he was fully in demon form, Tenfold Shields adapting to his new shape. "Whenever you're read _ohshit!-"_ He was cut off by having to dodge a thrown spear. "Alright, guess we're doing this!" He said, adrenaline pumping as his lower arms turned into cannons and he started firing at her, each shell being either deflected, dodged, or _cut in half_ , which _should_ have made them explode but for some reason didn't.

"Huh, knew you were special."

xxx

A/N: If you like this or any other of my stories you can donate to my P A Treon. StreamingViking and read commissioned stories


	86. Pulling a Cage

"You're certainly decent," Scathach commented as Andy tried to breathe in as much air as possible after their little fight that had felt like it had lasted forever where he had pulled out every single trick he had, but she had countered each and every one of them with expert precision and almost mocking ease. "And that is good enough for me. I shall be under your command Master until this playground fight is over or Medb's Cu is defeated. If you wish to continuously be my Master. Try to summon me afterward." She said with a playful tone.

Andy tried to say something from where he had collapsed on the ground, eventually holding up a shaky thumbs-up and getting out a little "Yay" before completely collapsing, since his entire _everything_ felt like it was on fire, but _worse_ , being on fire at least meant you could put it out. _"You can let go of her now."_ He signaled to his Servants telepathically, prompting Nightingale to come tearing at him like a bat out of hell and immediately getting to work.

Xxx

"Water and protein bar Senpai?" Mash asked him after he had awoken from the sleep Nightingale had put him into to force some rest on his body.

"Thanks, Kouhai," Andy said as he gratefully accepted. "How much did I miss, by the way?" He asked after finishing the water.

"About five hours it's currently 1 P.M." She told him. "Everybody has been trying to come up with ideas to handle both Medb and Edison. While trying to incorporate the advise Valentine gave. So it has been nonsensical plan after nonsensical plan after the next. With Scathach using her own form future telling to confirm their success." She finished as she handed over a sandwich next and another bottle of water.

"Mhm." Andy hummed thoughtfully around the accepted sandwich, which was gone in about three seconds. "I'm guessing none of the suggestions would work?"

"Those that came from Astolfo had the highest chance of success actually." She responded.

Andy rolled his eyes. "Well, yeah, duh. He's been on so many adventures, and in so many fights I'd be worried if they weren't." Andy said, almost proudly. "Any highlights though?"

"The biggest problem we had for the plans was for a way to take Arjuna out of the equation. And the easiest for that was to get Karna on our side, for that to happen we need Edison. So, Astolfo just suggested we go and beat common sense into him. And then Scathach confirmed that would solve most of the problems. Though they won't do anything without your say so, and if you say no we figure something else out." Mash exposited.

"Mhm. That does sound good, and having Edison's resources at our beck and call would be good…" Andy said, thinking hard, before sighing. "And I'll admit, it'll be cathartic as all hell. All right, looks like we'll go for Edison and use Friendship no Jutsu."

"Okay, shall we go and tell the others to go ahead with that plan?" Mash asked.

"Ayup," Andy said as he got up off the cot, still sore as hell but able to get moving. As they walked over to the [s]bickering[/s]strategizing Servants, Andy had an idea. "Hey, Cu, Madam Scathach, can I talk to you two for a moment in private? Sensitive matter and all, potential plan."

"Sure, thing Andy what do you want to talk about?" Cu asked.

"And do not call me that makes me feel old."

"You _are_ old you damn hag. You only died when King of Mages set fire to everything."

"You want a spanking boy?"

"I am not a child anymore."

"And like that would prevent me from doing it to you?"

"Okay, how about you two _don't_ do that?" Andy said, moving to get between them and physically push them apart, but in the end only pushing Cu because he feared he wouldn't keep the hand if he shoved Scathach even lightly. "And help me figure out if this plan is asinine or genius?"

"Andy if it comes from you it is both," Cu responded with a dull tone.

"Geniously asinine or Asininely genius," Scathach stated.

"You've known me for _6 hours,_ and you're already on his side?" Andy asked, insulted.

"He was my student for years, and we've spared a single time. Work on that relationship Master. And you get to stick it in too." She responded with a smug grin.

Andy immediately crossed his arms in an X. "Sorry, I'm gonna follow your own student's advice on that one ma'am."

"So what was the idea?" Cu asked interrupting the both of them.

"Right, so, going off what you two know of her, _why_ is it that Medb has a Cu on her side? Is it power, revenge, the dick, or some unholy combination of the three?" Andy asked, finally getting to the point.

Scathach was silent for a few seconds before answering. "It's is a combination of all. Cu was the only who said no to her. And so she was infatuated with him until her death. And from what I was able to gather. When summoned here to America she used the Grail to summon her perfect Cu Chulainn. A King for the Queen so to speak. But Cu here has no desire for Kingship, more like to follow and fight than lead a nation. So that Cu became a Berserker Alter. A Mad King that ravages the land of America in the name of conquest for his new Kingdom." Scathach said.

"As if that woman couldn't cause enough trouble." Cu lamented.

"Okay, so with that in mind…" Andy gave an apologetic look towards Cu before continuing. "Do you think offering her an orgy with both our Cu Chulainn's, and our Fergus, and anyone else willing to join in, in order to get the grail, would be suicidal or brilliant?"

"Suicidal definitely. Even if I went along with that, and we did from the start. Then that could have been a success. But we have sufficiently pissed her off enough for that to fail hard." Cu said.

"What if we scapegoat Edison? Make it seem like they were his Assassins?" Andy asked.

"Nah, she knew it was us or else Diarmuid would have gone after him."

Andy sighed. "Yeah, I know."

"So, do you know of the plan suggested by the Paladin? Your Demi-Servant should have told you?" Scathach asked.

"Oh, yeah, that was the main plan from the second I heard it, I just wanted to get that idea out of my head now before I started regretting it later," Andy said. "With you on our side, Ma-... _Lady_ Scathach, we can keep Karna occupied long enough for me and mine to get Edison on our side one way or the other."

"Yes, I should be able to do that. And with Edison, a good enough hit to the head should fix him right up. As it is the spirits of the Presidents that are making him act as irrational as he is. Going by the information, I got after a conversation with your Tesla." Scathach explained.

"Oh, _goody_ , that's what I was planning anyway." Andy said with glee, before turning and addressing the rest of the assembled Servants who had been 'patiently' waiting for them to get done. "Alright then! In that case, unless anyone has anything important or noteworthy or whatever, gear up for a safari, cuz we're hunting a _lion!_ "

"Is he always like that?"

"He is."

"I resemble that remark!"

Xxx

The sun was setting as the group approached Fort Denver the entire place surrounded by the Mechanized Infantry.

However, that meant nothing when one flew in on a dragon higher than said infantry could shoot. "Alright, Shirou, after the drop off keeps to the skies and wait until we've hit Edison, I don't want Smaug Jr here to get torn up," Andy said, patting the back of the patchwork dragon.

"Why did you name it?" The Unofficial Saint complained.

"Because you didn't~." Andy sang as they got directly over the Oval Office. "Alright! Thanks, bus driver!" Andy said before jumping off, which was the cue for most everyone else to do the same.

Which resulted in a bombardment of Servants into and through the roof, making an express entryway into the Oval Office.

Where Edison was sitting at his desk with piles of paper surrounding the man. "What in the world!" He shouted in shock as the large group landed on the ground. "KARNA!"

Andy instinctively flinched in fear at hearing the name before remembering the whole reason they were able to do this. "Lady Scactach, try not to kill him if you would be so kind?" He asked the Lancer.

"Of course, I shall what the son of the sun has to offer." She said as she brought up her two Gae Bolgs to block Karna's overhead strike as he burst through the door. "You're strong." She said as she kicked the demi-god in the stomach sending back through the smashed door and into the hallway where she soon followed.

And Andy turned his attention back on Edison who was scowling at them.

"So, have you come to try and kill me too?" The lion man asked.

Andy rolled his neck and started moving in place, like a boxer prepping for a round in the ring. "Oh no, I'm actually here to deliver a present for you, Mr. Presi-king, I just wouldn't be able to get it to you without going through all this trouble."

"So, you wish to fight me by your lonesome?" He asked.

"Sure, some good ol' fashioned fisticuffs would be great. Settling this like honorable leaders, mono y mono." Andy said. "Unless, you're too much of a coward to face me, lion?"

"Then we shall fight like men for I ain't despite all appearance no pussy cat." He said as he jumped over the table and 'loaded' his fist and brought them up in a proper stance.

"Round 1! Fight!" Came the shout from Mash.

And Andy was pretty sure he heard a ding before Edison punched first.

Andy easily dodged the slow punch; while Edison moved fast for his size, he was nowhere close to being as fast as Cu Chulainn even while training. He responded with a jab into the larger man's solar plexus, though apparently that Endurance EX wasn't just for show with how he just ignored the jab to try and smash Andy's face in.

Andy ducked and then bounced back up with an uppercut aiming for Edison's chin, but he blocked it with that big gold thing on his chest before going back in to pummel Andy into a bloody pulp.

"What's the matter Tommy, you haven't hit me once! Ain't you got Teddy in there? Shouldn't you be at least able to land _one_ hit?" Andy taunted as he seemingly ineffectively punched at Edison's torso a few more times while dodging the lion man's comparatively slow punches. Despite his taunt, Edison's defense was surprisingly good for a Caster; he had a feeling if this came down to a matter of stamina, Edison would win. So he needed to make sure it didn't come to that.

"You brat, why do you a fellow American oppose your leaders' decision." He said as he tried to go for a stomach punch.

"I didn't votefor you," Andy grunted out as he took the punch in order to finally get a clear shot at Edison's head, thanking Da Vinci in his head for making tough enough armor to do that, swinging an electrified fist right into the too-slow Edison's face, knocking him to the ground.

"Really Senpai a Monty Python reference," Mash asked.

"I don't know what that is but, do you think that punch was enough to disrupt the spirits' effect on Edison?" Geronimo asked. "I could check, but I don't think we have enough time to commence that ritual before he wakes."

"Lemme check real quick," Andy said, walking over to the downed lion man, before slapping him (gently, for a Servant) in the face to wake him up. "Hey. Hey. Hey, hey Tommy. Hey. Tommy. Tom. Edison...Thomas Alva Edison...King of Inventors?"

That one seemed to work.

"Urgh, my head." The man groaned. "It hurts, but everything seems so much clearer...oh." And a second later he sat up. And Andy could see the shame on his. "I believe that I might have made a mistake."

"Yeah, ya dun fucked up," Andy said before offering Edison a hand up. "Now you gotta do the responsible thing and help fix it. You up for that, Edison?"

"What is one way to put it." He responded as he took the offered hand and Andy raised the man upon his legs.

"THOMAS, is everything okay, what happened what did you do?" Shouted Helena as came through the destroyed door worry on her face, with Karna and Scathach coming in a second later.

"Everything is okay Helena, everything is okay now my friend. I am better now thanks to the Master of Chaldea punching some sense into me." Edison comforted the small woman.

"That is good to hear Master, I was wondering if I myself would have to step in, but it seemed that someone beat me to the punch." Said Karna as he looked at Andy.

'Oh, right, _hero_.' Andy thought to himself at that, since with the wide variety of what constituted a 'heroic' spirit he kind of forgot they were supposed to be the good guys. "Well, now that everyone's all well and punched, we need to deal with Queen Medb to make sure reality doesn't burn. Karna, I take it you want to fight your brother?" Andy asked, the answer to that question literally being the whole point of doing this.

"Yes, he is my responsibility to deal with." He responded.

"You actually came at a rather opportune moment, Mr. Murphy," Helena said after leaving the hug that Edison had been giving her.

"...Please tell me you're saying that because you were about to attack them, and not because they are attacking _us_ right now." Andy pleaded. He was fine with fighting them, but dealing with surprise attacks _sucked_.

"Tomorrow actually." Spoke Edison. "That is when we were going to go and fight the Celts on the Southern and Northern front for a final climactic showdown. Well, set out at least." He explained.

"Oh, ok, that works," Andy said in relief. "Let's rest for a little bit and then start strategizing." He said, the pain finally registering in his stomach from Edison's punch as the adrenaline began to wear off. "Is that cool with everyone?"

He got the very confirmative yes from the all.

"Okay, good," Andy said, before walking up to one of their two living nuke lancers. "Lady Scathach, could I talk to you for a moment? I just want to know if I can borrow something."

"Depends."

"...Could I borrow one of your spears?" Andy asked, suddenly wishing he had Cu between him and the lady who killed so hard she became immortal.

"Well, you managed to beat Edison in physical combat, so I think you deserve a little gift, and besides I have too many to count after all these years." She said as she handed the Gae Bolg currently in her left hand.

Andy took it carefully in both hands, having 100% _not_ expecting that to work. "Thank you _very much_ , Lady Scathach," Andy said in equal parts shock and gratefulness. "If you'll excuse me, I need to go make sure I'm not hallucinating this."

"Why it is just a spear, the Noble Phantasms are the techniques utilizing it. The only thing it can do on its own is to sprout thorns in people."

"Less what it can do, and more that asking for something like this _never_ works," Andy said, having already learned about that; that's why he got that fake Gae Bolg for Caster Cu for Christmas, after all.

"Probably more to with what you asked _for,_ instead of the act of asking itself. And what that means to the person. That Gae Bolg you're holding is 'worthless' to the queen of shadows." Karna spoke.

"...You wouldn't happen to have anything like that you'd be willing to give me too, would you, Karna?" Andy asked, deciding to push his luck just a little.

"With the alliance, you now have with Edison, I should count you as my Master too. Speak with me in the morning, and I shall have something for you, my Master." Karna said as he left the room.

"Holy _fuck_ how does that keep working," Andy said to himself a few minutes later when his brain caught up with to the present. "Did I get a charm skill when I wasn't looking?"

"Karna is the Hero of Charity, it is nature and upbringing to give people anything they asked of him Senpai," Mash said as she came up beside him. "I read the Mahābhārata a few years ago, and that was one of the few details that stood out to me."

"So you read theirs, but not my epic?"

"Don't be a sore loser Rama. It's not her fault their story is more popular than yours." Said Billy.

"...Hey, Billy, your Noble Phantasm is based on sheer skill, not your gun itself, right?" Andy asked, deciding to give a little after getting a little.

"A bit of both, I just need a good enough gun to handle the strain of my technique. And my Thunderer was one of the few could." He said. "Honestly despite looking like it, Archer is not my most optimal class to be summoned in."

"Wait, really? What would be then?" Andy asked, sidetracked.

"Rider or Assassin as if got summoned into those I would have gotten the Double Class skill, with Gunner as my secondary."

"Huh." Andy said, surprised there actually was a 'Gunner' class, he'd thought that just fell under 'Archer' since he figured it was all ranged types. "Well, I brought it up because I have a basically indestructible, shapeshifting weapon that could easily be the biggest gun you can handle." He said, calling the Claws to his right hand as he spoke, holding the Gae Bolg against his shoulder with his left hand mimicking Cu's normal pose, which worked well with the skin-tight bodysuit, as expected. "This baby can be _anything_."

And that got stars to shine in Billy's eyes. "I want that."

"Just remember to give it back before we go home if you want me to summon you as another class," Andy said as he handed the box to the Archer. "Go wild, cowboy."

"We see about that Andy."

"So, now that this has been dealt with do we take dinner first and then strategizing or dinner while strategizing?" Gyro asked.

"Dinner while strategizing," Andy said. "I'm gonna need to get used to the weight of this, so the sooner we have something concrete to go off of the better."

"I can roll with that." Responded Gyro and began to walk out of the office.

"You know Master I don't know if I should be jealous of you or not, but I do know you have a much higher luck stat than me." Cu commented as he walked by.

Andy grabbed the hood of the Caster, stopping him. "On that note, I'm going to need some extra training tonight. I'd ask Lady Scathach, but... I don't want to die tonight."

"Oh, yeah you would die. I am sure you've realized it, but me, me, Chiron and Leonidas have been keeping your training at a human level a bit more with your new body. But still not what I was put through, he put Herc and Achilles through, and he put himself through." he said. "But switch me out with Lancer Me, if you to know how to use it. And he would probably be a better fit for the oncoming battle than me."

Andy gave him a flat stare. "You just want to get away from Lady Scathach, don't you." He stated more than asked.

"I shall neither confirm nor deny that accusation. Now I think Astolfo want to pamper his lover." He said as he ran out of the room.

"Wait, what?"

"Andy are you tired after that fight, want me to feed you," Astolfo said with a grin of mischief as he came up beside Andy.

"Oh, I'm famished," Andy said. "And I am so _very_ tired from my bout with Edison. Perhaps you should carry me, oh valiant Paladin?"

"Okay." He said, and a second later Andy found himself in a bridal carry. "Hey, Kitty where is the place you eat."

"Please don't call me that, and just follow me," Edison said as he walked past them.

xxx

March 26

Andy looked at the massive army that would soon be split into two one going north one going south.

"Impressive isn't it?" Edison asked as he joined Andy on the balcony.

"Eh. I've seen bigger." Andy said jokingly.

"So have you made a decision in regards to how the Servants shall be split? If we wish to crush the fronts simultaneously and succeed in boxing in the Queen, appropriate firepower must be distributed. And none know Servants seemingly better than you do Master Andy." Came the praise from the inventor. "Though where you choose to send Karna, Arjuna would probably make his appearance."

"...Bradamante will spearhead the northern army while Karna leads the southern. Karna will have Amakusa as a backup for when Arjuna shows up. Robin should have finished boobie trapping the northern front by now, so they'll have to deal with that minefield first while Billy thins their ranks. And Elizabeth will go with the south because her sonic attacks are just good AOE. You'll be staying here to coordinate the armies with Helena both to protect you and give you guys a way out in case of emergency. And the rest will come with me to go after the Grail directly." Andy said, having been thinking about this all night. "I've already told most of the others. Once you get the signal, be sure to head directly for us with Helena, so you don't get left behind here."

"Ah, you plan to make a contract with us before the collapse of the Singularity to Rayshift us out of here?" He asked for confirmation.

"If you're willing to, yeah," Andy said. "Your skills _alone_ synergize super well with what we have and even better with what we need, let alone the others. And I _really_ want to know how you made those derivatives of Babbage's Helter Skelters, but that's for when we aren't about to go off and fight an army."

"Yes, it would be lovely to work with equally qualified minds and show up that AC loving fool."

"Good, that's good," Andy said, a tad distractedly as he saw Karna down on the ground level. "Hey! Karna, I'm up here!"

"Ah, hello there Master, have you made your decision?" He asked as he jumped up to them.

"Oh, right, sorry I already told everyone else, you'll be going with the southern army, which you'll be at the front of until you run into Arjuna, and when that happens, he'll be your biggest priority, of course," Andy informed him.

"Understood. And here is the gift which you asked for." He said he handed Andy an earring. "This shall give you a little of my defense."

"Oh, _wow_ , really? I...thank you, Karna." Andy said as he took the earring graciously. Apparently pushing his luck actually worked sometimes. He stared at it for a moment when a thought occurred to him. "Wait...this isn't going to impact your ability to fight your brother, is it?"

"It will not." Was the simple answer.

"In that case, I accept this gift with pride," Andy said, removing the stud currently in his left ear and replaced it with the new one. He looked at the stud in his hand and then back up to Karna when it clicked Karna had literally given him his earring. "I...know it's nowhere near as useful a gift, but I want you to have this, at least until we get back to Chaldea." He said, holding out the earring. "It's just a lucky charm Medea made, but it'll be better than having nothing, right?"

"I shall thank you for this generous gift Master Andy," Karna said as he took the earring.

Andy smiled at the Lancer as he put in the earring. "Don't worry about it. Now, I believe it's almost time for everyone to head out?" Andy directed the question to Edison.

"Yes, this mythic war shall come to an end so let E Pluribus Unum come to be." He responded.

"'Out of many, one' huh…" Andy mused to himself. "It fits, I suppose."

"The motto of America, you uneducated brat," Edison said with a joking tone.

"Quit yowling, you crotchety old tomcat." Was Andy's equally joking response.

xxx

A/N: If you like this or any other of my stories you can donate to my P A Treon. com (Slash) StreamingViking and read commissioned stories


	87. The Mad King

Three days had passed since the final battle had started and with Servant support, the two fronts had been able to fight the Celts to a point where they all were now a hundred miles from Washington D.C.

None of the enemy Servants had engaged the armies or Andy's own group as they had traveled down the middle path.

They had only stumbled upon more Demonic Beasts, called forth by the presence of the Grail as a side effect. Some old ones and three new ones had made their appearance, one was the Bicorn, the Unicorns metal older brother that was all too happy to try and run them through when they stumbled upon a herd. And harvested their horns as according to Da Vinci those were the only useful part of them, as the rest of their bodies were standard Equine. The other two had been the Gazers, and Soul Eaters, the first a giant floating eyeball. The second a dog demon made out of tar-like substance.

Sadly though they didn't have any useful resources, with the exception of a Gazer. The Soul Eaters, according to Geronimo was a form of poltergeist that possessed liquids which explained its composition and the why it went splat then killed.

" _The fronts are traveling at constant speeds Master Andy, but I am concerned over the fact that neither Cu Alter, as it were and Arjuna have yet to show themselves. Especially Cu, as he had been sighted on the frontlines many times before. It's concerning, more so with Arjuna as Karna is making his presence known burninating everything."_ Said Edison through Mash's armband.

"Hrm. The Cu problem I was expecting, but for Arjuna not to come out to fight his brother…" Andy said, worry evident in his voice. "Edison, what's Karna's top speed?"

" _His top speed utilizing his Mana Burst is a little above Mach 5, oh boy that is going to burn some Mana Forges-"_ Edison was caught off as Roman's voice overrode his.

"High-density mana projectile heading your way!" He shouted, and Andy had barely any time to react as Mash pushed his head down.

Andy heard something zip by right above his head, as he turned his back to see what it was the cliffside that was behind them exploding making a nice hole of molten rock.

"Thanks for the save Kouhai." He said under his breath, mostly because that knocked it out of him despite the miss. "Guessing that's Arjuna saying hello."

"I think so Senpai, I can see him standing in front of with the distance of two kilometers." She informed. "But he doesn't seem to be readying another shot? Was it a warning?"

"No, it was an announcement." Said Cu.

"Yes, I get it he shot that to get Karna here, a fight between a Pandava and a Kurava is also a competition. And a competition must have an audience," Rama said. "And it begins now."

And with that, a star appeared as Karna batted at his brother unleashing a torrent of flames that glassed the ground.

And so the battle was on as the two brothers fought in a sea of flames, Arjuna with bow and Arrows, against Karna and his spear.

"...So, are we just supposed to watch, or can we go on to kick Queen Medb's ass?" Andy asked Rama, eyes never leaving the fight.

"Well, they are kinda in the way of our route," Rama said, and he was right they were fighting right in front of them turning the place into a flaming hellscape. "But this fight won't last another minute for here there are no gods to favor Arjuna."

Andy zoomed in via Tenfold's helmet, and he could see that Arjuna was bleeding from various stab wounds, while Karna was barely scratched.

"Yeah, Arjuna was only able to kill Karna after he lost his armor, and while trying to get his chariot free and took a cheap shot," Mash said.

"Ooh, okay. I should really read some more of those legends…" Andy said, enjoying the fight now that he knew it was an almost Assured Victory, musing on his failing to read literally anything about history in this world since his circuits got mutated.

"Oh, I think Karna is going for the final blow." Cu said as he held his spear. Andy had switched the Caster out for the Lancer.

Andy watched as Arjuna was beaten into the ground Karna hovering above him and he looked he was about to use his second Noble Phantasm.

"Brahmastra-" He intoned his voice vibrating across the field. "-Kunda… Argh." Only to stop as a familiar looking spear was sticking through his torso.

A second later a shadow fell from the sky and crashed into him and into the ground forming a crater.

"Shouldn't have left his back open like that, what an amateur," spoke a familiar but very emotionally dead voice.

And there Andy saw him for the first time, Cu Alter, pulling his spear out of Karna's body. Though that Gae Bolg looked a little more purple in color.

"So, you're Chaldea so who do I kill first? Teacher, the other me or someone else." He spoke with words that, to Andy's ears, should have been filled with _something,_ anger or glee maybe. But it was just so emotionless like doing this was a _chore_ rather than something to be engaged in. Behind was Arjuna slowly walking up to him but injured.

"Nightingale, see what you can do about Karna. Other Lancers, you're up." Andy said, ignoring how Cu Alter was dismissive of _fucking Scathach_ and had, y' know, said 'fuck you' to Karna's damage reduction and it somehow _worked_. If he didn't, he probably would have broken down right there.

"Don't worry I've got something special planned," Scathach said as she ran forward.

"So, you're up first?"

"I am not going to play around with you boy, you and Arjuna are dying right now. **Gate of Skyé!** " She shouted and thrusted her spear into the ground and second later a massive gate appeared in the sky and opened up. "You're going to be banished to realm boys, where only the dead can live." She stated.

And Andy could see a force was pulling on Arjuna and Cu Alter their bodies being sucked towards the gate.

"Sorry teacher, if I had been my old self, this would have been the end, but I've got a new trick. **Curruid Coinchenn.** " And Andy watched as Cu Alters arm's and face changed as his outfit grew and it over it.

"What!" Scathach shouted, as where before were Cu Alter had struggling to stay grounded; he rushed forward with ease and stabbed his claws into Scathach torso and quite literally tore her apart in an instant.

"So, who is next yes you're the next most dangerous one." Andy could not see his face, but the eyes through the helmet but he knew where they were looking.

They were looking directly at Mash who was standing protectively to his side.

And then he was in front her with claws ready to stab into her.

"MASH!" Andy _screamed_ in fear as his Command Seals began to glow ready to give his command.

But before that happened in less than a second before Cu Alter finished with his attack, a familiar white creature appeared in front of Mash's shield.

"FOU!"

And then the area was bathed in light and fog.

Andy's eyes took a second to recover, and he saw that Mash was fine and Cu Alter was now standing a few feet away from her and out of his armored form.

"That is cheating you're not supposed to be here." He spoke with words should have contained irritation but were still hollow.

It had been hard to see for the fog, but Andy took notice of a figure standing in between Mash and Cu Alter, with Fou on his shoulder.

"Cheating perhaps you can call it that, but I am just a dream that is not meant to be here. Hello, everyone, it's everybody favorite observer Mr. Merlin here for a quick visit." Said the white robbed man, holding a brown staff in hand. "Now go away for a bit, I only have a little bit of time before I am ejected," Merlin said as whipped his staff to the side, and Cu Alter was sent flying back to Arjuna.

And then turned around to face them. "This is just a one-time thing, you two I am still stuck in my tower, but little Cath Palug here took and summoned me out, my familiar can be such a brat sometimes you know. Perhaps it is because I kicked him out." Merlin said, but Andy could see begin to turn transparent. "Guess my time is up to be here, and just a tip for Miss Da Vinci if she can hear me. Look for the presence of the White Princess in the belt. That is how you will find who is not yet gone." And then he was gone. Fou falling to the ground.

"Okay, what the fuck." Came the shout from both Gyro and Johnny.

"While I _wholeheartedly_ agree with that sentiment," Andy said once the shock cleared, mostly at seeing the _way too strong_ Cu Alter get up. "I think now might be time to make sure this bastard never does anything again."

The beast began to run towards them again, and Andy was about to order his Servant via Command Seal to unleash hell on him he stopped upon seeing a familiar spear pierce Alter's back.

A familiar very large black spear.

"Why aren't you dead?" Cu Alter asked Karna who had returned the backstab.

"I am the one who shall bring upon destruction. **VASAVI SHAKTI!** " And Cu Alter was annihilated from his hip to top as the destructive Noble Phantasm obliterated Cu Alter.

Leaving behind only his legs that fell to the ground and standing Karna still with a gaping wound in his stomach.

Though with a smile on lips, the victory was sadly short-lived as his head fell an arrow fired by Arjuna decapitating him. Though as Andy looked at Arjuna, he could see the man dropping his bow to the ground his face utterly catatonic like he regretted what he had just done.

"So, is it over," Cu asked.

And then question got answered as Cu Alter's legs stood back up and the rest of him regenerated.

"How the fuck?" Cu asked.

"Grail Juice, and Runes." Cu Alter responded. "You're lucky that I am going to have to leave you alive for now."

"As if. **Lesson Five: Tusk Act 4!** " Shouted Johnny who was now himself slightly spinning in the air pointing his finger towards Cu Alter and fired.

"Aw, damn." Came the voice of complaint from Cu Alter as the form of Tusk Act 4 pummeled him into the air.

"ORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORA. CHUMI-NII!" It shouted as drilled it's way through Cu Alter causing him to fall to the ground.

But then he tried to stand up his body wrecked, the effect of the spin kicked in, and well, Andy had never seen a person fall apart into basically string or more like split into discs that spun out of place from the whole.

"Everyone, destroy the pieces now before he can regenerate!" Andy ordered, not wanting to take _any_ risks with this bastard, already firing Runestone slugs at the unraveled Berserker.

And his Servants went work destroying every single piece they could get a hold of out of existence.

"WHOLE SHIT, That was intense, and I wasn't even there. But yeah, I can confirm the elimination of Cu Alter's Spirit Origin within the Era." Said Roman with relief flowing through his voice.

Andy sighed in relief, falling back on to the ground. "That was...too much. I think I need a minute to process what the _everloving_ _fuck_ just happened." He said from where he was now staring at the sky. "Or 10."

"Me too Senpai, though Scathach and Karna we didn't let their death's go in vain. Thank you Mr. Joestar." She thanked Johnny.

Who brushed her off. "Don't praise me. I just hate seeing an asshole like that get away." He said. "Though Rama here was about to go all out too weren't you?".

"I wished to but I didn't know if Brahmastra would useful, he just survived Vasavi Shakti, so I thought it would be useless, but the power of your stand was what we needed to win here. So thank you, Johnny."

"What did I just say."

"You deserve the praise for that act Johnny." Said Gyro. "Though we still have Mr. Bow over there left, he has lost the will to fight. I think even I could take him out now."

"Oh shit," Andy said, jumping back to his feet upon remembering that Arjuna was still there. Regardless of he had the will to fight, Medb could very well be watching them through the Archer. "My apologies for the ignoble death, Arjuna."

"Yes, just kill me, I did it once again, I pulled the arrow in his moment of weakness. Once a coward always a coward is that not what they say in the modern day?" He asked as his dead eyes looked at Andy. Honestly, all that was missing was some rain, and he would be the perfect image of sadness.

Andy walked up the Archer, and put the cannon barrel to his chest, right at the core. With no fanfare or fancy words, Andy shot Arjuna through the core point blank.

As he fell to the ground, he spoke his last words. "You can ignore these words if you want if you manage to summon me one day. I would be happy for perhaps then I would be able to act like a proper hero for once." He said as he vanished.

Andy picked up his Saint Quartz and stowed it away, Lancer Cu handing him Scathach's and Karna's as he did. "Well. This was a clusterfuck. But at least now we have a clear shot at Medb." He said, hoping he'd be able to summon them back later. "We should probably get moving right away, the longer we wait, the higher the chances of her pulling something crazy out of nowhere."

" _Yes, that would be for the best Helena, and I are on our way to the armies are on an unimpeded walk for Washington we should all be able to meet there in three hours. Edison signing off for now."_

"Three hours… a lot can happen in three hours." Andy mused to himself. "Let's get there before then to fight whatever Medb has left."

"It should be two hours for us, though from your tales of the previous Singularities Medb, has or probably will summon the Demon Pillar in charge for us to fight." Geronimo.

"Then I shall prepare for extraction of worms from America," Nightingale commented.

"Yeah, don't worry too much about the Pillar, those things are tough, but they're stationary and easy targets. I'm more worried what Medb will do with the Grail." Andy said. "But if it's two hours, let's cut it down to as little as possible and _go go go!_ "

And they were off.

With the sound of Hippogriff screeching as Astolfo made it go faster.

Xxx

"By my _dad's glowing ass_ , you're taking this shit way to far Medb." Cu said as they now all stood in front of the White House.

Which had been gothyfied and into an altar for Cu Alter, statues of him everywhere, with a massive ass version of his Gae Bolg planted in the ground? Some of them being with fellow statues of Medb and Cu doing the deed.

Andy pointedly ignored the statues from the moment he saw them, for his sanity's sake. "Alright, ignore the monuments, the sooner we get Medb, the sooner we never have to see them again. Boss, the Grail is still inside right?"

"Yep, along with who I presume to be Medb, and she walking towards the door, with similar signatures to golems walking behind her." He said.

"Ah, Spriggans then." Cu said. "Those are like the Irish versions of them."

"Neat. Maybe we'll get to harvest them later." Andy said nonchalantly, already pointing a cannon at the door, everyone else also getting ready for the fight.

"Break them open and get the core that gives them life, but be warned they are tough." Cu said, and a second later the doors were broken open and out walked Medb, with six Spriggans following her.

And boy did she look pissed.

"YOU, YOU YOUYOUYOUYOU!" She shouted almost frothing at her mouth with sheer impotent rage. "You killed my Cu Chulainn, my perfect Cu, my perfect King, my very own god of war and killing oh how the blood he spilled sent my loins a flame. But now I am going to kill all of you. It is said I gave birth to all the warriors of Connacht, especially a certain group. O' Holy Grail call forth my twenty-eight monsters my Clan Calatin and make them become true monsters. Let them become Demon Gods come forth 28 Demon Gods of the Ars Goetia. HAHAHAHA." She laughed as the ground shook and the clouds became dark.

As a mass of them grew from the ground like vines covering the sky.

xxx

A/N: If you like this or any other of my stories you can donate to my P A Treon. com (Slash) StreamingViking and read commissioned stories


	88. The Queen Is Dead

Andy gazed up in horror at the multitude of the massive monsters, rational thought leaving his mind for a moment. "Holy fuck," he breathed. Somehow, the 28 Pillars invoked a more visceral fear in Andy than being face to face with the King of Mages; probably the size difference, or the fact that he had never truly been desensitized to the fact they were made up of _screaming human corpses_.

"Fuck indeed Master of Chaldea I am the queen of fucking, women, men, animals and your shit up. You're all dead." Medb shouted with glee.

That refocused Andy on the fact that he needed to actually destroy all of them. "...Y'know, with all these 'fucks' flying around, might as well push the fuck-it button," Andy said, a projection of a big red button appearing and being pressed.

And then Astolfo was replaced by Arash.

"Everyone, behind Mash! Arash, I'm sorry to say this, but now's the time **to create the border between us and them!** " Andy ordered, Command Seals flaring.

"Aw shit." Came the words from Medb and Andy got a look at her face disbelief as Arash fired his arrow.

"LORD CAMELOT!"

"STELLA!"

And there a kaboom, an earth-shattering kaboom, Andy was sure he went temporarily deaf for a second there as he was unable to hear anything at all. And a second later the walls of Camelot came to show what Arash had done.

And there was nothing.

Andy meant that literally there was nothing that surrounded them for at least a mile.

Stella was the epitome of scorched earth tactics, a nuke without any of the fallout.

After visually confirming the nothingness around them (and taking a good five minutes to get over the 'holy fuck' factor) Andy dialed up the other Servants who had been at the fronts, to both call them in and to make sure they were alive _to_ meet up with.

" _HOLY FUCK MASTER WHAT THE HELL JUST HAPPENED WHAT WAS THAT EXPLOSION."_ Shouted Bradamante through the com.

" _I would ask the same question, but in a much nicer way. Andy what happened in Washington!"_ The lion man asked.

"Medb summoned 28 Demon Pillars, and I kinda panicked and used our Nuclear option," Andy explained, having the decency to sound a little ashamed. "Though I'm pretty sure Truman's in your head cheering right now, bastard he is."

" _Sounds reasonable but what about Medb and the status of the grail?"_

"Grail's still there...somewhere." Andy motioned to where his Servants were currently sifting through the dirt to find it. "It must have got buried in the blast since we're still getting a signal."

"What the fuck is wrong with… you." Came the hoarse female voice and Andy watched as Medb raised herself out the ashes of the blast zone, but not unscathed her clothes were gone, and her body was slowly healing the third-degree burns that covered the most of her body.

"Woman how did you survive," Cu asked as he came up beside her, his spear planted right next to her face.

"Cost me my chariot, Caladbolg almost all of the grails energy. Fuck can't even use Halphas trapped inside it still. So Cu dear you going to shove that spear of yours into my body now." She said with a grin.

"Just finish her off now Cu," Andy said, before replaying what he just said in his head. "Kinky."

"Yes, Master." He responded and shoved Gae Bold through her chest.

"Ah, what I always wanted, so sad that I didn't get summoned by you seem to be on my wavelength," Medb said as she vanished.

"That woman, so troublesome. And I think I need to clean my spear now." Cu said as he reached down and picked up the Grail. "Here missy," He said throwing the cup to Mash for her to store.

"Medb has been defeated, and the Singularity will now start to correct itself. I will say this has been an interesting experience, but I will ask if it is possible to make a proper contract with you Andy with your Fate System. One day my Sita could be summoned too?" Rama asked.

"Eh, we're going to skip on that this was fun and all, but I think this, not our fight… and where the fuck is Valentine?" Asked Johnny.

"Right here." Came the voice of the president from Andy's left side; he just barely refrained from punching him out of instinct. "You did a remarkable job in saving America Andy Murphy as expected from its citizen." Andy was sure that was praise, but it didn't really count coming from him.

"Kinda did it for the whole world, but thanks I guess," Andy said. "I take it this is the point where the three of you fuck off to your own World Tree, never to be seen again?"

"Yes, this was a once a lifetime thing to happen probably couldn't be replicated again. D4C!" He shouted as he threw a flag over himself and vanished.

"And there the bastard goes. Well, Andy, this was a fun trip across America once more. We probably never see each other again, but good luck." Johnny said while Gyro gave a grin showing off his grill as the two vanished.

"Adios you spinny bastards, and thanks for the help." Andy managed to say most of the line before the two disappeared fully. He then turned towards Rama. "Also, I am absolutely willing to make a contract with you, we're just going to have to wait until everyone's here so we can do everyone who wants to at once, so I don't risk Mana Depletion while we wait."

"That is fine."

"Congratulation Andy I am proud of what you did, I for a moment thought that we were going to meet our end, but to bring out Arash Kamangar like that? His Noble Phantasm could not be more suited as it is one that bears the concept of endings." Geronimo praised him.

Andy was suddenly happy he was still wearing his helmet, since having a childhood hero in the (spiritron) flesh say they're proud of you was the kind of thing to make anyone blush. "T-thank you, Goyaałé." He said, his ability to form complex sentences deciding to take a ride on the rising hot air balloon of Andy's mood.

"ANNNND SUPERHERO LANDING!" Came Bradamante's voice from the sky and seconds later she landed beside them all. "It seems I am first."

Andy clapped like a sports commentator. "9.5/10, little too close to crushing Cu but otherwise good form."

"Urgh, why does it always have to be me, can't the others get here soon." And like magic only a few seconds later, Amakusa and Liz came on the dragon. Edison and Helena came on her UFO the two packed rather tight in its small cockpit. And he had, to be honest, the thing looked like a children's toy.

Andy looked around at the assembled servants and did a head count. "Hey, where are Robin and Billy?" He asked the four who had shown up.

"Well, you already have a Robin Hood at Chaldea right, so he thought it would be a little redundant, and for Billy, he should be here." Said Edison.

"Ah, sorry I am late had to put a few holes in a few surviving Celts. So we gonna leave now?" He asked.

"Yup," Andy said cheerily, happy to note he wouldn't have to explain to Gil how he lost _two_ items from his treasury instead of just one. "Alright, everyone who's still here wants to form a contract, right?" He asked a bit louder to get everyone's attention.

He got a smile from them all and a yes.

Xxx

"Well, that was certainly a harrowing experience, and I was just watching," Roman said as Andy and Mash had joined the man for a quick briefing before they all went to bed. "Though thankfully I now have someone to help me in the infirmary."

Andy was about to agree, but he then had a thought and turned to said nurse. "Nightingale, Doctor Roman here is now your medical superior and as such all in-house treatments need to be run by him, okay?" Andy asked. He'd already used a Command Seal to lessen her Madness Enhancement, but the most he could do was _lessen_ it like that while they were here, and he really didn't want any limbs getting amputated unnecessarily.

"Of course I shall follow the orders of the Senior Doctor, but your health shall be my top priority." She said.

"Well that is good to hear, and I expect that Edison and Helena are going to participate in your little Caster Think Tank Andy?"

He rolled his eyes at that. "Yeah, no duh Boss. We'll be going over the details tomorrow, but that was kinda the point of bringing them back." He then remembered said Casters were still in the room. "No offense."

"None, taken it would be a shame if my genius could not be put to use." The former Presi-King said.

"Ignore the ham, I shall just find joy in talking to other intellectuals."

"Oh, okay, good. In that case, everyone new go find a room, ask the staff for directions if you need it." Andy said, the usual after-mission fatigue choosing that moment to hit, worsened slightly by the momentary strain of having 11 Servants at once for a minute before the Rayshift went through. "If you'll excuse me, I need to hit the hay."

"Yeah, we all need to now. We can deal with the Wizard Issue tomorrow." Roman said as he stood up.

Andy blinked owlishly. "Wizard issue?"

"Merlin and his cryptic nonsense." The man responded.

"Oh, that," Andy said, nodding. "Right. Yeah, that's a problem for tomorrow's me. G'night y' all."

"Night."

Xxx

March 30

Andy awoke to the sound of Astolfo's snoring and hugging him like a body pillow.

This, he decided, was an acceptable position, cuddled further into Astolfo's embrace, and then promptly fell back asleep.

When he woke up the second time a few hours later, to see that his BF was gone from his side, though as he sat up, Astolfo came through the door a second later carrying a tray filled with food.

"Hey, beautiful got some food for you."

Andy grinned. "Why thank you, my handsome paladin. I am _famished_."

"Then eat up." He said as he sat the tray down and took a seat at the end of the bed.

Andy did exactly that, a comfortable silence between them for about a minute. "So, did Bradamante cause any trouble yet?" Andy asked since while she was his cousin, she was a _paladin_ , and Andy still wasn't sure how he felt having two of those in one building.

"Ah, she isn't one to do that Roland is the one that does. So, how are you feeling."

Andy let out a sigh of relief at that. "O-" he cut the automatic okay off and actually assessed his condition for a moment. "My circuits hurt, which is fun, but otherwise I'm fine, honey."

"Good to hear, you should probably relax for a few days before doing anything strenuous those are the nurse's orders, and man that woman, she got eyes that make you feel like you're a five-year-old getting a scolding of a lifetime." He said.

"Yeah, she kinda reminds me of my mom like that," Andy said absentmindedly as he finished off his food.

"Sounds like a strict woman, anyway so… nah I don't actually have anything to say or comment on."

Andy shrugged and then visibly remembered something. "Hey, uh, sorry about swapping you out yesterday like that honey, it was either you or Cu, and he kinda had the conceptual advantage since he already killed Medb before."

"Nah, got your stuff mixed up, she died after he died. But anyway how about we just cuddle up while watching a movie?" Astolfo suggested.

Andy checked the clock- a bit past noon. "Yeah, looks like we have plenty of time before the Meeting gets underway. Did you have anything in mind?"

"Hmm… what about a comedy I could use a good laugh."

"That sounds good," Andy said, not minding that Astolfo always went for comedies. "Let's just see what we've got available…"

After a few minutes of searching, they ended up watching Airplane, and laugh they did.

xxx

Andy hummed tunelessly while he summoned the next addition to Chaldea, his good mood still running high from the overall resounding success of the Singularity mission plus quality time with Astolfo.

The typical burst of smoke was followed by. "Hello there Master I Arjuna has manifested before you in this form of Brihannala." Said the female Arjuna.

Andy was honestly surprised his eyes didn't roll out of his head at seeing the Archer he'd put out of his misery suddenly show up wearing _that_. The genderbend thing was less weird, honestly, and he really wasn't one to talk. "Uh, thank you for answering our call, Arjuna," Andy said after a moment. "I'm Andy Murphy, and this is Mash," he said, his mouth going on autopilot as his brain tried to figure out _how the hell_ Arjuna's clothes in this form worked.

"Yes, I still remember you from America, and so then I felt the pull from the Throne. I felt that this form would be appropriate in _serving you._ To make up for my mistake, and the mindset this form gives me would make me more helpful. My skill and abilities are still the same; only the form is different if that what you worry about Master."

"To be honest, I never even got the chance to check those," Andy admitted, taking that moment to use his Stat-o-Vision, very decidedly having the panel level with Arjuna's face. He wasn't _rude_.

xxx

True Name: Arjuna

Class: Archer

Master: Andy Murphy

 **Parameters:**

Strength: A

Endurance: B

Agility: B

Mana: B

Luck: A++

Noble Phantasm: A+

 **Skills:**

Independent Action: A

Magic Resistance: C

Divinity: B

Clairvoyance(Archer): B+

The Awarded Hero: A

Mana Burst(Flames): A

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Agni Gandiva: Flame God's Yell(Anti-Unit): A

Pashupata: Raised Hand of the Destruction God(Anti-Unit): A+

xxx

"On that note, could you explain your Noble Phantasms, please?" Andy asked, more or less able to figure out the rest.

"Of course my Master. Agni Gandiva is my bow, and it is which gives me my Mana Burst(Flames) a weapon given to me by the Flame God Agni. Pashupata is my most powerful Noble Phantasm; it is a Divine Weapon given to me by Shiva. It judges all individual within a given area and should they fail to meet the check they all suffer Moksha one by one." She explained.

"Moksha?"

"Ah, that is basically the Hindu meaning for instant death Senpai," Mash answered.

"Ooh, nice. We'll just have to be careful about when to use that, so none of ours are in the blast zone." Andy said and then had a thought. "Oh, um, Arjuna, could you step outside this room for a moment? We'll be out in a bit, just need to confirm something real quick."

"Of course Master, call when you have need of me." She said as she left.

"Well, that was different from the usual." Mash commented, though from the sound of her voice she didn't really know what to make of the situation.

"Tell me about it," Andy said sympathetically as he eyed the circle. "Y'know, before I was hoping for Karna but now I'm really hoping we _don't_ summon him, at least not today." He said, motioning at how he only 1 Command Seal at the moment.

"Yeah, let's hope against that." She responded.

Andy crossed his fingers as he summoned the next Servant.

"Did not expect to be summoned by you lot, well you beat so I guess I can't complain those are the rules." Cu Alter complained as he picked at his teeth.

"Oh, good, now the mad dog is _my_ dog," Andy said absentmindedly as he checked Cu Alter's stats. And what he actually looked like outside of battle, and honestly he looked pretty cool now that he wasn't an enemy.

xxx

True Name: Cu Chulainn Alter

Class: Berserker

Master: Andy Murphy

 **Parameters:**

Strength: A

Endurance: B+

Agility: A+

Mana: C

Luck: D

Noble Phantasm: A

 **Skills:**

Mad Enhancement: EX(C)

Divinity: C

Battle Continuation: A

Fairies Maddening: A

Rune Magic: B

Protection from Arrows: C

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Gáe Bolg: Gouging Piercing Spear of Carnage(Anti-Army): B++

Curruid Coinchenn: Beast of Crunching Deathtusk(Anti-Unit(Self)): A

xxx

"And, to be clear, that's literally how I hear your name because of this-" Andy tapped the babylon fragment hanging from his neck "-translator. It wasn't a demeaning thing."

"And why should I care, I am your dog now not a King anymore you beat me you're my ruler now. So I shall kill whoever you point me at." He responded.

"Well, the killing thing won't be for a bit yet, we get a _lot_ of downtime between big battles here, compared to in a Singularity," Andy said. "So, when that time comes around I'll need to know how your Fairies Maddening skill and your Noble Phantasms work, in the meantime, you can just relax."

"I intend to, but do I have to explain I thought I gave good enough example of them then we fought? And my skill does mental stuff that lowers my opponent's agility and strength."

"Well, with your Gae Bolg, I didn't actually see whatever your version of it does, and with Cur...Curry….the other one I just want to know if it regrows if pieces break off." Andy asked, struggling to pronounce Curruid Coinchenn since he'd only heard it once in the heat of battle.

"I just can't do the causality thing anymore just throw it harder, and then heal the damage it causes. And yes it does, and it boosts my Strength and Endurance to EX." He grumbled out.

Andy was literally sparking with joy at that. "Use it right now, break off your horn, and give to me then, please." He ordered, sounding more like an eager child in a candy shop asking for sweets instead of the bone of a long-dead sea creature.

"Ugh aren't you a demanding one."

Andy smiled as his request was fulfilled.

xxx

A/N: If you like this or any other of my stories you can donate to my P A Treon. com (Slash) StreamingViking and read commissioned stories


	89. Brains and Booty

"Okay everyone, as I'm sure most of you already know, these are Thomas Edison and Helena Blavatsky, two of the Casters we recruited in the singularity. Thomas, Helena, meet the best and brightest of Chaldea." Andy introduced the two to the Meeting of the Minds.

"I am happy to see more join our Think Tank to assist our Master in his endeavor." Spoke Paracelsus as he greeted the two Casters. As he was somewhat the Vice-President of the club, with Da Vinci being the leader when she bothered to show up. For the woman still had to make sure the rest of Chaldea and its machines did not blow up.

"Yes, I am glad to be here," Edison responded back with Helena giving only a slight bow to the man and the others.

"Alright, now that everyone's introduced, Edison, would you be so kind as to explain your personal skills? We need to know the extent of everyone's abilities to best put them to use." Andy said, eager to know.

"Their names explain themselves really. My Concept Improvement is at its very foundation the Reinforcement Attribute of Magecraft taking to its limits. Swords become sharper, axes heavier even concepts can be added to things. Though my limit comes to Divine Armaments so something like your dagger Medea of Colchis would be out of my field to improve. Though perhaps it is possible for me to fuse it with another Noble Phantasm have to look into that."

"Please do not touch my Noble Phantasm." Came the objection from the princess. Andy could see her eye slightly twitch as she looked at the lion man.

"And as for my Mass Production skill." The man continued ignoring the Greek woman's words. "On its own, it can not reproduce high-ranking mystery objects of great strength what I made in America is its maximum output. That being my modified versions of Babbage's Helter Skelter in terms of mystical weight. Though combined with my Concept Improvement I can cheat a little and make them a little stronger than they should be. Something that can be counted as D-Rank Noble Phantasms at their best."

"That you did Thomas Edison." Spoke Babbage. "But could you tell me how you were able to replicate my Helter Skelter?" He asked.

"Yeah, I've been wondering that too, since the Helter Skelters are a Servant thing, so how did you know about the abilities of a Servant you'd never seen before?" Andy asked, the question having been bugging him for a while.

At that Edison pointed at Tesla, causing the man to look away with a whistle. "He during what I am assume was the Fourth Singularity sent me a detailed message about what was happening there in an effort to 'show off' where he described your Helter Skelter in great detail, and I thought they would be usable for my cause," Edison explained.

"Ooohh, so like Kiyohime and her pen pals then, I see," Andy said, nodding. "But if you were able to reverse engineer and then apparently improve upon the design, however marginally, from just one message…" His eyes were sparking again as he trailed off into thought.

"Well, I did that in the passion of the Mad Enhancement that Zolgen put me under, so I don't know how exactly I sent it, and then you resummoned me, Andy, I wasn't even sure I did what I did. But then I looked at the MI… Well, I realized my message in the metaphorical bottle had arrived and got picked up. I got a little too embarrassed to bring it up. But still Edison you stole the man's design, you just painted them American." Tesla explained himself. "Straight up a copy and paste in form."

"Well, don't fix what isn't broken." Was the man's rather weak rebuttable?

"Please, you two." The steam man interrupted. "I do not care about that I just wished to know how, and now I have my answer."

"Now as for me." Helena began. "I sadly cannot help our Master in the production of Mystic Codes for him to use, personal use only. I am a magus of philosophy and blowing stuff up as it were. Though my skills are broad my Mahatma skill allowing me access to a great deal of Magical Foundations."

"When you say 'access,' does that include the knowledge to actually use them?" Andy asked, knowing full well the uselessness of having access to something you have no idea how to use.

"Somewhat, it is an instinctive grasp given to me by powers above us, I could easily write out the sequence of Runes to create a forest fire, but I could not tell you how I did so in great detail. With the exception of the Magecraft, I developed myself."

"I see," Andy said, leaning forward. "And, what of the art of Stitchcraft? Do you think you could use it?"

"The style of Magecraft you developed before sadly losing your ability to do so? Yes, I easily could so. Though I apologize for your loss, if I underwent the same thing, I would not know what to do if I lost my connection to the powers that be."

A grin spread across Andy's face, which made Shirou a few seats away suddenly want to leave. "If you can use Stitchcraft, you could work together sometimes with Amakusa then, when you aren't doing something else, since I'm sure given your range of Foundations you'll be called upon for other projects frequently."

"On that note, actually." Andy continued. "Edison, your Mass Production requires workers to use, yes? Ones that you push to their limits?"

"The Workshops I make to happen yes requires workers alongside myself to work at peak capacity yes. Though being pushed is not required at the moment. For crunch is not needed like it was in America for supply to meet demand."

Andy snapped, and two of the Stuffy's in the room stepped forward. "Well, these are what I call 'Stuffy's,' familiars I developed. They can work 24 hours a day, can create more of themselves as needed, and I'm willing to bet your Conceptual Improvement could very well increase their efficiency even more." He explained since he'd been using them for assembly lines since the start anyway.

"Ah, complete automation yes, they will be useful though it is going to take a bit of time to come up with new prototypes if we plan to go all the way." He explained.

"But I must say I find these both adorable and disturbing at the same time," Helena commented as she looked one of them over.

"Thank you," Andy said with a grin. He still hadn't made it past the uncanny valley with their design, so he went with making them look more cartoonish with the latest series instead. "And Edison, only prioritize the Stuffy's prototype once your other job is done."

"I will, and what is the second thing?"

Andy's grin widened a bit. "The ultimate culmination of the Meeting of the Minds' brilliance." He pointed to himself with his thumb. "Me. Or, more specifically, my current body. Your Conceptual Improvement could work out some of the kinks in the design, and now that I'm thinking about it, Helena, your access to other foundations could allow us even more variety in my design, more redundancies, backups, weapon forms, maybe even-"

"Calm down Andy," Paracelsus said interrupting the waterfall of words coming out of his mouth. "Now I think today's meeting is over, we all have work to do, and new work that needs to be finished. Along with allowing Edison and Helena to be properly situated and their Workshops up and running."

"Fiiine," Andy whined, slumping into his seat in defeat, before remembering something. "Oh, but Cu, Medea, do you have a moment?"

"We do Andy." They responded, and so the three waited until the other had left their personal meeting room before the words began to flow again.

Which was about when Emiya showed up. "Master, I hope this is important, 'cause I had to throw Cat to the dragons."

Andy winced at that, knowing full well how much they ate. "I assure you, Emiya, this is important." At that, he deposited the horn he'd acquired from Cu Alter onto the table from his hammerspace. "We're going to be making a sword."

"Ah, sorry Master, despite what you might think I am not blacksmith never touched a forge in my life. Who do you think I look like? Muramasa? Though considering what it is, I should say a Fey instead." He responded.

"Oh, don't worry, I'm not asking you to forge it for me, I just figured that since you've held a thousand blades and whatnot you'd be the best to consult on the proper shape of it, and what actual type of sword might fit me best," Andy said.

"Well, that depends on the form you want to use it with?" He asked.

Andy shrugged. "Its too small to be used with the big hands in demon form, but I think I could use it pretty well in either form? I just might have to trim it down a bit regardless, as is it's way bulkier than anything I've ever used."

"I would say in the shape of a broadsword, would fit the best with your up close strength based combat style," Emiya answered after a few seconds mulling it over. "I guess you two be melding it to fit?" He asked the two Casters.

"Yep, Medea here alters it, and then I slap as many runes on as possible. Though since it is the bones of that beast be careful who you cut with it, Andy." Caster Cu said.

Andy scoffed. "Yeah, no duh. I know not to point a weapon at someone I don't want to hurt." He said. "Oh, and Medea, if there's any left over, can you put it aside for me? I have an idea for it for later."

"I can."

"Welp let's to work princess we probably be done in two days, Andy." He responded.

And the Casters quickly left leaving only Andy and Emiya as the only two left in the room.

"Well, I better get back to the kitchen. Andy this might be a bit of rude comment from your perspective. But thank you this is probably the greatest vacation I ever had. Even if my deployment has been limited. It is certainly better than the cleanup work I usually have to deal with, the monotony of Grail Wars I've been summoned to being my only respite."

"Oh," Andy said in surprise. "Well, I'm glad that you're having a good time at the end of the world, Emiya." He said in a joking tone.

"I know, but it finally feels like I am doing the work of a hero without having to kill everyone around me indiscriminately. But Andy I will say from watching you work, I can't help but notice how similar we actually are."

"Really? How so?" Andy asked since he was pretty sure he was neither dense as a neutron star nor intent on killing his past self.

"Our desire to save everyone even at the cost of yourself, so Master promise me when you reach the end of this journey, don't die." He said as he exited through the door.

"I don't make promises I can't keep."

xxx

Andy took a deep breath to calm his nerves before knocking on Gil's door. He had no idea how the king-child would react and had brought cookies in case he needed to distract him.

"Come in Master." Was the response from the young king.

Andy did so. "Hey Gil, how are ya?" He greeted as if he wasn't here with bad news.

"I'm fine just in the middle of power leveling all my pokemon to 100." He said as he continued to play on the 3DS in his hand. "And if it's about the bike don't worry I'm not mad."

"Ohthankgoodness." Andy breathed out in relief. "I am sorry about breaking it though. And I brought some cookies if you want some?"

"I take them, probably share them with Nursery Rhyme next time she invites me to a tea party." He responded. "Besides there is only one thing I would be mad about breaking utterly. And that isn't one of them. Only my Adult Self would be, but he would more than likely just put you in infinite debt to repay it."

Andy shuddered at the idea of owing the adult King of Heroes like that as he set the plate of cookies on Gil's desk. "Thank you for being kinder then, Gil." He then registered what Gil had said earlier. "So, what's your team?"

"None currently just trying to get all pokemon evolved and maxed leveled, but my favorite to use is Torterra." He admitted. "What is yours, Andy?"

"Metagross," Andy replied with zero hesitation. "Though I had a few individual pokemon I was really attached to back in my games."

"Interesting choice, now is there something you want from me? Or do you just want to hang out?" Gil asked, his slit ruby eyes looking directly at Andy.

"Bit of a bit of b," Andy said with a shrug. "I did want to know real quickly though if you had a specific arrow with a beetle on it is all."

"I know which you speak, but sadly that is not something in my possession, while it was made by humans. The materials are not of earth, while the vault is vast there limitations to it. And sadly the power to awaken a Stand within a person is not something I possess. Even I didn't have one."

"I see," Andy said. "Since you know about it though, does that mean you actually found it in life?"

"Through my Clairvoyance after an encounter with a user while I lived in the modern world between the fourth and fifth war of that timeline." He explained.

"Ah," Andy said in understanding. He then sat down next to the blonde on the bed. "So, who're you leveling now?"

"Doing Mewtwo now." He responded.

"Nice."

xxx

April 1

"So Andy. Guess what I got ready for you, and the first answer doesn't count," Medea said as she sat on one of her chairs with a bundle of cloth on the table next to her.

"Ooh, in that case, I'll guess its a macro-sized Rule Breaker." Andy, now female, 'guessed.'

"That mouth is going to get you killed one day, and as a Servant might actually make lovely blue hair go grey. But open up your package and take a look."

Andy grinned as she did exactly that, carefully unbinding the cloth. "It hasn't killed me yet y' know~." She sorta-sung as she finished unwrapping.

And there it laid in its black and crimson glory.

A one and a half hander with a 40-inch crimson blade inlaid with black metal for structural integrity, its edge somewhat jagged as the horn had been, though now it was a completely straight blade. As Andy looked closer at it, she could just barely make out the script of runes crammed along every inch of the blade in the tiniest handwriting she'd ever seen. And on the guard, the Chaldea symbol was emblazoned in blue.

"Wow. You guys made this in two days?" Andy asked, in awe at the craftsmanship involved (though in her opinion the blade would have been better off less jagged, she understood that they weren't blacksmiths).

"It isn't complicated compared to your body and armor, where we had to make most of the materials from scratch and make it, so it didn't have any bottlenecks as the modern lingo goes for that kind of thing." Medea flattered herself a bit.

"Oh okay," Andy said a bit distractedly as she actually picked up the blade. "You guys didn't name it already did you?" SHe asked as she tried the weight, not swinging it around like an idiot yet but just getting a feel for it.

"No, we thought we would leave that to you." She responded.

"Good," Andy said as she gave the blade an experimental swing. "I was thinking something in Irish cause of the source, but maybe something Greek? Or both? Or maybe just something in English? Not sure." She rambled. "Oh yeah, did you guys make a sheath too or do I just pull it in and out of my hammerspace?"

"Press the Chaldea symbol on the handle." She said and obeying her instructions Andy followed through, and she watched as the blade vanished into the hilt. "Replicated the same trick that the Black Keys Amakusa have. Cause we made the blade a little bit to sharp for a sheath, so keep it your pocket dimension like that."

"Gotcha," Andy said, pressing the symbol again to have the blade suddenly shoot back out, then retracted, and out and in over again a few times. "That could be pretty good for surprise attacks…" She then remembered it was a piece of Curruid Coinchenn. "Oh yeah, so what does it actually do? Does it just cut good or does it does something cool?"

"It vibrates at a very high frequency. Allowing it cut through anything, that is why no sheath will work permanently for as it will just make it structurally unstable at some point." She responded. "And with it being made out that sea monsters bone, no cut it makes will heal, and through that cut, vines will grow through the body that also vibrates. We tried it out on a few bodies and the aftermath was blood and meat soup."

"Oo _oh_ oohoh, nice," Andy said in excitement, before retracting and then storing the blade. "I probably shouldn't be swinging it around like that if that's the case. Actually, I should probably learn how to properly use a sword _before_ I start using the one that cuts through anything and leaves unhealable wounds that spread and _oh god why didn't you tell me this from the start_?" She asked as she realized she had been _one_ mistake away from ruining everything in the stupidest manner possible.

"Didn't you know that already? It is the same stuff Gae Bolg is made out off." She said. "Well normal the unhealing effect would only apply absolutely to the heart, but Edison was able to boost it to all wounds. Though thanks to that is why we couldn't get the off function on the vibration to work so, we just made it 'vanish' instead." She finished. "A case of making something to good, but we managed to find a way around it."

"Yeah, to be honest, I only learned about the 'unhealable' thing with Cu Alter's version." Andy admitted, a bit ashamedly. "I always thought that was more Gae Buidhe's thing."

"Plenty of weapons have effects that make it so wounds don't heal properly, even in my Mythology a certain sickle/scythe should be familiar to you."

"Harpe?" Andy asked, pronouncing it like the bird people.

"Yes the Harp, pronounced like the instrument. A weapon forged by Hephaestus for Perseus to use to kill the Gorgon. An Anti-Immortality weapon." She responded.

"Ah." Was Andy's response to being corrected. "But I see your point though. Ugh, and I'd be putting off learning sword fighting from my lunatic teachers this whole time…" She said with a shudder, recalling how literally all of her physical trainers had their own rigorous form of sword training that would no doubt be combined into some unholy abomination of exercise. She enjoyed their teaching, truly she did, but that had been her limit. "I'm going to have bruises on bruises for _weeks_ …"

"Should have thought it through then~" Medea singsonged.

"Well, you know me. Andy 'didn't think this through' Murphy." She said, half joking half sulking. "Speaking of them though, where is Caster Cu? He obviously did all the Runes and stuff, I thought he'd of been here."

"I think he wanted to do something with his two other selves, but I don't think we have to worry about that. So he just told me to give the blade to you."

Normally Andy would have accepted that with a shrug, but given the day she was just a little more worried than usual. "That makes sense I guess." She said instead. "Was there anything else I need to know about it?"

"There isn't didn't want to make it too complicated. So, do you want some tea?" And that Andy heard the sound of a kettle going off.

This time she did shrug. "Sure, why not."

Xxx

April 2

"So, Andy are you ready for treasure hunting?" Anne asked.

The twin Rider's had come to Andy that morning to fulfill the promise she had made to the pair during the fifth Singularity for switching them out. So now the three were in France near the coastline looking for booty, they had learned about in life but had never managed to collect.

"As ready as I can be," Andy responded, adjusting the sword sheathed across her back. It was just a generic longsword with a similar weight to Name PendingTM, since as soon as she had told her collective teachers about said sword they had insisted she carry this instead to get used to it. For funsies, she was also wearing a bicorn hat based on Drake's. "Do you gals actually know what the treasure is?"

"Gold and religious artifacts. This is a treasure created by a few rouge Crusaders." Mary responded. "The guy we learned about it from said it was a family legend. Though he didn't believe it and sold us the encrypted map thinking it was worthless and thought he could scam us. But we know the real deal when we see it. We deciphered it, but before we could collect, well we met our end."

"Ah," Andy said. "I'm giving you two the lead here, so which way are we going then?"

"Well about a mile this way there should be a cliff face, that has a hidden entrance that leads down to some catacombs, probably filled with traps. And Andy could you be a bit more exciting? We're going treasure hunting, the best pirate activity. Though hopefully there won't be any ghosts like last time." Said Anne sourly, as it looked like she recalled a bad memory.

"Sorry Anne" Andy apologized. "It just hit me that I don't have Hurricane Ride anymore, so I have to walk distances like that now. I'll get more into it once we actually get to those catacombs you mentioned."

"It was nothing bad, but I will say Mary screamed louder than me when old Captain Kidd spooked us." She responded.

"Anne."

"Ops."

Which got a chuckle out of Andy.

The mile walk passed by quickly, Andy having forgotten she could still run at superhuman speeds, though while she was starting to get out of breath from the high-speed exertion, the two Servants were still perfectly fine.

"Let's see if I remember correctly from the map the switch should be… here." Anne said as he pressed her hand against the cliff's surface. And a feet to the side a part of the wall sunk into the ground. "Probably got a magus to make it for them. Though probably not to magic heavy for the non-magic users not to return to it."

"I guess that means I'll be checking for magical traps then?" Andy asked eagerly.

"Yes you will be Master, why do you think we brought you along," Mary stated.

Andy rolled her eyes, but she was grinning now. "Alright, but you two better be ready to save my ass if its a high-speed dart trap or something." She said as she entered the Catacombs, left hand held high and glowing bright enough to illuminate the way. She really needed a flashlight, either in her hammerspace or as part of a mystic code, but she kept forgetting to actually get one.

"As if, you're durable enough now with that fancy smancy body of yours."

"Mary don't be mean. And sure I save you, Andy."

"Aww, shucks you two, you're making me blush." Andy joked without turning around to face the pirates since she was legitimately looking for traps. So far, nothing.

And as they continued down into the ruin, there was still nothing.

"Ah, this is kinda boring no enemies, no nothing, not even a giant boulder chasing us down," Anne complained.

"Careful Anne. Murphy's Law is in extra effect around me." Andy reminded her, now listening for an actual boulder rolling towards them as they walked.

"That's what you get for sharing names." Stated Mary as they came to a very large door at the end of the tunnel. "Well, the treasure should be on the other side."

The smaller woman slowly began to open the door, but before Andy got a chance to look inside thoroughly. She slammed it shut.

"Eh, Mary what is it?"

"Well, now I understand why there wasn't any traps or defenses along the way. You don't really need it when you got a fully grown dragon guarding the main room. Where did the Crusaders even get that?" She told them.

Andy suddenly looked very eager. " _Fully_ grown dragon?" She asked, literally sparking with excitement.

"And there she goes," Mary stated. "I do have to ask if you've actually got a fetish for dragons Master?"

"Nope," Andy replied, popping the p. "But I _do_ have a history of using them for materials. My bigger form's arms are dragon arms, y' know. These things are _fantastic_ for making just about anything."

"And I suddenly feel great sympathy for the creature on the other side of this wall."

"So, Andy do you think you can kill it yourself, or do we call in George or the handsome Siegfried?" Anne asked. "Well they are both good looking aren't they Master?"

"Yeah, no duh, 99% of Servants I've encountered have been good looking," Andy said. "And if we can take it without a Dragon Slayer...hrm. Mary, you said it was fully grown, did you see what color its scales were?"

"They were light brownish. And currently sleeping."

A wicked grin slowly spread across Andy's face, before she pulled out an overly large witch-like cap from her hammerspace. "How good are you two at moving quietly?"

"We can, when we need too," Mary responded.

"Well good thing you need to then," Andy said as he unraveled the hat into a long ribbon, and held out one end to Mary, who was closer. "Hold on to this, it's one of Gil's treasures. As long as we hold on, we'll be invisible so we can get into position for a one-hit kill as long as we're quiet."

"Okay, sneaky, sneaky time." Said Anne.

Andy simply nodded, slipping into quiet mode now. Hopefully, Hassan's training would be put to good use today. She walked at the front of their little chain of idiots and opened the door as quietly and slowly as possible. Soon, they were inside, and Andy could finally see her latest harvest.

Well the dragon was sleeping, but not on a pile of gold like her favorite dragon did, but over to the side at the other end of the very ornate hall was a giant chest.

Classic.

Andy lead them forward, as usual, heading for the dragon's exposed neck (at least, exposed in that it was laying with its chin flat against the ground), tiptoeing through the room. Thankfully, the three made it to its neck with no problem.

Andy grinned. They were in its blind spot now, so she stowed away the still unraveled cap. _"Alright, on three, put everything you've got against this part right here."_ She said telepathically as she pointed at a specific spot along the neck where the scales changed color. Dragon anatomy had been one of the lessons she'd both asked for early on and had been quick to memorize.

She held up her left hand and counted down, right hand holding the sword she'd brought with. 3. 2. 1.

"LIGHTNING CUTTER!" Andy yelled as her sword flashed down, jolting with as much electricity as she could pump into it, and then quickly getting out of the way.

This was quickly followed up by the two pirates' Noble Phantasm.

"CARRIBEAN FREE BIRD!"

Mary rushed in first where she further broke the dragon's scales with her cutlass, which was then followed up by Anne's rifle bullet penetrating right causing damage to the dragon's insides as the shock of the hits and bullets went through it.

The dragon roared and thrashed around as it died due to simple bloodloss, and the lights went out for it.

"Nice one girls!" Andy said, holding out her hands to each for a high five.

Anne, did so with enthusiasm, while Mary was much more subdued.

"Alright, let's get you two yer booty, and then I'll get me my materials~." Andy half sung in delight. A full dragon was always great, and this time the only thing damaged was the neck, so her mind was already racing thinking of what to do with it.

"Okay, Andy. Though this worked out great didn't it? We got our treasure, and you got yours." Anne said.

"Yeah." Andy sighed in contentment as she went over to the chest. "It'd be nice if more outings could go like this, not backfiring horribly and actually getting what we came for."

"Well, luck is a fickle thing," Anne responded.

"Ain't that the truth." Andy agreed as she checked the treasure chest over for any magical traps. "This is clear of Magecraft, by the way." She said, stepping back to let the pirates have the honor of opening it.

And it was filled to the brim with jewels, gold, and many other fancy trinkets.

"Well, think we can call this jackpot," Mary said in response.

xxx

A/N: If you like this or any other of my stories you can donate to my P A Treon. com (Slash) StreamingViking and read commissioned stories


	90. Vampires in London

April 5

"Ah, Master, sorry to bother you this time of the evening, but there is something we need your permission to do and your assistance in it." Spoke Dracula with Vlad standing beside him.

"...Does it involve my blood?" Andy asked, apprehensively. Sure, early on she'd been willing to let Vlad have a sip if it made him stronger, but that had never followed through. And there were two of them now.

"No, it does not, but it does involve my ability to, and his potential to do so," Dracula responded.

"For while we hate each other, there is one thing we hate more." Said Vlad.

"That accursed book, so Master we hoped that you would join us on a trip to London and prevent the event that inspired it from happening."

"While it is fiction, all lies have a basis in truth, that there a high chance of people in London. Specifically, women being attacked by a blood-sucking monster." Vlad finished.

" _I don't think it works like Senpai."_ Came the mental voice of Mash, even though she currently sat in front of her. She didn't verbally voice her opinion.

" _Shh, if it makes them feel better, I'll do it anyway._ " Was Andy's mental response before speaking aloud. "Sure, I'll go with you two. I've wanted to see London without the Demonic Mist for a while now anyway. Kouhai, do you want to come with too?"

"Sure, why not, walking down the streets of London in the middle of the night, surely nothing bad could happen." She responded.

Andy gave her a look. "Taunting Murphy? In front of a Murphy? You should know better by now, Kouhai." Andy said with a sigh. "If we run into an Ancestor, I'm blaming you."

She just gave a smug smile.

"Ah, thank you, Andy, we truly appreciate this now of too the streets of one of the oldest cities in the world," Vlad said with happiness.

"I think that honor goes to somewhere in China but okay!" Was Andy's enthusiastic response.

Xxx

The sky was clear, and the moon was full as it shined down upon the city of London.

"Ah, I can actually see and what little fog there is here is actual fog, and smoke, And not a horrible gas that poisons people to death in seconds," Mash said as she looked around the clear city. Though she was not currently in armor, as a few people were actually walking around outside now that the danger was over.

"It is still technically a horrible gas that poisons people Kouhai, but in the long term," Andy said, enjoying being in a city of any kind when it wasn't actively trying to kill her for the first time in months.

"Ah, the industrial revolution what a wonder of human achievement, oh how I wish this had been during my life. How many firearms could be made in quick succession to crush the Ottoman?" Vlad thought out loud.

"Now is not the time for reminiscing, my kingly self, we have a mission to do, now we should make our way to the wealthier side of London, as it is tonight the attack described in the book happened," Dracula said.

"Ooh, do you think there'll be any mages among them?" Andy asked as Dracula led them to said area.

"Possibly, Master, but we are not certain. It could be just a rogue monster or a scheme we do not know. What we do know what happens to this woman, will be the catalyst for the story to be born." Dracula said.

"Even if it or not, if someone is attacked by a monster, it's our duty to kill it. Right Senpai?"

"Of course, Kouhai," Andy said. "Now, let's get that, bloodsucker!"

"Yes, Senpai."

As they walked down the street towards their destination, a loud scream rang through the night. "I think that is our victim." Spoke Vlad.

"Which direction did that scream come from?" Andy asked, now in Serious mode but unable to actually tell which direction to run in.

"Just in front us I can hear the sound of shoes clanking on the pavement now, even I had trouble discerning the direction initially. The Echo, when you get loud enough, is quite extreme here." Dracula responded.

Andy nodded, and the four rapidly approached where the scream had come from.

"Help me, oh god, please help me, someone." A woman screamed as she ran towards them.

And right, behind her a two-headed hellhound-looking dog was chasing her and had just lunged at her ready to tackle her to the ground and eat her.

"Kouhai, save her," Andy ordered. "That puppy is _mine_."

"Senpai, don't pet the two-headed zombie looking dog." She shouted as she changed outfit and stabbed it with her sword. Though the second she did the beast's body dissolved into a black sludge. "What in the?" She asked as it splattered to the ground.

"Sample that Kouhai!" Andy said before turning to the woman who had been moments earlier, running from the thing. "Excuse me, ma'am, are you alright?"

"I am thank you for saving me, but what was that thing?" She asked her voice and body was shaky as sweat dripped from her skin.

"Honestly, I was hoping you knew," Andy said. "Do you remember where it showed up? I feel like there might be more than that my friends and I might need to deal with."

"It, it came from his body I ran from him and that, that thing just leaped out his body and started to chase me." She shakingly responded.

"Hmm, Senpai the sludge stuff just crawled away," Mash said.

"Who is the 'he' in this instance, ma'am?" Andy said at the same time, she telepathically messaged, _"Did you sample any, Kouhai?_ " in order to hold two conversations at once.

" _No, Senpai, it broke out of the container."_

"She would be talking about me. So, you're the one interfering with my meal. And here I thought with the Clock Tower having gone underground London would have made for an easy meal. But here I am looking at filthy half-breed and Servants." Spoke a voice that sounded suspiciously similar to a certain fake-priest. And from the shadows walked out an ugly motherfucker.

"Half-breed? I take it you're a full-demon then? You definitely _look_ like one." Andy taunted, internally squeeing at having such prime materials either way.

"I am not I just know the smell of that kind, after having absorbed a few and their factor into my body. I myself am a Dead Apostle and that woman besides would have given me a week worth of sustenance." He spoke with an aggressive tone that was filled with arrogance. Like a beast on the prowl for prey.

"A Dead Apostle, you say?" Vlad and Dracula spoke at the same time with glee.

"Oh, my what an honor to meet you in the flesh times two at that, Lord Impaler. Loved your handy work and wars those few hundred years ago. Made for an easy meal, didn't even have to kill anyone." He spoke. "But allow me to introduce myself, my name is Nero Chaos. Now would like to become a part of me?" He asked as his flesh began to bubble and he well... started Alucarding it up. That was the only comparison Andy could make at the moment as she looked at him.

"Do you like it? It is thanks to my Reality Marble: Lair of the Beast King, I can absorb various entities and make them become a part of my body. And now you get to replace that dog you killed." He monologued.

"...Hey, you wouldn't happen to be willing to submit your body for study if we give you a steady supply of 'food,' would you?" Andy asked, figuring she at least try.

Nero responded by having the mouth on his stomach, lash out and trying to eat her.

"I'll take that as a no, then," Andy said as Mash blocked the attack with ease. "Shame. Still, haven't been able to study a non-servant's Reality Marble." She shook her head. "Oh well. Vlad, Drac, impale him."

"Kazikli Bey!" They shouted as they activated their Noble Phantasm. Stakes of flesh and blood extended from Dracula's body, and ones of metal and wood appeared from the ground impaling Nero like a pincushion.

"Like you could disrupt the sea of chaos that is my body." He said as he walked through the weapons like he was the T-1000.

"Take this!" He shouted as his arm transformed into a wyvern's head flames spewing from it.

The two Servants dodged while Mash carried the civilian woman away from the battle.

" _Apologies Andy, but it seems that our attacks do not have the greatest effect against this creature. Another fellow Servant would be helpful, we should be able to pin him while our comrade finishes him off. He is arrogant at the moment, believing himself invincible to traditional physical damage."_

" _Yeah, I think it's Saint time,"_ Andy replied as he dialed up the wanted Servants before swapping them in. In a flash, Amakusa, Jeanne, and Georgios were there. "Hey guys, Dead Apostle attacking us, could use some assistance." Andy quickly caught them up, pointing at said Apostle.

"Of course, Master, we shall let him feel God's holiness," Amakusa said as he drew his black keys.

The other two nodded, and the Vlads quickly shared their plan.

"More Servants it does not matter your blessings will not kill me, not even the Crusaders and Hassashins could," Nero said as his beasts surged out him like tentacles.

"But you fought against humans, not Servants how arrogant of you to assume you will win when we, especially them hold a conceptual advantage over you Dead Apostle. We are agents of the Human Order, the very thing that makes it, so your need for blood to sustain yourself is so bad." Vlad spoke. "Kazikli Bey." They activated their Noble Phantasms again stakes pining him and his beasts to the ground. And before he could escape from its dozens of Black Keys impaled his body in various places.

"And we are the ones truly blessed by the Lord," Amakusa said as he, George, and Jeanne began to chant.

"No, how this should not work, argh!" Nero screamed in pain as his body quite simply began to burn away.

"And so Kyrie Eleison." They finished.

"It was a good thing you brought all of us along Master, for if only one of us were here, the prayer would not have been strong enough to kill that monster," Jeanne spoke.

Andy watched as the rest of the still struggling Nero burned into nothingness. "Yeah, literally thank God for that one. Though it's a shame I wasn't able to study the damn sludge pile, would have loved to have on-demand doggos."

"Senpai you probably wouldn't have been able to anyway if you killed him, by exhausting his energy supply. Those monsters were a product of his Reality Marble and only existed because of him. Kill him, it starts a chain of causality where the RM cease to exist and so the beasts within." Mash stated. "Thankfully, we managed to stop him before he turned London into a bloodbath."

"True," Andy said, nodding, before grinning impishly. "It's your fault we ran into an Ancestor at all, though, Kouhai."

"I have no knowledge of which you speak of Senpai, it your fault as your luck when it comes to encounters is worse than Lancer Cu's." She responded.

"Ah-ah-ah, but you must consider Kouhai, I have yet to ga shinda even once, so my luck is at least a D." Andy corrected her. "Plus, you were the one to taunt Murphy, I at least fully expect horrible things when I do that."

"Well, enough about that we have changed events so now that book will never be written. Perhaps a tale of a woman being saved by handsome heroes from a villain that is in no way related to Vlad the Third will be written instead."

"Yes, absolutely, our plan has worked."

" _I don't know if I want to feel sad for them or not or just sigh at their behavior."_ Mash mentally spoke.

" _Sigh,"_ Andy responded, doing exactly as she had suggested as she did. _"At least they seem to be getting along again_." She then switched to speaking aloud. "So, Vlad, Drac, did you two have anything else you wanted to do while we're here in London?"

"No, we do not." They said at the same time.

"Then the whole lot of you can head back if you choose," Andy said to her Servants, before turning to Mash. "So, Kouhai. Would you like to enjoy the city while we can? It's not quite a modern one, but it's the closest we've been to one since this started." She said, specifically ignoring the whole Apartment of Horrors thing.

"I would like that, Senpai." She responded.

"Fantastic!" Andy said, hooking arms with her Kouhai. "Then off we go!"

Xxx

April 7

"So, Kouhai, what Class do you think this one'll be?" Andy asked as Mash set up the Summoning Circle.

"I'm going to guess Lancer, though hopefully, it won't be another Arjuna situation, I don't think you need two combat maids Senpai." She said, letting out an awkward laugh as she mentioned the genderbent Archer's chosen role. "And the circle is ready to be used Senpai."

"Alright, let's see if you're right!" Andy said as she summoned the newest addition to Chaldea. The smoke came and went, revealing the new Servant.

"I come from the Land of Shadows… oh, it's you brat, so you managed to survive?" Scathach spoke.

"Lady Scathach, what a pleasure to have you with us." Andy greeted the Lancer. "And yes, thanks to some quick thinking and the power held by Arash Kadingir, we were able to make it through the Singularity relatively unscathed."

"The Archer? Yes, a Servant of that power would be a quite the trump card." She said.

"Yeah," Andy said, recalling the effects of Stella. "Oh, but speaking of scathed, Lady Scathach, I would like to make a request, if I may be so bold."

"If it a request for sex when no, you quite haven't earned that yet." She nonchalantly responded.

"No, but in a way, it's similar," Andy said. "I want you to break me."

"Hmm, my brat, I would ask if you were a masochist, to ask me to train you. But no, I am not your teacher, not your lover, not your mother, not your sister, I am your Servant that is simply it. I thought for you, you can command me in battle, I will even die for you. But train you? No that I will not do. Those days, those days are long since behind me." She spoke with a voice melancholy and regret.

"...Would you be willing to give the Cu Chulainns advice on teaching?" Andy asked, once more, deciding to push her luck.

"Well if Setanta wants it. I do owe him a few favors." She responded.

Andy resisted the urge to fist-pump the air at the relatively small victory. "I'm sure they'd be happy to hear from you, Lady Scathach." She said instead. "Oh yeah, I almost forgot, I actually summoned the one we fought in the Singularity. Did you want to discipline him, or are you good?"

"No with you as his Master, I think he already suffered enough at your sadistic hands."

"I didn't know you were like that, Senpai." Said Smug Mash, butting in on the conversation. "Perhaps we should ask Astolfo for confirmation."

"I am not a sadist!" Andy insisted, face reddening. "And leave Astolfo out of this!" She then crossed her arms. "Anyway, the only thing I've done to the Mad Dog was take his horn. _And not like that, dammit_!"

The two other women laughed in response.

xxx

A/N: If you like this or any other of my stories you can donate to my P A Treon. com (Slash) StreamingViking and read commissioned stories


	91. Andy vs Jalter

April 8

"Da Vinci what did you sound the alarm for?" Roman asked as he, along with Andy, Mash, Emiya, and Jeanne entered the woman's Workshop after she had sounded the emergency alarm and called for people to go to her workshop to help her. Emiya and Jeanne being the only other Servants that had bothered to respond to her 'cry' for help.

"An emergency of the highest order Romani, Caesar and Paracelsus were checking out a rather peculiar Lesser Singularity to see if it would cause a problem and they reported back with this!" She shouted as she slammed a stack of papers, no parchment onto the table in front of her. And then spread them out for all to see. Every single piece containing a single image that was the exact same thing.

Da Vinci's face or rather to be more precise the Mona Lisa. "Can you see my dilemma here, why this an emergency? Someone in that Singularity have been making counterfeits of my Mona Lisa and spreading them out to the people in it. So, you shall assist me in catching this vile criminal for counterfeiting and ruining my pride." She said the last part very quickly. An appropriate sound reaction was given by Emiya facepalming.

Andy gave her a flat look. "Leo, you know people have been replicating your Mona Lisa basically since it got famous, right? It's literally one of the most famous, and thus most recreated, pieces of art like, ever."

"Yeah, Da Vinci, you're overreacting, and besides it's not like it's your prettiest painting," Roman responded. It took literally all of Andy's willpower to neither dope slap the doctor nor facepalm at his words.

"Romani I will straight up kill you if you repeat that." She threatened and got a squeak out of the doctor. "If it had been after my death sure, but chronologically this was made before my time. And to make it weirder each one of these was produced by hand, and not copied you can make a timeline out these becoming more and more accurate to my painting."

"Well, that does sound like trouble Lady Da Vinci, I shall assist you in your endeavor." Jeanne agreed to help.

Andy's curiosity was peaked now as to who would be trying to replicate Da Vinci's work in such a manner now. "Alright, so where and when are these all coming from?"

"A Lesser Singularity as I said situated around the Greater France Singularity. There we shall join up with Caesar and Paracelsus, and they shall provide us with further info."

"Aight...wait, 'we'? You're going in too, Leo?" Andy asked, surprised.

"That I am, I shall personally punish whoever our dear perpetrator is." Da Vinci responded.

"Well I might as well come along, I know a good deal about counterfeiting, so I should be able to help track down whoever is doing this," Emiya said.

"That's six then," Andy said with a nod. "We're ready to go whenever you are Leo."

"That I am, Rayshifting for the first time, how exciting." She said as she took the first step out of her Workshop.

As they went to the Coffins, Andy stalled to the end of the little group to talk to Roman. "Uh, Doc, Leo _can_ fight, right?" She asked, skeptical.

"She, can that staff she carries around is capable of beams, and the arm she carries it with is actually a prosthetic she can replace with a combat one that has a rocket punch. Her personal, extremely private thing. She only told me about it, and now I am telling you since you asked nicely."

"So _that's_ why she didn't let me have a rocket punch, she wanted that to be _her_ thing…" Was Andy's take away from that. "Oh, also, before I forget," Andy said before very very lightly smacking Roman upside the head.

"Ouch, why did you do that?"

"You insulted Leo's face earlier you genius nincompoop," Andy said. "Or did you forget she looks like the Mona Lisa on purpose?"

"My eyes are mostly on her breasts most of the time. Almost as big as hers." He said with a tone of reminiscence.

Andy smacked him upside the head again.

"Blame my father, almost a new woman at home every week while I grew up, only thing about women that interest me." Andy could hear the bait.

"Doc. I think you're being a little close-minded," Andy said. "After all, one of, if not _the_ , best chests in Chaldea belongs to that one." She said, pointing ahead...at Emiya.

"That is true, from that perspective. Emiya is freaking broad-chested, no wonder the child Servants call him Mamaya."

"I HEARD THAT!"

Andy almost squeed at hearing that. "Aww, but Mamaya sounds so cute!"

"I HATE YOU! WHY DID YOU HAVE TO TELL HER THAT!"

"Aww, Emiya that is adorable Nursery Rhyme, and Jack must really like you." Said Jeanne.

"Yeah, Alice doesn't even call _me_ mom," Andy added.

"I don't think you've proposed that option to her. I think she is just following Jack's lead in what she calls others besides you." Mash added.

"...Right you are, Kouhai." Andy said as she realized she really hadn't. She had tried to get Jack to call her 'dad' or some variant when she was male(which had failed miserably) but hadn't even offered the option for Alice to call her anything of the sort in either form. "Adding that to the to-do list once we're done with this."

Xxx

"Ah, as fresh air as you can possibly get in our current situation." Da Vinci added as landed in the Singularity. And yeah, could see why Da Vinci considered this Singularity weird as from where she stood on top of one of the roofs that filled the small town. She could see a beach a mile a to the south, a desert to the west, a frozen tundra to the north and then a dense pinewood forest to the east.

"Okay, so I guess we're in Springfield then?" Andy joked upon seeing the intersection of biomes.

"Nice one, but this is supposed to be southern France, so the only accurate location is the beach. Which fun fact was there Martha spent most of her later life." Da Vinci exposited.

"Oh, great. So whoever's doing this is counterfeiting more than just your work." Andy noted.

"Well, now that I am here and analyzing the air personally I can tell you that is, in fact, true, and they used a shard of Grail to maintain this place like Liz does her Castle and its surrounding area." She answered.

"So, that means whoever is behind this we encountered in one of the greater Singularities with the complete Grail to get a piece of it to use." As Emiya said it, Jeanne let out of a huge sigh.

"I figured it out, the pieces fall to perfectly into place. Now my Revelation earlier today makes sense." She said.

"Lemme guess. Your emo counterpart is behind this?" Andy asked, having been suspecting it with all the 'fakes' already involved.

"Ninety percent sure it's my Alter." She responded.

"And we be a hundred percent sure when we regroup with Caesar and Paracelsus," Mash said.

"Alright, let's see, they're in…" Andy said, feeling the connection. "Oh, they're just in the town below us, about...three buildings that way, I'd say. Let's go see what's up." She said, hopping off the roof and resisting the urge to do the superhero landing.

They followed and walked to where the two Servants were standing. "Ah, hello Master, did Da Vinci bribe you to solve her issue?" Paracelsus asked in a joking tone.

"Well, I don't know why she has a problem with this. If this had been after her time, this would have been an excellent scam as these fakes are almost as good as hers, could easily have made tons of money selling those." Caesar said though it sounded like he was talking only to himself.

"I am standing right here."

"Sorry, my mind wanders when it comes to money." He responded.

"So, what's the 411 boys?" Andy asked once they were done with their banter. "Do we know who's responsible for all this yet?"

"Well we asked the townsfolk, and we managed to track the paintings' origin to this building, who it is we do not know," Paracelsus reported.

"But, we do know that it is a Servant, behind it as we can sense a Saint Graph from inside of it, and a few other things we are not sure about." Caesar finished.

"Makes sense," Andy said, before turning to Da Vinci. "Alright, Leo, this one's gonna be your call, are we going in civil or loud?"

"I say." She said as she kicked down the front door open. "Let's invite ourselves in like we're American Debt Collectors."

"Loud it is, then," Andy said, following right behind the Renaissance Woman, arm cannon at the ready.

Which was an exact recreation of Da Vinci's Workshop filled with IRL inventions and works. Mona Lisas, Vitruvian man, and various renditions of her manuscript.

But no one was here.

"This is strange we were sure er sensed a Servant in here?" Said Paracelsus as he walked forward. "But there is nothing here now."

"Well, its seems our culprit is improving. I can tell in the strokes of the paint if it is her she no longer seeks to match me but surpass me. But why is she doing this?" Da Vinci asked as she looked at one of the paintings.

"You truly wish to know Chaldea." Said the voice, Jeanne Alter. They turned to look at the end of the room and saw her, well at least a holographic projection of her as her image kept flickering like a bad TV.

"That we do," Andy said, before smiling and waving. "Also, hi Miss Holy Maiden!"

"Vengeance against you!" She shouted. "For the humiliation, I suffered at your hands, in the Greater Singularity and you making fun of me during Christmas. And now that I've lured you to this Singularity I shall destroy you and surpass her." She said, pointing at Jeanne.

"Well, I think you've already done that for I don't have a talent for this stuff." She said, pointing at all the stuff Alter had made.

"...Don't you dare to trivialize my vengeance quest." She shouted. "Now you shall face my masterpieces one at a time in combat. Now meet the first of my Seven Evil Counterfeit Servants." As her image vanished. And from around the corner walked an Alexander. "Hello." The shota greeted them.

"Hey, Al. Guessing you're gonna fight us, would you be willing to surrender if we beat you?" Andy asked.

"Yep and nope I am counterfeit Servant so I am not even real, not even a Rider but a Saber. I am made in the image of Ototo, helping out his lovely Onee-Sama to gain her affection and eventual love."

"Gross."

"I don't know if I should break down laughing or if I should feel what modern kids would call the big cringe for this is getting oddly personal," Emiya said pure deadpan.

"Well at least I say she has taste, perhaps I should get to paint our Alexander while nude or me painting while nude."

"Da Vinci keep that to yourself." Mash groaned.

"I might actually use a Command Seal on ours to make sure he doesn't get within 30 feet of you now." Andy half-joked, hoping Da Vinci was joking, and more than a bit squicked out since she still mentally associated Alexander, the servant with Alexander, her little brother.

"Hmm, so we gonna fight or not?" Fake Alex asked.

"Right, right, sorry about that." Andy apologized, before suddenly firing off several lightning slugs in rapid succession at the fake.

"You dick." He said as he vanished having been taken by surprise by the shots and one had pierced his heart and destroyed the spirit core.

"Neat, so the fakes are weaker than an actual Servant," Andy stated the obvious. "That or the stopping power on this thing is a lot better than I thought it was."

"A bit of both really." Da Vinci said. "Great now are going on a goose chase for her. Though maybe not." She added as her staff projected a screen. And she began to type.

"Hey, Jeanne, are you still able to kind-of feel where your counterpart is?" Andy asked out of curiosity, knowing not to interrupt the genius at work.

"No, I can't she has very much become her own entity at this point, and I think she is not even a Ruler anymore like me." She answered.

"Makes sense. I have a feeling she doesn't qualify for the 'not wanting the grail' thing." Andy said with a nod.

"Eh, the only qualification the Ruler class has is to be impartial, so as long you can make a fair judgment you can be summoned as one." She answered.

"Okay, I've got a trail for us to follow I swear she did this on purpose." Da Vinci said as she exited her funk zone.

"Lemme guess, we're gonna have to go through each section of this weird intersection place and fight a counterfeit there before actually getting to her?" Andy asked, no stranger to convoluted plots.

"Exactly, I'm picking up another Counterfeit up at the beach area." She responded.

"Alright, let's head over there and deal with it," Andy said with a sigh. "I wonder when we'll find a beach we can actually enjoy without having to deal with killer Servants?" She wondered aloud as Da Vinci led the way to the second fake.

They arrived at the beach after a few minutes where Andy saw the second evil boyfriend stand, for in an epiphany she had realized how much this reminded her of Scott Pilgrim vs. The World.

"Ugh, poor Siegfried, even if he is a Counterfeit he must be feeling sorry for being roped into this." Said Caesar as they looked upon the dragonslayer standing in the sand.

"I am your second opponent, and I am sorry." He apologized. "NOT Why the fuck should I be fucking sorry about anything I am going to beat the ever living shit out of your punk ass bitches you're all going to take Balmung up the ass. I am the juvenile childhood friend who beats the shit out of people who come after the person he loves. Time to eat shit assholes, for I am not fucking sumenai about this!" He yelled at them.

"Yeah, go, Siegfried, finally standing up for himself!" Andy cheered without thinking. In response to the dirty looks from her Servants, she gave a cheeky grin. "What? I gotta be glad at least one version ended up all right."

xxx

A/N: If you like this or any other of my stories you can donate to my P A Treon. com (Slash) StreamingViking and read commissioned stories


	92. Joan

"Argh!" Fake Siegfried roared as he charged at them with Balmung it's blue energy coiling around the blade as he didn't release the beam, but kept it in the blade. So now he had a big fuck of Lightsaber with some serious reach.

"Kouhai, if you would," Andy said, knowing she had plenty of experience with blocking sword beams at this point.

"Denied!" She shouted as she parried Siegfried's attack away, and backhanded him, causing him to spin in the air all the while Emiya's arrows rained down on him like a machine gun.

" **Crocea Mors!** " Caesar shouted as he sneaked up behind Siegfried camouflaged by one of Paracelsus' spells and rapidly slashed his weak point.

"Not sorry." He said as he vanished.

"Alright Leo, where to next?" Andy asked almost immediately.

"To the desert, picked up the energy signature of one there, god this is annoying." She said as she pushed away her holographic screens.

"Leo, I have to do shit like this what feels like every other Tuesday," Andy said unimpressed. "Honestly, this is one of the tamest ones yet in the 'annoyance' part, since at least Siegfried's copy was funny."

"Yes, even I would have to say that was rather hilarious, despite the foul language used," Jeanne said.

Andy nodded. "So yeah, at least it's not the Dumpling thing again. Or Nobu." She said with a shudder.

"I rather liked the Dumpling thing, but yeah no more Nobu shenanigans, well more than the usual the damn Westabo gets up to." Da Vinci complained.

"...We should probably go after the next fake instead of giving Miss Holy Maiden more ideas." Andy said.

"You should stop with that Senpai, or she will never accept the punch of friendship you happily give out." Mash joked.

Andy tsked. "Kouhai, Kouhai, Kouhai, don't you know? A key part of turning the enemy to your side is giving them a nickname they find annoying at first but over time come to see as endearing, that's like Shonen 101."

"Anyway we're here, and it seems our runner up in this rom-com parody is…" Emiya made a held a dramatic pause before continuing. "Hector."

"You know I can definitely see him fitting in this situation," Caesar said.

"Yoho, so I am the third one, and I am the friendly neighboring old man that has become smitten with the maiden living next door." He paused for a few seconds before he continued. "I fucking knew referring to myself as that constantly would eventually bite me in the ass. Okay, just kill me." He said as he bought up his spear. "I am now attacking you. Please just shot me." He said as he slowly walked towards them with spear pointed at them.

"Your cooperation is appreciated." Andy said before motioning to Emiya, who loosed a few normal arrows at and through the 'suicidal' Trojan.

"Thank you." He responded as he vanished.

"Alright, let's see what Servant she's made a mockery of next. Where to?" Andy asked, eager to get the fakes out of the way.

"Up to the Ice Biome, and poor Hector, though kinda makes me want to see how Achilles would have responded if you had managed to summon him at this point in time and brought him along. Would probably have broken down laughing is my guess." Da Vinci theorized.

"Of course, Hector would have wanted to die for a different reason then," Andy added as they headed for the next fake.

"How does this even work?" Jeanne complained as they entered the Ice Biome from the desert and straight into a snowstorm that was raging.

"Magic." Said Paracelsus with a degree of mirth in his voice.

"I feel like you've been waiting for years to use that," Emiya said. "Now who is our next unlucky victim?"

"Hopefully not George… Everyone get down Luminosite Eternelle!" She shouted as she activated her Noble Phantasm covering them all in its holy barrier as the entire area exploded in shockwaves and fire. And after a solid thirty seconds of explosions, they stopped, and Jeanne had to drop it.

Though now the storm was gone, but the entire area was scorched and the few trees that were there, were gone. But now it also gave them an ample view of who had been attacking them. It was not one but two Evil Counterfeits, who stood before them.

Arash and Arjuna. (Male not female like Andy's.)

"Okay, even fakes of those two would be stronger than the average Servant," Emiya stated.

"Wow, it looks like you all survived. Well, allow us to introduce ourselves, we are the two foreign exchange students, who became smitten with the girl that showed them around on the first day of school. And we might be fake, but that doesn't mean we won't give it our all." Arash said as he loaded another arrow.

"Emiya, show them the power of the Superior 'Fake' Archer if you would?" Andy said.

"I will, Mash shield up while I do this."

"Okay, Lord Camelot." She planted her shield down, and the walls of utopia were raised up as they were bombarded once again.

"I am the bone of my sword, steel is my body and fire is my blood, I have created over a thousand blades, unknown to death nor known to life, have withstood pain to create many weapons, yet those hands will never hold anything, so as I pray. UNLIMITED BLADE WORKS!" Emiya finished his chant and fire spread from a circle around them that consumed them and the two Counterfeits, into his Reality Marble.

It was certainly something to experience first hand, as Andy looked at the field of blades, the smokey sky filled with gears.

"You two shall now face an infinite number of blades," Emiya said as he lifted his hand up and the two shocked Counterfeit Servants who were still taking in their bearings. And so thousands of swords filled the sky.

Emiya moved his hand down.

And it rained.

The two tried to counter with arrows, but it did not work as they now become pincushions.

"Haven't gotten to do that in a while." Emiya finished as his Reality Marble disappeared. "And Master I might be good at archery, but that is mostly single arrow sniping, due to my technique. Not the bullshit Arash and Arjuna can pull out of their assess."

"...Emiya, your class is still 'Archer,' so my previous statement is still true." Andy said stubbornly, which was a bit ruined given how she was currently still visibly starstruck from seeing Unlimited Blade Works in action. She was also resisting the urge to make an 'Archer class is made up of archers' joke, which didn't help.

"True, I just bought out a bigger bow to match theirs."

"I don't think you can all a Reality Marble a bow?" Caesar said.

"Well, if Gilgamesh can his gate one I can call my Reality Marble one."

"Well, I can't argue with that kind of logic."

"Leo, how many of these fakes are left now?" Andy asked.

"Well if the 'theme' is going to match and her words are true, there should only be two left." She responded.

"Oh right, she did say there were seven," Andy remembered aloud. "God, my brain just like melts during all of these. I'm honestly surprised if I can remember anything about them after the fact considering I can't remember during." She said as they headed towards number 6.

"Yeah, and if we try and send you off on vacation, the stupid seems to follow as with Mysterious Heroine X, how is she by the way? Hopefully, she hasn't assassinated any of you Saber's?" Da Vinci asked.

"She's been getting along with them surprisingly well, considering," Andy answered. "Especially once she realized she was outnumbered and I have Command Seals. But she's also weirded out by the whole pseudo-adoption thing, which might play into it."

"Well that is good to hear and… huh, guess the sixth, seventh, and our dear troublesome Alter are inside this Castle." Da Vinci said as the stood in front of the castle they had come upon after walking through the forest Biome for a few minutes. It had been impossible to see for the rather large trees.

"Convenient." Was Andy's reply. "Now, should we 'knock' or just let ourselves in?"

"I think we should just let ourselves in." She responded.

"Allow me." Paracelsus, as he took out a ruby and threw it at the gate and the wooden barrier, was instantly ashed. "Wanted to see if it was booby-trapped, guess it was not."

"...I think we need to have a 'slang and codeword' meeting sometime soon, cuz I did mean blowing up the way in like that when I said 'knock.'" Andy said. "Though this is still a bit quieter than what I had had in mind…"

"Ah, I apologize Master, but now we can at least enter," Paracelsus said.

"True," Andy said as they did just that.

They walked through the castle towards the signal of the sixth Counterfeit, and they found him standing outside what was probably the door to where Alter was holed up. And Andy didn't know if she should be pissed and angry or just filled with cringe as she looked at him.

"Hello would like to buy some Jeanne d'Arc Alter merchandise I have the finest wares." Said Bluebeard behind his booth that wouldn't look out of place in a convention. "Models, comics, posters, banners, and stickers."

"Oh thank god he's not romantically after her." Andy sighed in relief. Since from her conversations with her Jeanne and Gilles, he was basically her dad, or at least father figure.

"I think Andy that this Gilles is her recreation of what she thought he was like in her mind. A massive fanboy that enables her." Jeanne said as she facepalmed.

"Ah, this isn't Jeanne, have you come to visit your sister I am sure she will be pleased to see you?" Bluebeard asked.

"Aww, Jeanne she sees you like a sister." Andy cooed. Despite the all-around weirdness of literally everything about the current situation that was oddly adorable.

"Why, yes Gilles I am. I guess she is on the other side of that door." Jeanne asked.

"Why, yes she is. Go right on in." And gah did that happy smile of his send shivers of disgust through Andy's spine.

As such Andy very quickly opened the door and ushered everyone else in to get away from the demon summoner. "Even when he's being helpful I want to punt him into the sun." She said with another shudder.

"Same." Came the response from all the other Servants.

"Welp, at least this one won't cause any trouble," Jeanne said, followed by a few awkward laughs. Before settling on a sour expression.

Though as the door closed, they got to hear and see the circus what was happening inside.

"Master, let me press my body up against yours, so that I may show you, my love." Said the counterfeit Brynhildr, as she tried to hug Alter, while she tried to push her away.

"Argh, why are you like this? This is totally not the role I gave you."

"I just chose a new one."

"That's not how that works!"

"I love you!"

"Begone!" Alter said as she threw Brynhildr across the room, but the Valkyrie in a feat worthy of a horror movie landed like a spider and began to crawl across the floor like one towards Alter.

"Ahh!" She screamed in horror as she tried to run away and the two just went around in a circle. While Brynhildr shouted for Alter to embrace her. Followed by a, "Like hell." from the dark saint.

"Do you need some help over there Miss Holy Maiden?" Andy called out.

That caused Alter to turn her head towards the group. "You!" Shouted but by doing so while still running caused her to run straight into a pillar, which caused her to fall down onto the ground. Which when allowed Fake Brynhildr to catch up to her and she began to snuggle into Alter. "Fuck, if you want me to pet you, kill them first!"

"Okay, Master, I shall pierce these who dare interrupt our snuggle time," Brynhildr said as she stood up from the impromptu snuggling and summoned her spear.

"Leo, you wanna show the power of the Renaissance or are you waiting to whoop Miss Holy Maiden's ass?" Andy asked.

"No, I take this one." She said, as she her right hand took her staff and she pointed the one left at the Fake Brynhildr. "Rocket Punch!" She shouted as the fist blasted of her arm and straight into Brynhildr's face which sent the fake valkyrie flying to the opposite wall where she dissipated.

"Oh, c' mon. I thought they would at least kill one of you. And now that you've beaten all my Counterfeit Servants."

"Actually we didn't beat Bluebeard, he just kinda let us through." Emiya interrupted Alter.

"...Fucking moron!" She complained.

"Speaking of morons, would you mind explaining what the point of this whole thing was, Miss Holy Maiden?" Andy asked.

"Well to hopefully have you all die, but that was obviously a failure. But the primary purpose was to stabilize my own existence as I am lie based on a side her that never existed. The dark side of Jeanne d'Arc. Thankfully now I am an ephemeral dream that has been grounded, proven by the fact that I am now an Avenger Class Servant and not a Ruler anymore."

"So that's why you made the fakes!" Andy said, putting the pieces of Alter's plan together. "So you could have something to avenge, right?"

"And to have a bit of fun, used a shard of the Grail to do it, but I did. And now I can say I am more real than ever before." She said with a smug tone.

Andy clapped. "Congratulations on becoming a true edgelord, Miss Holy Maiden!" She said, not a single hint of sarcasm in her words. The Count had left quite the impression after all.

"I am going to burn you alive."

"Hmm, Miss Alter, there is no need for that, Senpai doesn't mean it that way. Though how about you join us and we all go back to Chaldea and get to know each other." Mash proposed.

"Think of it this way, Miss Holy Maiden: If you resist now, you'll be sent back to the throne and will have to wait for some super messed up fuckwad like Bluebeard out there to summon you to get any semblance of vengeance, and we'd probably kick your ass then too. Or you could come to Chaldea with us and instead bother me and make my life hell to get your revenge (while sometimes helping us fight)," Andy said with a shrug. "Your choice, Miss Holy Maiden."

"Sure, I take you up on that offer… like hell, I will you'll never get me alive-" Alter was cut off by Jeanne bashing her over the head with flag. "Argh, you bitch what the hell did you do that for?!" She clutched her head in pain as she rolled on the floor.

"Now, now as the older sister, it is my duty to discipline my younger sister," Jeanne said that in such a way that shiver ran up the group's collective spines. "Now, first order of business is names we can't both be called Jeanne, that shall forever be the King of Knights problem, not mine. So to be fair, you're now Joan." Jeanne stated.

"You, you, you're the worst!" Alte- Joan, complained like a child as she pouted as she sat on the floor with her knees up.

"Now, now Joan don't be like that. You're a 'grown' girl so act like one. Now you're coming home with us, and there is no saying no."

Joan just pouted harder, by filling her cheeks with air. But after a few seconds, she blew it out. "Fiine, just stop looking at me like you're about to pray my ass off. I'll go with you, but only one condition." She said as she stood up and dusted off her black clothes.

"That condition being…?" Andy asked, bracing herself for the worst.

"I get to take my Gilles with me, I need a punching bag to do my bidding when I don't harass you," Joan stated.

"Isn't he a fake?" Andy asked, confusion obvious in her voice.

"And so what? I made him just as I remembered him being so he is no different from the real one in terms of personality, and besides, I will be maintaining him with my Skill." She said.

" _I don't know if she is in denial or is she just that oblivious."_ Came Emiya's mental comment.

" _I' ma say both_ ," Andy replied before speaking aloud. "And what Skill is that, exactly?"

"Self-Replenishment(Mana): A+. The name speaks for itself, a privilege held by the Avenger Class as we can just convert ambient negative emotions into fuel, used in combination of the Avenger Class Skill." She explained proudly and smugly.

"...Honestly, you'll probably be able to fuel that entirely off mine." Andy said cheerily. "So, fine, he's allowed to come with, but isn't allowed to do any sacrificing or rituals or whatever without my explicit permission, understood?"

"I do, so… are we gonna do that contract thing or not? Or did you not want me as your Servant?"

"Oh no, I do, I was just trying to be nice and hash out the details before we did the contract," Andy said, before stepping forward and extending her hand. "I'm sure you'd think my normal binding speech is a little lame. Really, all you gotta do at this point is shake my hand, this is like the one thing I can still do right magically."

"...Well if that is the only thing." She grumbled as she held out her hand.

Andy took and shook Joan's hand. "And with that, you're officially my Servant, Joan Darkness."

"Urgh, I'm going to make you miserable." She stated as the contract formed.

Xxx

"So, did you enjoy your little side adventure?" Roman asked during that evening's dinner.

"Honestly? Yeah." Andy said as she cut up her steak. "Except for this one bit near the beginning, it was actually kind of fun _and_ funny, and not just in retrospect. Plus I have an Avenger now, which is pretty neat."

"Well, glad you're happy. Though now we just have to watch out for the walking fire hazard."

"Who the fuck are you calling a fire hazard, four-eyes."

"I don't even wear glasses!"

"You're still a fucking nerd…augh!"

"Talk properly to others, sister."

"Fuck you," Joan said, which was followed by another dope-slap. "Augh!"

"Well, at least she will keep her in check," Roman said with a sigh.

Andy sighed as well. "Hey, Joan, do your own emotions fuel your mana thingamawhatsit too?"

"No, it does not, we use the emotions of others to fuel ourselves and our vengeance."

"And, to be clear, what emotions do that?"

"HATE, like am currently feeling for all of you, augh. Stop it?"

"Only when you do."

"Oh, goody, so you should be fueled pretty well then! The hatred for Solomon is pretty strong around these parts, and I know I for one often imagine ripping off his stupid face and _shoving it up his-_ " Andy's 'cheery' rage was cut off by her cutting the plate instead of the steak. "Whoops. You get the point though, right, Miss Holy Maiden?"

"I do, and if you're going to call me anything, call me Joan at the very least, none of us are holy maidens here. Well, we're both still maidens but not holy." She complained.

"Well, don't you remember? At Christmas, you got your Sainthood back, right?" Andy said a smug grin on her face. "So it only makes sense to call you 'Miss Holy Maiden.'"

"Argh… I give up for today, going to fucking bed. Fuck all of you. I am out for now." Joan said as went over to the buffet filled up her plate and left. "Fuck this is good." Andy heard her say as she left.

"Truly, even the most wicked of souls can be swayed to goodness through the power of Mamiya's cooking," Andy said, nodding sagely.

"That is true, well except him, probably wouldn't know what good food was even if he choked to death on it," Roman said as he stabbed his fork into his potato.

"True, true." Andy concurred. "Anyway, what were we talking about before all that?"

"You enjoying your little trip. These seem to happen on a regular interval between our expedition to the Greater Singularities." He responded.

"Ah, right, those. I bet it's just the universe trying to keep us on our toes for the next big fight." Andy theorized. "And get more allies on the way, of course."

"Yeah, it's probably whatever remains of the Counterforce within the Singularities helping us out," Roman responded.

"...Actually, that brings up a good point. Why _aren't_ there more Counter Guardians in Singularities? You'd think the world getting fucked over big time would be enough for some kind of response."

"I am guessing it's a matter of power it has within Singularity is much weaker, so it can only act via the Grail to summon the Rogue Servants that you encounter. And technically all Servants are at the behest of the World to act in its defense. And only those specifically contracted to with the Counterforce can be used whenever scorched earth is needed to solve the issue at hand when all other options fail."

"Ah. I suppose we're 'all other options' then."

"Yep, the standard modus apparatus is to empower humans in the now to succeed at something, we only know when the Counterforce acts when the Guardians are employed, and even then sometimes that is not easy to spot, as other things cover it up. I don't know if I've mentioned it before, but Pompei is one situation where the Association is ninety percent sure Guardians were used."

"Huh." Andy 'said,'. "I don't know why, but for some reason whenever I hear about something I learned in history having something deeper in the Moonlit World like that, it's always surprising."

"Yeah, the game was the supernatural involved or not? Is always a fun one." Roman said. "But, I think now I have to go to bed, god am I tired."

"Aight, go get some sleep Boss, God knows you've earned it," Andy said.

"See, you 'morrow Andy."

xxx

A/N: If you like this or any other of my stories you can donate to my P A Treon. com (Slash) StreamingViking and read commissioned stories


	93. Waver's Peggy Sue Fanfic

April 9

"Hey mommy you're here for tea too?" Jack asked as she sat at the tea table dressed in a frilly white dress. Dresses, being the only thing besides her normal outfit she wanted to wear, the tiny serial killer despising pants for some unknown reason.

"Well, of course, I am, Jackie," Andy said as she sat in one of the larger chairs at Alice's table, designed and reinforced to hold even Asterios or Heracles. "It would be rude to turn down an invitation, after all." Andy was wearing the suit form of Tenfold Shields since at this point she'd worn every dress she owned to Alice's various tea parties and was deciding to switch it up a bit before repeating.

"What kind of tea would you like for today?" Alice asked.

"Earl Gray, but anything is fine sweetie," Andy answered. She didn't even like tea that much, but whenever Alice made it, it was the best thing to drink in the world for that moment. She assumed it was because of the 'idea' of tea-time.

"Okay, here is a cup along with your carrot cake, Miss Kitty Cat, made it for us today." She said as she poured a cup for them both, and placed a slice on their plate.

"Thank you, sweetie," Andy said. "Say, when was the last time you invited 'Miss Kitty Cat' for tea?"

"Last month, she really likes making cakes, but she doesn't like participating in eating it with others." She answered.

"I see, I see. What about 'Mamiya'?" Andy asked, taking a sip of her tea. "Delightful as always, by the way."

"He comes when Alice asks, but he is also surrounded by those women with the same face all the time, so Alice gets nervous about walking over and asking," Jack answered, which caused the Servant formed from stories to blush with embarrassment.

"Jack, you shouldn't tell Miss Andy stuff like that?"

"Why not I tell Mommy everything, why shouldn't she know?"

"Because."

"Well, if you'd like, I'd be glad to accompany you when you want to invite him. Would that make it easier for you?" Andy offered.

"I would like that." The girl responded.

"Then don't hesitate to ask me for help. In fact, you can always ask me for anything you may need, Alice. I just want you to know that." Andy said.

"Okay, I'll do that."

"And, y' know, you don't have to call me 'Miss Andy.'"

"Do you want me to call you Mrs. Andy instead did you, and Astolfo get married already?" She asked innocently.

"Wha-? Nononono that isn't what I meant, please don't call me that!" Andy said, blushing intensely at the idea of being married. "It's just that 'Miss Andy' feels too formal and makes me feel kinda old is all."

"Ahh okay… But you should. So do you just want me to call you Andy."

"I dunno, maybe you could take a page out of Jackie's book, pun not intended."

"Ahh, I get it, Mommy wants to become Alice's mommy too, like she is to Miss Arturia and Asterios," Jack announced, and Andy almost swore she saw a lightbulb pop up over the girl's head before she spoke.

"Jackie, you really are clever, aren't you?" Andy asked at Jack having revealed her plan, patting her head for deducing it.

"Don't know what that means, but I guess, I… No, we all are. Aren't we Mommy?" She asked.

"Yes, indeed, you're my very clever girl(s)," Andy said, smiling wide. Jackie's conglomerate nature was still a little weird, but well into the 'acceptable' range of weird.

"So, you want to be my Mommy too?" Alice asked.

"Well, if you want me to be." Was Andy's answer. "Of course, if you don't want me to be then we'll just continue on like we have been so don't worry about that."

"I, I would like that I've never had a mother and neither did Alice, she only had her books until she died. So, if you're my Mommy, you're her mommy too, and I think she would like that. So, yes." She responded with a few tears in her eyes as she smiled.

Andy gave Alice a hug at that (which had nothing to do with hiding that Andy herself was starting to tear up at that, nope, not in the slightest), which Jack quickly joined in on.

Xxx

May 1

Time continued to move on as coordinates were being tried again and again to find the location of the next Major Singularity, but so far there had been no such luck. So in the meantime, Andy had entertained himself, as he usually did by doing mad science with the Minds, and helping out the various Servants with their issues, and eliminating Lesser Singularities. Of course, during the current period time, Da Vinci had built up the energy to make new Tickets or Craft Essences to power up some of his Servants who should have gotten them sooner. Medea got one first as thanks for all the hard work she'd been doing. Kojiro got his next due to the whole of Orleans. Arash, because he'd literally blown himself up. And Jeanne, which she especially deserved now that she was handling Joan.

Right now though the clock said nine p.m. on this first of May as he walked towards the Command Center after Roman had called him. As apparently Sheba had found a Singularity that rivaled the greater ones in threat. Though this one didn't seem to be created by one of Fishman's Grails.

"Good evening Senpai," Mash said as she joined him by his side.

"Evening, Kouhai," Andy replied. "You ready for this one?"

"I am ready for anything Senpai." She answered as the two of them entered and in the room was Roman and Da Vinci waiting for them and surprisingly along with them Emiya and Waver.

"What's the sitch?" Andy asked, switching to serious mode.

"Ah, good to see you, Andy, as Romani probably told you we found a Singularity while not part of the Seven Greater ones created by Solomon and his Grails. This one can become an equal threat to human history if what is inside of it spills out." Waver spoke with grim seriousness.

"What the hell is inside of it that's that much of a threat?" Andy asked, horror mounting as he began to connect the dots.

"A God of Evil waiting to be birthed. This Singularity is located in Fuyuki City, Japan, 1994. The time when the fourth Holy Grail war took place." He answered.

"Wait, but I thought only Grail War happened in 2004?" Mash asked.

"That is correct, but in my and Archer's timeline, that one was the fifth one. Though with history being incinerated and only Singularities remaining, there is no way to tell what is the proper timeline anymore. From an observation perspective." He responded.

"And I gotta ask how there was ever more than one Grail War in your timeline, was that thing like a sporting event? How did you keep that hidden?" Roman asked with incredulity.

"Though lots of leaking gas lines, and gas line explosions." Was Waver's response.

"Wait, did you say we're going to the time of the Fourth Holy Grail War?" Andy asked, having only just caught up to that part after getting over the 'fucking _God of Evil_ ' bit.

"Yes, that is why Emiya and I are going along with you, as I was the Master of Rider during that War. So I should know my way around making sure we do this as precisely as possible with the least amount of fuck-ups."

"And the last part is why I am going along as I've been summoned to numerous variations of the fourth and fifth war, so I should be able to account for any deviations that might be. My nature as a Counter Guardian, allowing me to remember more than most Heroes would." Emiya said as his face evolved into a thousand-yard stare.

"Oh. Um, related to that I suppose, are we allowed to kill Zouken if the chance arises, or do we need to make the timeline as close as possible?" Andy asked.

"Ah, sorry I was just reminiscing about some of the more weirder wars. Fucking Shirou, urgh." He spoke with a tone of disgust before shaking his head. "Anyway no as it is Singularity it will correct itself once we remove the source that caused it to happen. So, yes we can murder the worm if that is what you want."

"Oh, _goody_ ," Andy said, absolutely giddy going off the grin on his face. "I might be able to take a few samples of his dickworms and let my original Clothulu idea _finally_ come to fruition. And if not, I get to do the world a service. Are we heading in now or in a bit?"

"We're going in now. Our mission is to resolve the Singularity which would have a ninety percent chance of being to stop Angra Mainyu from being born into the world far too early." Waver said as he finished his smoke. "So, Master, for now, it is only going to be you, me, lady Kyrielight and Emiya heading in."

"Got it. Stealth mission." Andy said with a nod. "In that case, is there anything else I should know before we head in? Any important details that my limited view of the War meant I wouldn't have seen but should know?"

"I do not think so, but don't worry, Master I carry you through this at the best of my abilities. But there is one fact you probably don't know. That is that we need to try and keep three Servants alive for as long as possible. As five dead Servants means the Greater Grail of Fuyuki will start to manifest, and I don't know if that is enough for Angra Mainyu to start acting out." He answered.

"Mhm. Right. In that case, we should probably pick the three most likely to play along…" Andy said as he thought on it. "Probably Saber cause of her morals, Rider since you'll be able to predict how he acts even if he doesn't play along, and...Berserker, since Kariya's gonna side with us for killing Zouken, hopefully."

"Yes, I had planned something similar, though I had Lancer in mind instead of Berserker." He responded, "but I can see the merits of that plan. Though we both agree that Caster should be the first to go, don't we? as he possesses the biggest threat." He asked Andy.

"Oh, absolutely. The priority list as I see it is 'Kill Caster'- Kill Zouken (and maybe get a sample) and _then_ try and ally with others and manipulate the Grail War to prevent Angry Man from waking up." Was Andy's response.

"Right on point." He responded.

"Alright, if we've got a plan all mapped out, there's no reason to be standing around. Let's go, we've got a god to kill."

Xxx

"Feels like it was yesterday." Waver spoke after they Rayshifted into the Singularity, street lamps illuminating the street. Though thankfully here near the bridge there weren't any people around to see them just appear out of thin air.

"So this is what Fuyuki looks like when it's not on fire…" Andy said to himself as he looked out at the old buildings on one side of the bridge and the growing skyscrapers on the other. "Neato."

"Even if it is ten years in the past, this place is rather wonderful," Mash spoke.

"Well enough reminiscing, Lord El-Melloi do you know which step to take first? I remember that a fight between Saber and Lancer happens at the docks most of the time as the first battle."

"Yes, you're correct about that, but I want to confirm the date first." He said as he walked over the road where one those automatic newspaper stands were. "Should be today's issue. Yeah, this is the night."

"Oh, the docks fight? Isn't literally everyone there for a dick measuring contest before it breaks down?" Andy asked.

"Correct, though the objective there if it is Diarmuid and Arturia fighting is to prevent her from being injured by Gae Buidhe. Though one thing first, Unreturning Formation!" He shouted as he activated his Noble Phantasm that formed around them all. And with it five skull masked people became visible. "Love this thing, like a portable Workshop. Hassan of the Hundred Persona's or Faces depending on how you translate your name. You have the ability to manifest each of your many personalities into different bodies." Waver spoke to the literally stunned Assassin.

"...Hey, if we keep one of these alive, would that count as one of the 'three' we need even if the rest go kaput?" Andy asked upon realizing the potential.

"Yes, there is only 'one' Assassin summoned, but their Noble Phantasm is what allows for the multiple bodies to exist for as long as one does." Waver answered.

"Oh, goody. In that case, Deploy Capture Sphere #1." Andy said, a red and white sphere appearing in his hand a moment later. He then chose one of the Assassins at random before pressing the sphere to their stunned body, and like that it disappeared in a flash of light. "I knew having Medea make these would come in handy someday, just wasn't expecting it to be on a Servant." He said before storing it back away. "So, do we kill the rest or let them go to try and ally with their Master, Tactician?"

"I saw we kill them, as their Master is allied with Archer's and getting Gilgamesh on us at this moment would bad. Thankfully they can't telepathically talk to each other thanks to my Maze. So while they know they will be gone, they won't know who did it." He suggested.

"I agree with our Caster, and seriously Master a Pokeball?" Emiya asked.

"It's small, portable, thematically appropriate, and easy to use." Andy defended himself. "Plus, it was this and Medea could make three of these or one gun-shaped one, so I went for the one that let me have multiple instead of range."

"We accept that explanation Senpai, but why do they have to look like them. I would have gone with a lamp." Mash muttered.

"...Okay, that's a pretty good alternative." Andy admitted. "But before we argue any more, we should probably deal with these, yeah?" He asked, shooting the closest one in the skull, causing it to disappear into motes.

"Yes, we have wasted enough time here." Waver said as he snapped his fingers, and the remaining three were consumed in a fireball. And the Maze disappeared.

"To the harbor the," Emiya said, and they went north, travel time taking a few minutes as they had to cross the bridge to get on the right side. But soon they arrived where Diarmuid in Lancer form was standing, and waiting for someone to arrive and fight him. As they had all felt the pulse of prana, he unleashed to announce his presence, which meant they would all soon arrive.

Andy had deployed Hades Cap, and everyone was currently holding on and waiting for the party to begin. " _So, Waver. I know you said about Saber showing up, but should we worry about your past self and Rider, too?"_

" _No, I am revisioning my plan here, Rider only showed up then Saber was about to lose to Lancer if stop that fight he and the others won't show."_ Waver explained. _"I had originally planned for Lancer to be one of those we kept alive, but what you did with Assassin that won't be necessary anymore. So, I say we have Emiya snipe Lancer and tell his Master to leave with life intact."_

" _Hmm. I suppose that could work. I'll relay the order."_ Andy said before switching to Emiya's 'line.' " _Emiya, change of plans. Get rid of Lancer now while we can._ "

" _Okay, Master let's see it's Diarmuid so… boar tusk should be very appropriate."_ And it was five seconds after he answered that Diarmuid's heart was pierced by the arrow that Emiya had made.

"Master, I am sorry," The Knight of Fianna grunted out before he disappeared.

"L-lancer." Stammered the voice of Diarmuid's Master from around the area.

"Okay, my turn now. Come with Master." Waver spoke as he walked out to where Diarmuid had previously stood, and Andy followed his Tactician's words. "Kayneth Archibald, also known as Lord El-Melloi. Me and my Master here have eliminated your Servant. So I will advise you to swallow whatever pride you have and leave Fuyuki with your life intact before another one does. Or do you wish to squander your family's Magic Crest and lineage."

"You make a compelling what I assume to be Caster, I shall take my leave," Kayneth spoke in a haughty voice like he just hadn't go murked by them.

"Thank god." Waver sighed with relief.

"That was surprisingly easy," Andy said, before looking up and around for a sudden Gilgamesh, as such phrasing was wont to invoke.

"Just prepared, hindsight is a wonderful thing."

"By those words, I assume that Lancer's Master would die normally?" Roman asked, his screen popping up. "If so there is really no reason to save him, he is still dead then the Singularity gets resolved."

"I know, but I was happy when you informed me of this Singularity. Cause I wanted a chance to see if could make things go the right way. For a good act is still a good act even if it is a meaningless one."

"I see, you do you Lord El-Melloi the second, just make sure the city doesn't end up burning," Roman said as he vanished.

"I will, and it seems our other guests have arrived. Mash you can come out, Archer you stay in the shadows for now and take out any of Assassin's bodies you see." Waver spoke as a car drove up and Arturia in a suit, and Irisviel stepped out of it.

"Are you the ones that called for battle?" Arturia asked as she stepped in front of Irisviel.

"No, that was Lancer, who eliminated before you arrived." Waver spoke with confidence. "So, you have to options before you. Leave or fight my Master and me?"

"I shall fight, of course, I have an enemy Servant in front of me, and going by your attitude despite your modern clothing. I am guessing you're Caster." She said as switched to her armor, and summoned the wind clad Excalibur. "And so you will be an easy target, as your magic won't affect me."

"Yes, that is correct if we fought I would probably die, so that is why I won't fight you she will." Waver said as he pointed at Mash, who assumed Demi-Servant. "I can't fight so I thought why not summon another Servant to do it, the Grail is filled with leftover and unused Classes to bring forth."

"Servant Shielder ready for combat."

While the Servants were all talking, Andy had slipped back behind a shipping container and slipped Hades Cap back on while internally cursing himself for not simply staying in the back in the first place. He then made his way around the edge of the area towards Irisviel while Waver and Mash kept Saber busy.

He brought out his second capture container to use on Irisviel, and hold her somewhat hostage. As he was about to activate it, he was stopped by Arturia, almost severing his arm.

 _Oh, right Instinct_. He would have facepalmed if it weren't for the fact his right arm was now only attached by a scant few muscle fibers.

"Deploy Tenfold Shields." He muttered as he backed away as quickly as he could, the armor coming in to place and keeping him from losing the arm permanently, though it was still useless until his nanomachines could repair the damage. Andy was extremely grateful they were numbing the pain.

"You cur, did you think I didn't notice you sneak off. You must take me for a fool. Master, are you okay?"

"Yes, Saber, I am fine."

"Hmm, it seems that we're currently at a disadvantage, especially with that girl having his powers," Arturia spoke as she was now guarding Irisviel as they walked back to the car. "I shall have your head for that." She said as she started the car, and the thing just rocketed off at a speed he didn't think a car from this era was capable of. But Riding was bullshit, as demonstrated by Medusa and her granny bike.

"...Well, that sucked." Andy said as he rejoined his Servants. "Good news is that I'll finally have a neat scar for this body once my arm heals up." He said, indicating the arm currently stock still at his side to accelerate the healing process. "But what now, Tactician? That was almost a complete failure in regards to Saber."

"No, it wasn't the objective was to prevent Saber from being harmed by Diarmuid, which we accomplished. Whether or not we are friendly towards each other has no bearing on our objective." Waver spoke.

"That doesn't matter, Senpai are you completely alright? I am so sorry I didn't protect you. Do you want to summon Nightingale?" She asked as she started to fuss all over him.

"I feel like she'll just finish the job…" Andy said, before shaking his head. "Anyway, it should be fine in about...an hour, I think? Honestly, Saber's words hurt more than her sword just now."

"Remember Master, that is not the one you know, so don't acknowledge her words just ignore them, I do that most of the time." Said Emiya as he returned to the group.

"You say that, but it still hurts to be called a bad person by the King of Knights," Andy said. "Also, how many did you take down?"

"I found four scattered across the harbor." He answered.

"So that's 8 down out of 100," Andy noted, before sighing. "So, Tactician, what's next? Do we go after the 'True' Caster of the war now?"

"Well, we can do one more thing this night before we have to take shelter, as we can't openly act during the day." He said. "So, we can go kill Caster, or we can find Berserker's Master and get him on our side. Your choice, Master. I have plans for both scenarios."

"Hmm. In that case, I'll choose…"

xxx

A/N: If you like this or any other of my stories you can donate to my P A Treon. com (Slash) StreamingViking and read commissioned stories


	94. Caster's Trauma Show

"Ugh, I can already smell his damn handiwork," Andy said in disgust. "We should do this quickly since I'm not sure I won't rip Caster to fucking shreds with my own hands if this goes on too long."

"We should arrive at Caster's Workshop in about a minute, and you can kill him yourself if you want." Waver answered as waded their way through the drainage pipe which leads to the place where Caster and his Master were currently held up.

"Oh, believe me, I will," Andy said with vitriol. "I'm just not sure if I'll be able to keep my cool about it. Something about Bluebeard makes me just naturally hate him, and I mean beyond the horrific child murder."

"I just want this to be over quickly, I don't want to see their bodies more than is necessarily needed." Mash stated.

"Right, yeah, we'll leave as soon as we've confirmed they're dead," Andy said.

"We're here," Waver spoke, and they entered the dimly lit main room that reeked of dead bodies, of which were mutilated and strung up on the walls like sculptures for an art exhibit, all of them children of various ages and both genders.

"Ahh, intruders. Who are you to intrude upon this sacred altar?" Bluebeard shouted as he turned around to face them his hands covered in blood.

Andy wasted no time before drawing his still-unnamed sword and leaping at Bluebeard in one smooth motion, bringing it down in a lightning imbued overhead swing meant to bisect him vertically.

A simple, ", Huh?" Left his mouth as he split apart and dissolved into ether particles.

"Good swing Andy, now to find the Master and put all of these poor souls to rest, even if we manage to heal the few that are still alive they will never recover," Emiya spoke as he kneeled down and closed the eyes of one of the children.

"Right," Andy said, actively trying not to register the contents of the room as he sheathed his sword. "I can't smell anything over the... _other_ stench, so where would he most likely be, Tactician?"

"He would be further in if he isn't here, there is a very high chance he is out and looking for further victims. Let's hope it's the first scenario." He responded.

"Yeah, lets," Andy said. He knew he should have thought of that himself, but not registering the atrocities around him was making it considerably harder to think, especially since he couldn't register the smell. "Emiya, could you help them along while we go do that?"

"I will." There was no need for a larger response to that question.

"Thank you," Andy said, before they moved further in, silent as the grave as they searched for Ryuunosuke, Andy thinking of literally anything else beyond what he had seen and was still seeing as they did so.

And finding the serial killer, they did at the other end of the room that had another tunnel which probably lead to another part of the city. Which explained how they got about so easily they had an entire tunnel system which ran throughout the city. Waver had guessed to something that was in use during World War Two for smuggling.

But the problem was they found the orange-haired teenager laying down with a bullet hole through the back of his skull.

"Are you accomplices? No different Master and servants you were here to kill him too, were you not?" Spoke a male voice and out of the shadows stepped out a Servant, Andy had lived with too many to not recognize that feeling they gave off when he was so close to one. But it was one he had never seen before, and to make it worse, he looked very modern. Way too modern.

"We just killed his monster of a Servant, and were coming to finish the job, yes," Andy confirmed, wary of the mystery man. "If you don't mind me asking, what are you? Why are you here?"

"I see, I was going to kill him too, was causing too much trouble, not my target. But I figured I could do this now that I am able to act on my own. But since you saw me, I have to eliminate you." He spoke, and into his right hand, he summoned a submachine gun and fired at them.

"Kouhai, if you would," Andy said, more than used to being randomly attacked at this point, having been prepared for this.

She answered by stepping forward and slammed her shield down, the bullets ricocheting off the defensive armament.

"Guys step to the left." Came the voice of Emiya and they obeyed as arrows flew past and tried to hit the New Guy, but Andy watched as the dude just dodged them by stepping to the side without a hint of effort.

He took out a knife and used it to parry Emiya's strike and stepped backward. "Who? How? How do you even exist?" Emiya asked and could see the confusion on the Archer's face.

"It seems that I am outmatched." The enemy Servant spoke as he vanished.

"Did you recognize him?" Andy asked a few moments after the mystery servant disappeared, and it was clear he was gone.

"Yeah. Yeah, I do. Sometimes my ability to instantly Structural Analysis blades is both a blessing and a curse, I say a curse in this instance because I wish I never looked at that knife right now." He spoke.

"So, who is he, Archer, by his little act I can say that he is an Assassin, but I've got nothing but saying that he is a very modern Heroic Spirit." Waver spoke his observation.

"Yeah, whose our mystery man?" Andy asked.

"That my dear Master was Counter Guardian Kiritsugu Emiya," Emiya revealed.

Andy had blue screened at that and was now stuck in a loop of asking "What?" and minor variations of it as he tried to make that make sense.

" _A Counter Guardian here, shit that is bad, but there something was off about him?"_ Romani spoke, ignoring Andy's broken record act.

"The fact that he was capable of speech, I think the Counter Force is not in direct control it's agent here but is still willing to carry out orders," Emiya responded.

"Okay seriously though, _what the fuck?_ " Andy asked, snapping out of it. "How the fuck is he a Counter Guardian, _and_ a Servant? I almost lost my fucking arm to Saber earlier, isn't he supposed to be her Master right now? And we definitely ran into the Hassan so how the fuck is he an Assassin when there's already one? What the _fuck!_ "

"This a Kiritusgu Emiya, just like am a version of Shirou Emiya. And Master think this closer to the other Singularities, where there were just Servants wandering around who had not been deliberately summoned by someone. And that second thing is what I am most concerned about when I was running around the docks I didn't see him where he usually hung around or Maya. I thought maybe he had not chosen to act this time around, but with this Kiritsugu walking about, there is definitely something fundamentally different about this Fourth War."

"And with that information, I can say with a ninety-percent certainty that Irisviel von Einzbern is Saber's Master this time around… Damn, I need to observe and question her for a proper conclusion to this." Waver spoke. "But we accomplished our objective, and with us doing this now instead of tomorrow my younger-self won't have to deal with this gore-filled sight."

"Yeah, that was definitely something that would traumatize a kid forever," Andy said, before switching to telepathy. _"We're going to have a_ talk _later about you not warning us about this in advance Waver_." He then continued aloud. "Anyway, Emiya, you finished putting them to rest, right?"

"Some, but not all of them. I suggest just setting the place on fire and covering it in salt for extra measure." He suggested.

"Noted," Andy said, before firing a few fire Runestones back the way they came and then doing his best to ignore the subsequent... _noise_ that followed, forcing himself to breathe despite wanting to stop. And he tried to ignore the 'thank you' among it.

"It's okay Senpai, it's getting late now, so how about we go to place to squat and then tomorrow we can go and kill Zouken. That will make you feel better, won't it?"

"That is a good idea, Mash. If we go to the temple, I can access the city's leyline grid from there and gather information about what we need to know." Waver spoke.

"Sure. Yeah. Great ideas all around. Lets just _please_ get out of this tunnel." Andy said, the smell of burning bodies -something he was admittedly more used to than the other things going on in the tunnel- being too much for him to handle on top of everything else.

Xxx

"Those were some really nice monks," Mash said as she sat beside Andy, on one of the two beds in the guest room, they had been allowed to borrow from the monks. They had been really hospitable even in the dead of night.

"Yeah," Andy said, his hair now the same color as Mash's as he worked on something. It was too new to tell what it was from a glance, but he was definitely knitting something as he sat next to her. "Real zen. Very enlightened." He said in an attempt to joke. "Good thing they bought, we were siblings."

"Yeah, me too… Senpai you can cry if you want. I want to cry, those children how could they."

Andy froze in his knitting before putting it down and hugging Mash. "You did everything you could do, Mash. Horrible people do horrible things, but we stopped them from doing anything like that ever again." He said as comfortingly as possible.

"I know, I know. But it hurts so deeply, Senpai." Mash began to talk but quickly devolved into gibberish as she cried into his shoulder.

Andy hugged her tight and let Mash cry it out, not saying much beyond comforting platitudes. He couldn't think of anything else to say. He just hoped being there for her would be enough. But Andy himself did not cry.

Eventually, Mash ended up crying herself to sleep in Andy's embrace. He carefully laid her down on the bed and tucked her in with a sigh.

He then went over and picked up whatever he'd been knitting, and resumed his work. The practical nothing in his hands would be...something, come morning. It would have to be. But Andy didn't know what. He just knew that he needed to do something, _anything_ , that if he closed his eyes, he would see them all again.

And so, he worked.

Xxx

May 2

"Is it morning already what's the time?" Mash asked sleepily as she raised herself from the bed.

"8:13," Andy answered, still working on what now resembled a scarf.

"So, early? What I'm hungry." She said as she stumbled slightly out of bed, sleep in her eyes and her hair a mess.

"Speaking of food Andy, Mash I picked up some for you and a large cup of coffee which you're probably going to need," Emiya spoke as he handed the large cup to Mash, who promptly downed the entire thing in one take.

"Oh, okay, I am awake now. Thanks, Emiya." Mash spoke as caffeine-infused life filled her being.

"You're welcome Mash, got one for you too Andy." He said, holding out a cup for him.

"Thanks," Andy said simply as he took it, though unlike Mash he just sipped at it. "Where's our Tactician at?" He asked after a moment.

"Looking at the Layline terminal, and gathering as much information from it as his abilities allow." He answered. "Along with checking on the spot where the Greater Grail will manifest, and taking a few precautions in case it does so."

"Good, good. The more precautions, the better." Andy said into the coffee cup, before looking back at Emiya. "Shirou, are you okay? I already know we're-" here, he motioned at himself at Mash with the hand not holding the coffee. "-dealing with things, but how are you holding up after seeing him last night?"

"I'm fine Master, honestly while grisly not the worst atrocity that I've seen and nothing really trumps that fire." He responded. "You just get used to it if one were in my position."

"I meant your dad."

"I've got nothing to say really a little bit baffled by the situation as he is here as a proper Counter Guardian instead of an accidentally summoned like one myself. And he is the kind of man who if he did not participate in the fourth war would have made a contract with the World." He said as he took a bite out of a danish.

"Man, nothing phases you, huh Mr. Protag," Andy said before taking a long sip of his coffee.

"If I am one you are to Master? Don't you think so Mash or do you count as his deuteragonist?"

"I don't think I'm important enough for such a role." She said quietly as she ate her yogurt.

"Now hold up right there," Andy said with vigor. "If anything, Mash is the hero, and I am, _at best_ , the viewpoint character. Like Nick from the Great Gatsby, but more involved."

"I think that is just a protagonist Senpai?"

"So, stopping with Meta-Talk. What is the plan, for now, Andy? Cause I am at a rather big loss for ideas because I've not encountered a scenario like this before. And I've done a lot of weird ones, the ones with female Gilgameshs are the worst."

Andy sat up straight as he spoke, slipping back into serious mode. "In theory, the plan still goes about the same. We eliminate Zouken today and use that in an attempt to recruit Kariya. If we can't convince him, even with the Incentive Plan we cooked up, then we'll have to switch to Rider being one of the survivors. Whether that succeeds or fails, we just need to eliminate the Servants not designated to survive until the Grail manifests, and then we destroy you-know-who."

"Though among the biggest problems is going to be dealing with Gilgamesh." Waver spoke as he finally returned. "Though there is a way to fight him without getting curbstomped immediately." He took out a cigarette and waited for them to ask what it was.

"Use the other you to our advantage?" Andy guessed. "More so, Rider?"

"No against Rider, he would go all out of sheer respect for the man. No Gilgamesh escalates in proportion to his opponent. If he faces someone like Arjuna, Karna or Scathach, he would go full out and win. Sneak attacks won't work either as he will just hit back with maximum force out of preservation if he does not know the attack is coming. No to defeat Gilgamesh we need to challenge him up front with a group of Servants whose individual abilities are much lower than his, but together can beat him. And due to his pride, he will judge them individually. not together and so if he starts to lose, he will not escalate as taking them seriously, then he deemed them not would be more humiliating than dying." He explained. "And for Zouken I say we quickly bring in Nightingale to heal the young Sakura if you wish to rescue her."

"That makes a surprising amount of sense," Andy said. "Oh, but for Zouken, the other Shirou should be enough to burn his soul out of existence, right?"

"Yes, an exorcism should work. So tonight we kill Zouken, tomorrow out and hunting more of Assassin's bodies and the day after we kill Gilgamesh as that is when he will be most vulnerable and decrease the chance of him possibly escalating."

"Actually, Professor. I've gotta ask: why don't we just sneak into the Matou mansion _right now_ and eliminate Zouken now? He's a magus, so he wouldn't expect someone stupid/powerful enough to do something during broad daylight to go after him, right?" Andy posited.

"One thing much higher chance of witnesses, and two doing it during the day and since Matou is one of the Masters it will be 'seen' as breaking the rules by the Church. And so while we have been meddling Risei would see us being a threat to the war itself, and so a bounty would be put on us. And then the other three would come after us." He explained.

"Tch. Rules! My worst enemy." Andy said, shaking his fist in 'anger.'

"You shouldn't say stuff like that Senpai that makes you look like a criminal and a delinquent." Mash berated him.

"I mean, I kinda am at this point. I kinda skipped town, dropped out of college, and proceeded to commit murder several times. That sounds like a criminal and delinquent to me." Andy said, starting off joking but realizing how true it was as he continued to speak. "Damn. I really need to stop with the downer jokes."

"Yeah, if you didn't work for Chaldea that would make you sound like a Murder Hobo and nobody likes those," Emiya said.

Andy shuddered at the thought. "Yeah, good point. To blatantly change the subject, if there isn't anything we need to do to prepare for tonight, I think it would be good for the living among us to go out and explore the town."

"I like that idea Senpai, I like to get a really good look at this city when it's not on fire during the day," Mash said with a smile. "Not that would want the city to be on fire. It's perfectly fine not being… I should just stay quiet."

Andy shook his head. "Nah, always speak freely Kouhai. Just be like me, and keep talking until you eventually get it right!"

"But Senpai if I be like you. Your character would become unnecessary to have… haha." She began to laugh after realizing what she had said.

Andy laughed with her. "Then I propose a compromise: you keep being my wonderful, brilliant Kouhai with your own personality while I keep being your chatterbox Senpai with mine, yeah?"

"That sounds nice." She said with a smile. "Now I'm fresh, let's go explore the city."

"Yes, lets," Andy said, smiling back.

Xxx

A/N: A Bluebeard always willing to bring out the trauma.

If you like this or any other of my stories you can donate to my P A Treon. com (Slash) StreamingViking and read commissioned stories


	95. Worm Violation

After a long day of wandering the City, the moon once again illuminated the night sky as it rose into position.

And so were they.

" _Everyone ready?"_ Andy asked telepathically, hidden from the moonlight by Hades Cap.

A round of affirmatives came in response.

Andy went over the plan in his head again one last time.

In theory, Plan 'Saints Come Marching' was simple. The Saint Squad would head in as stealthily as possible and then purify the world of the stain known as 'Zouken Matou.' Meanwhile, he would be going in while Zouken was distracted and grabbing the kids before getting the fuck out.

In theory, simple.

" _Good. Begin the operation."_

Andy moved towards one of the windows and quickly carved a hole to crawl through. And the interior of the western mansion definitely matched the exterior.

"Stupid idiot brother, why he gotta defy him like that." A male voice spoke, and Andy heard the sound of glass breaking from the chair that faced a fireplace.

He took one look at the man, who looked like what Andy imagined an adult Shinji would look like, before completely ignoring him upon noticing he was alone; he was, based on Waver's briefing, entirely useless, so it wasn't that big of a deal.

Instead, Andy turned towards the hall and headed towards where they'd seen one of the child heat signatures; he really needed to ask either Leo or Gil for something better than thermal goggles for detecting the 'mundane.'

There was a significant chance that this one was Shinji, as he could see down below a mass of heat and magical energy shifting about.

If it was Shinji, it meant that Sakura was… He did _not_ want to think about that right now.

He slowly opened the door to the room, and there sat a still awake kid Shinji.

Thankfully, Andy was still invisible thanks to Hades Cap. As such, he simply walked right up to the blue-haired boy and tapped him with the Capture Sphere he'd been holding, Shinji disappearing in a short burst of light.

Andy stored said Sphere away with a sigh, hoping this wouldn't be _too_ traumatizing for the poor kid (since he hadn't done anything wrong yet). But, more importantly, for the moment, there was still another child that needed to be saved.

Unfortunately, since this had been the only heat signature other than the coward he'd passed on the way here, that meant Sakura would be in...in the pit.

God, he couldn't _wait_ until Zouken was dead.

Despite the growing feeling of nausea and dread at the sight he might end up seeing, images of last night's monstrosity intermingling with his memories of the poor girl's situation, unbidden and unwanted, he needed to press on.

Andy ignored them as best he could for now as he headed down to the pit the old fashioned way, through the gaping hole the Saints had left when they started exorcising Zouken.

He took one step and immediately stepped on (and subsequently, squashed) what could only be described as a dickworm.

"So, you're the one behind this attack on me and my home." Spoke an old decrepit voice from behind Andy and he turned around to see old man Zouken standing there without a concern in the world. "I can not see or feel you, but I can hear you interferer. Though going by the missing boy you came to 'rescue' the children, didn't you? Did Kariya put you up to this?"

Andy, instead of replying verbally, picked up one of the other dickworms trying to get past him and crushed it with his hand before storing it away. "The time has come." He said, not in his own voice, but in Zouken's own voice...from London. "For the hubris of the Makiri family to come to an end."

"Heheheh, nice trick boy but I'll let you have the girl, she is broken anyway. But you will not win the war, for while your Servants can burn the Crest Worms here, the one containing my soul has already left the premises. If I had implanted into the girl like I had planned, it would have been my complete loss. But I shall face you, interlopers, later; my wish shall not be denied." At that, his body broke apart into a mass of worms as they crawled across the floor.

Which is when Andy started using the ultimate tool of purification: Fire. They may have let one worm slip, but he wouldn't be letting any more go by him. " _Saint Squad, status update._ " He sent out telepathically to the Saints who were deeper in the Pit as he burned away the infestation.

" _Sorry Master,"_ Jeanne responded. _"The main worm was not present, but the chamber has been cleansed and the girl… She is asleep. She passed out after I pulled her out. Can we leave this God-forsaken place, Master?"_

" _Yes, please. Just make sure you get any stragglers you can on the way up; if we can't kill him tonight, I'm not letting him have more than 1 of these damn things._ " Andy replied as he continued spraying fire at the finally thinning swarm of stair-climbing dickworms.

" _Hear you."_ Spoke the other two.

After _every single_ worm was dead, they exited the mansion leaving Shinji's father to drown in alcohol and fire. The man was probably going to die, but Andy could not scrounge up the empathy needed to give a shit about the obvious coward beyond making it abundantly clear everything was burning down. Kariya had at least tried to rebel but got dragged back in due to Sakura.

Regardless, the mansion would be ashes by sunrise.

"Ah, Senpai did you do it?" Mash asked as she approached the group, and over to Jeanne, who was carrying the asleep Sakura clad in a shroud to cover her body. "Oh, that poor girl."

"Yeah. Let's get back to the temple so we can do...literally whatever we can to help." Andy said, not sure to the extent of the damage so far, but even less clear on if they could do anything about it.

"Yes, you go and do that, I'll go and talk to the Master of Berserker. I think I will be the best suited for that, for you, my dear Master needs to calm down. And explain to a seven-year-old boy why you kidnapped him." Waver said.

"...If you get your ass killed, it's your fault." Andy said, unable to come up with a comeback or better witty remark considering Waver was right.

"Don't worry my Noble Phantasm can easily contain Lancelot, he is not Asterios after all, so no maze navigation skills for him." He said with a bit of pride.

"Just...be careful," Andy said, tiredly.

"I will." The Caster said as he walked off to wherever Kariya was hiding.

"So, Senpai let's return to base. We have things to do before you fall asleep."

"Yes, right, of course," Andy said, contemplating how the hell he was supposed to explain the situation to little Shinji.

xxx

Andy sighed from where he sat cross-legged, doing his best to look as nonthreatening as possible. They'd hastily soundproofed the room in case Shinji would yell, but that was about all they did to prepare magically. This would solely be Andy's issue to deal with, considering most of the roster at the moment was swapped out for those who could _hopefully_ help with Sakura. The monks had been happy to give them another room thanks to Waver's hypnosis.

He took one more deep breath, before opening the Capture Sphere, Shinji popping out in another burst of light.

The boy looked a little bit disoriented, but quickly gained his wits, and turned to look at Andy and then at the room before returning to Andy.

"PEDOPHILE!" He shouted as he pointed a finger at him.

"Nope, not in the slightest. Your house caught on fire, so I got you out." Andy explained calmly as possible.

"Then why am I not at the hospital, Kidnapper!" He shouted again, pointing his finger even harder.

"Cuz I'm a magic firefighter, and magic firefighters make sure you're alright up here-" Andy tapped his temple. "-after we've healed you with our special magic powers."

Shinji just looked at him with a face that screamed 'that he did not believe him at all.' "You're a terrible liar, even a one-year-old would be able to tell. Your a magus aren't you, and you plan to experiment on me or something like that? I've read Grandfather's books. I know how this goes." Well, he was certainly insightful for a seven-year-old, though considering the environment he was born in. Non-Fast development probably meant death.

"Smart for your age, huh," Andy said, still not moving from his spot so as to be as non-threatening as possible. "Listen, nothing I just said was a lie. Your house really was burning down, and I couldn't stand to let you burn with it."

"You were the one who set it on fire weren't you, or else it wouldn't be. Grandfather would never let such a thing happen accidentally. Just be straight with me I can handle it. Man, I wish I had taken that offer to go to that American school for a year." He muttered.

Andy sighed. "Alright, fine, I'll tell you the truth. Your Grandfather was- _is_ a very, very, very, _very_ bad person who was doing very bad things to be immortal. He also technically isn't your direct grandfather so much as a distant ancestor, since he's 500 years old. But he was doing something unforgivable to a little girl named Sa-."

"I know, I know all of that it's not like he keeps it a secret. I know what he is doing, I hear it almost every night and sometimes I had to watch. To learn if I failed him I would go down there too. I know, so what about Grandfather did you actually manage to kill him?" Shinji interrupted him with his own little rant.

"Unfortunately, not quite. The most important worm got away." Andy said, a bit disturbed at the horrors Shinji had been made witness to at such a young age. "But, my group and I are going to make sure he never hurts anyone ever again. Including you, Shinji."

"And in the process, you burnt down my home, well not like it was going to be mine anyway, what about my father, did wine breath make it out?"

"I… honestly have no idea. Sorry about that." Andy said. "If it helps at all, one of my people is talking to your Uncle Kariya right now. Once we de-worm him, he should be able to take care of you for the foreseeable future, and if he isn't, we'll find you someplace nice and normal and worm free."

"That, that sounds nice." The boy muttered. "But you still have to make up for burning my house and all my stuff. You know Mister? I had a lot of toys that need replacing. That was the only good thing about the old man, he just gave you money if you asked." Shinji spoke demandingly, as well as demanding as a seven-year-old could sound.

"...I don't have anything on me right now, but that can be arranged." Andy replied before having an idea. "Oh, actually, in the meantime, would you like to meet my pet? She's very friendly and will keep you safe."

"Hmm, sure?" He responded with a raised eyebrow.

Andy grinned. "Deploy C-03." He said, and a moment later one of the 'normal' chimeras was there, about the size of a Maine coon.

With minimal prompting, she sauntered over to Shinji before rubbing up against him like a normal cat, before meowing/bleating/hissing at him.

"Is, is that a Chimera?" He asked with wide eyes as the previous conversation was erased from his mind as his brain was preoccupied with the new shiny and awesome thing that had just appeared.

"Ayup," Andy said, popping the p. "You can pet her if you want, just make sure you don't touch near her mouth's, and don't pet the goat head until you've to pet the cat one, they get jealous otherwise."

"Oh, okay," Shinji responded fully preoccupied with the beast. Though seeing the chimera, petting it. Staying up so late, and the previous conversation seemed to catch up to the child as Shinji just crashed and fell asleep against the beast.

Andy smiled at the sight, before getting up and grabbing a blanket off the bed they'd prepared for Shinji and covered the kid with it while ordering the chimera to keep watch over Shinji tonight, to inform him immediately if the boy woke up, etc., etc.

He then left the room as quietly as he could, sighing after he closed the door. Since now, before Andy himself could rest, he needed to check on the other child they'd [s]kidnapped[/s]rescued.

A short walk later, he knocked lightly on the door he knew them all to be in.

"Come in Master." Responded the voice of Nightingale.

Andy entered at that, to see Nightingale, and Medea sitting on a chair each. With the side turned, so that sat beside the bed, Sakura was still sleeping on.

"How is she?" Andy asked softly, not sure how else to phrase the question.

"All Crest Worms have been removed, and damages have been repaired though the cosmetic changes are permanent. For now, rest is recommended as the child has not had a proper sleep cycle for a year. And such might develop a case of insomnia later. But such a case can only be determined then." Nightingale answered.

"And there is no damage to her Soul or Magical Circuits," Medea added.

Andy let out a sigh of relief. "Well, that sounds better than I expected-no offense to you two, of course, I was just expecting the worst."

"No offense taken Andy, though our job isn't over yet. Waver is bringing in the other Master soon and we have to heal him and make sure Berserker doesn't drain him to death." Medea responded.

"Right, Kariya," Andy said. "Waver hasn't told me yet, how are we doing the later? Am I gonna fuel him or did you have something else in mind, o mighty Medea?"

"I brought along a Mana Forge, so I just hook him up to that so that he will be useful to you and not dead weight. Though it is… nostalgic? To be back in this city." She commented after telling him what the plan was.

"Oh, that'll be good," Andy said, trying to ignore the sudden surge of guilt over bringing Medea back to Fuyuki and not even thinking about it till just that moment. "So, what did you gals do with the worms you removed from Sakura?" He said in a blatant attempt to change the subject.

"Stored the ones that in the various parts of the body, burned the three we retrieved from… that place I really don't want to think back on that." Medea spoke as she shook her head. "I've seen many disgusting things and done many evil things in my life. But that violation of womanhood takes the proverbial cake." Medea finished as she started to look a little green in the face. Though Nightingale was as stone-cold as ever.

"...At least you stopped it from continuing, and before the week is out, we'll have made Zouken never gets the chance to do something like that again." Andy said, unable to come up with anything actually comforting in any capacity.

"I'm glad for that too, now you and Mash go to sleep. And in the morning you can probably talk with Kariya and Sakura." Medea told him with a tone that left no room for disagreement.

"Yes, I can tell that you have not slept for the past twenty-four hours. I recommend immediate bed rest, or I will administer sleeping pills." Nightingale added.

"Alright, alright, I'll go try to get some sleep," Andy said, hands up as if in surrender. "Goodnight, and good luck with Kariya."

"Thank you for the support Andy, see you in the morning." Medea bade goodbye, as he left the room and returned to his and Mash's.

"So, Senpai did you talk with the boy?" She asked as he entered.

"Yup, turns out I've still got that big brother instinct. He's sleeping with Chimera 03 right now, and he more-or-less accepted my explanation." Andy said a bit proudly.

"That's great Senpai. But what about the girl, Sakura?" She asked.

"Sakura… physically, she'll be able to more-or-less fully recover thanks to the medical magic of Meds and Florence, but I have no doubt she's going to be traumatized for life by the whole ordeal." Andy said, morosely.

Mash didn't respond as there was really no words one could say in response to such information except look sad when one heard it.

"...Goodnight, kouhai." Andy said after the silence dragged on for far, far too long.

"Goodnight to you too Senpai." She responded as she pulled the quilt over her body and laid down on the bed.

Andy got into his bed and, eventually, somehow, managed to fall asleep.

xxx

Can't move.

Can't do anything.

Like always.

 _Useless._

A purple-haired girl, staring blankly out of a pool of worms.

It was someone else who saved her.

But it was already too late.

 _Useless, useless, useless._

"Help me!" Screamed a flayed child who fell apart as they reached towards him.

"Mommy help!" Screamed another before they bloodily burst into a horrible demon of tentacles and teeth.

Around them, dozens and dozens of children cried out only to be silenced as they turned into more of the creatures of nightmare.

 _Useless useless useless useless useless._

"But let me show you why fighting against me is futile."

All of them wiped out in an instant.

Frozen, unable to do anything.

As _he_ toyed with them.

 _uselesuseluselessuselessuselessuseless_

Burning corpses crying out.

The stench.

That _damn noise_.

And there was _nothing to be done about it_.

 _uselessuselessuselessuselessuselessUSELESS_

Nothing but watch.

Could never do anything but watch.

"No… No. Somebody, please help me!" She cried. "Why? Why does this always happen to me?"

 _Incineration_

 _USELESSUSELESSUSELESSUSELESSUSELESS_

A familiar face.

An all too familiar face is all that is left of what was once a young teen, his body now mangled beyond all recognition but still alive.

Horrifically, tortuously alive.

There is a glimmer of recognition, and he speaks.

Nothing can be done, but to listen.

"An...drew?"

 _USELESSUSELESSUSELESSUSELESSUSELESS_ _ **USELESSUSELESS-**_

 _ **xxx**_

Andy shot up in the bed, panting wildly and gripping his head. All of them, all of them were back, all of them were dead, and he _couldn't do anything about it-_

"Bargh, Mashy-Mash to the rescue." Spoke a dreaming Mash, the absurdity knocking him out of his ensuing panic attack.

His dear Kouhai always there to help, even in the middle of deep sleep.

With that acting as a distraction, Andy was able to remember to breathe, doing so until he could think properly again while silently thanking her.

Once Andy got some semblance of his wits about him, he looked at the nearby clock. 4:15. Barely two hours after he'd last checked the clock before he'd drifted into sleep. "Damn." He cursed softly under his breath. He knew there was no way in hell he'd be able to make it back to sleep now, not with... _all_ of _those_ moments now fresh in his memory again.

Andy left the room as quietly as he could and simply walked in the cool predawn air for a bit, wandering aimlessly about the Temple. Everyone else was apparently still asleep, like normal people.

In his aimless wandering, he made it all the way to the gate.

"Here I thought Tokiomi's words were baseless, but you're certainly much more interesting than I expected you to be," Gilgamesh said as he walked up the stairs of the temple dressed in casual clothing.

xxx

A/N: If you like this or any other of my stories you can donate to my P A Treon. com (Slash) StreamingViking and read commissioned stories


	96. Tsun and a Banquet

"King of Heroes. How unexpected of you to drop by." Andy said, on the one hand old instincts kicking in on dealing with said King, and on the other his brain was so tired at the moment, those instincts were being strangled by his frustrations. "I'd offer you tea, but I'm sure you already have some of a much higher quality."

"Yes, nothing you could offer would be satisfying to taste," He responded. "I am only here because Tokiomi asked me to locate where his disowned disappeared too after the Matou Mansion had burned down."

"Sakura is now safe, no thanks your Master," Andy said. "Actually, I know you're a king, but could you tell him I said exactly that? Or just like, insult him in general when you tell him? Because he basically put her in hell, and I _know_ you're one of the best roasters among the Throne of Heroes." Andy requested, not mentioning the one Servant who had roasted Gilgamesh and gotten away with it.

"I'm not usually a messenger, but I might do that as Tokiomi has been so utterly dull as a Master, that might make his face emote a little. But I don't really care about the girl, I am much more interested in you, Outsider. For how much have you done to yourself in your little quest to restore the Human Order?"

"...Sacrificed my humanity for one, but I'm sure for most Magi that's just Tuesday brunch." Andy said after a moment.

"I would say even if you've replaced your body your Soul has remained the same endlessly pursuing your desire to improve in the face adversity that is the most human thing there is. I care not for humans as individuals the only thing that I care about from them are their achievements. And if you succeed that will certainly be the greatest achievement a human of the modern era can obtain." He took a bottle of wine out the gate and took a sip of it. "The Mud of the Grail might hamper my vision a little tobut I have seen enough beyond this Singularity to know what is happening. And what you're planning."

"Ah." Was Andy's intelligent response to that. "That means a lot coming from you. But, I do hope you don't plan on _stopping_ us, King of Heroes. Things would get...unnecessarily messy if you did."

"Well congratulations Andy Murphy, you just became one of three people who just got away with speaking against me. But why should I? This age and the Holy Grail War is dreadfully boring, the points of interest are is King of Conquerors and Kotomine. But he is rather panicking after you stole one of his Assassins and been killing them off." He stated.

"So...if I'm hearing you correctly since I'm much more interesting if I prove myself you might consider coming with us once we're done?" Andy asked, pushing his luck.

"Of course, not my child and adventuring self already exists within your halls, and my child-self could become me if the situation became dire enough. No I am just preemptively accepting the challenge you would propose to me during our little Kingly Banquet." Gilgamesh explained himself.

"...You know, I keep forgetting you can see the future. And apparently Chaldea." Andy said. "But alright. The King's Banquet. I suppose I'll see you there soon, Gilly."

"That is one point where my sight is better than the King of Mages, as I can see the entire tapestry of fate before me from now and forward, he can only see a few strings though he can also observe the past while I can not." At the Gilgamesh turned around. "And I hope you will provide me with decent entertainment, you and your band of Mongrels." He disappeared into his Spirit Form.

Andy waited a few moments after he left for anything else to happen. When nothing did, he immediately slumped against the gate of the temple and tried to calm down. While yes, he was used to dealing with the likes of Gilgamesh, that was when he was _Andy's_ Servant, not when Gilgamesh had literally _no reason_ not to kill him other than being bored.

On the upside, thanks to the minor panic attack, Andy had more-or-less forgotten about the nightmare he'd taken the walk to clear his head from in the first place.

When he finally calmed down, Andy turned and headed straight for where he knew Waver was.

Xxx

"You're awake already, Andy?" Waver asked as Andy entered the room that Waver had been using as temporary workshop while he fiddled with Leylines and the Grail.

"Yeah. Felt something wrong and then had a conversation with King Gilgamesh." Andy said. "The local one. Who apparently knows exactly what we have planned."

"Gargh!" Waver gagged he accidentally swallowed his smoke before spitting out. "What? Are you okay?" He asked worriedly.

"Yeah, don't worry, ignoring the massive adrenaline rush, I'm fine," Andy said placatingly. "What you _should_ worry about though, is that he thinks I'm _interesting_."

"Then we might need to change our battle plan a little and fight him with more powerful Servants, as with those words I don't think he will hold himself that much back. But that now might leave the sneak attack open. For while he might have Clairvoyance at a ludicrous level, and after interacting with both his child and teenage self. I've learned that he won't use it to spoil his own fun. So while he might know we will give him strong opponents to face he won't know which Servants. So now the most optimal strategy is to go into battle entertain him a bit with for example Arjuna and Cu Alter and then have Scathach snipe him with Gae Bolg." Waver proposed his new strategy.

"That almost feels like overkill, but you're probably right," Andy admitted. "The only problem is, once we do that it'll be impossible to keep this under wraps… though now that I've said it aloud, that won't actually be a problem once we kill him, will it?"

"There shouldn't, he would be the third or fourth depending on what we do with Assassin tomorrow night. So his death shouldn't trigger the Grail. So we should be in the clear." He stated.

"I meant more on the 'if the Masters know we have up to _six_ Servants all on one side' thing, they might make an unexpected alliance and prevent us from doing what we need to do, or even accidentally activate the grail in a desperate bid for power by killing each other unexpectedly." Andy elaborated his worries.

"That is a risk I'm willing to take for I'm starting to suspect that with Counter Guardian Kiritsugu Emiya running around like a rat, Angra Mainyu's activation with an even worse outcome is not the would-be origin of this Singularity but Irisviel von Einzbern herself. I just need a better look at her to confirm my theory." Waver informed Andy. "So I'm willing to risk an alliance and the second scenario won't happen, I know their personalities too well."

"...We wouldn't need to kill Irisviel if she is the source of the Singularity, right?" Andy asked.

"No, if she is what I think she is, we can actually remove her from the Singularity via Rayshifting. So, we might need to do some kidnapping after killing Gilgamesh."

"Oh okay good, that's what I'd been planning on anyway," Andy said relieved.

Xxx

"Thank you, thank you for saving Sakura." Kariya continued to thank Andy as he kneeled before them in thanks. The man looking a whole lot healthier now that he had been dewormed, and Medea had hooked Zerkerlot up to a Mana Forge to fuel the mana hungry Servant's abilities.

All the while said girl was sitting in Mash's lap while Shinji tried to entertain her with the now downsized Chimera.

"Don't worry about it, we just did what anyone with a conscience would do in our place," Andy said. "Also, you don't have to kneel. It makes me feel like some old king or something."

"Ah, sorry." The man said as he stood back up. "I'm just thrilled that you saved her along with myself, and also Shinji."

"Yeah, thanks for not forgetting that I exist uncle."

"Anyway, there must have been a reason for your generosity? People normally don't do this kind of stuff without reason."

"While I personally would have done this even if I didn't need something, I _do_ need you and Berserker," Andy admitted. "My tactician can explain it better, but it was basically a, two birds, one stone kinda deal."

"Ah, I see I expected that at least," Kariya responded.

"So, on that note, for now, all you'll need to do is guard the temple and the children while we go out and do the hard stuff, but tomorrow night is going to be the Big One. We'll explain the actual plan when we get there, it's important to keep it a surprise, but yeah, for now, you just need to do what I'm betting you planned on doing in the first place." Andy explained more fully.

"Kill Tokiomi's Servant? Yeah, I can get behind that, snubbing the guy out of his wish would be satisfying." He looked her to Sakura to see the girl hugging the Chimera's lion head while being nuzzled by the snake. "But even if I couldn't do that seeing that I would pay any price."

Andy grinned. "Excellent."

Xxx

"Senpai have you've been sleeping well?" Mash asked as they walked through Fuyuki once again culling some of Assassin's numbers. Which was done via camping Emiya who snipped them the moment they spotted one.

"What makes you ask that?" Andy answered with his own question before taking a sip of the coffee he was holding, knowing full well why.

"Cause you've been drinking more coffee than usual and I can see circles forming under your eyes." Was the observations that she had made.

Andy touched the area under his eyes at that. "Damn, already? I just got rid of the damn things…" He complained, before sighing at seeing the look Mash was sending his way. "Okay, fine, I haven't really been sleeping well. Happy?"

"Yes, cause after this you're going to go to Medea and ask her to hypnotize you so that you will have a dreamless sleep. Cause you always sleep badly after bad things happen to others." She told him.

"You really know me so well Mash," Andy said in only slightly faked amazement. "But when _did_ the Kouhai become the boss, hmm? Last I checked, I'm still the one in charge."

"I am when you don't take proper care of yourself, sometimes you can be more bullheaded than the Doctor."

" _Ouch Mash those words hurt."_ Responded said man through the radio, as he was currently on duty. _"But as hypocritical as these words are, as your physician, I do recommend the option that Mash proposed, hypnosis is a great way to ensure a peaceful sleep."_

"Yeah yeah, I was already planning on listening to her, but if it's an order from the Boss, I guess I don't have a choice," Andy said, hands raised as if in surrender. "Oh, but speaking of, Boss, you're certain you never visited Fuyuki during this timeframe, right?"

" _Pretty sure, the only time I ever was in Fuyuki was in 2004 with Marisbury,"_

"Damn." Andy said, putting the 'Romani is no-fire Shirou' theory to rest. He then saw what his brain had previously registered a shadow just disappear into motes nearby on a wall. _"Hey, Emiya, how many you get so far?"_ He asked telepathically.

" _About seventy, and boy do I think they are pissed or at least feeling genuine hatred for the first time in their life because a few of them are getting sloppy. Also Master leg in coming."_

Huh? Was all Andy managed to think before feeling 'excruciating' pain in his scrotum. He looked down and saw that he had been kicked in the balls by a reinforced leg courtesy of a very small Rin Tohsaka.

"That's for kidnapping my sister!" She shouted as she swung her leg backward reading for another strike.

Now that he knew she was there, Andy easily sidestepped the tiny Rin's next attack before just… picking her up and thusly invalidating her attack strategy. Really, an eight-year-old attacking someone _literally_ double their height wasn't the best of attack strategies. "You must be Rin," Andy said, stating the obvious more than asked as she struggled in his grip.

"Put me down so I can hit you again, though why didn't it work? That is all men's weak point. Unless are you a woman?"

"I still think a kick like that would hurt even if you were a girl?" Andy could almost hear the 'sweat drop' in Mash's voice.

" _Sorry about that Master I saw her running but I knew you could handle her."_ Came Emiya's mirth filled comment, the filthy traitor.

" _We will have_ words _when this is over_ ," Andy responded telepathically before speaking aloud. "To answer your questions Rinlet, it didn't work because I'm not human, and my pain receptors to that spot, in particular, are so dulled down I barely felt that. And to the other half, sometimes, which is how I can vouch for what my Kouhai has said." Andy said, flinching as he flashbacked to the many spars with Lancer Cu while he was teaching him about fighting dirty, which was precisely _why_ he'd gotten the 'low pain receptors' thing installed in the first place. "More importantly, who let you wander the streets at night all alone? It's dangerous out here, you never know what kind of monsters are lurking around in the shadows."

"I snuck out after Goldie told me what you had done, even gave this compass to find you." She said, and Andy took notice of the wooden compass in her hand. _Gilgamesh you unrepentant asshole._

"And what, pray tell me? What did the King of Liars tell you I did?" Andy asked as patiently as possible. "Also, please stop struggling, and I might put you back down."

"Please put me down?" She asked as she stopped swinging her arms around.

"Alright, since you asked so nicely." Andy said, doing exactly that, giving Mash a look that easily conveyed 'don't let her run.' "Now, would you be so kind as to explain what 'Goldie' told you to make you think I'm a bad guy?"

"Weeellll, he didn't really tell me anything I just overheard him and dad talking, but after he came back and told dad that you weren't returning her. He gave me this so I could find you and make you return my sister." She explained herself while pouting and stamping her foot into the ground.

"Aww, how sweet, looking out for your little sis like that," Andy said, smiling before the smile turned a little sour. "Unfortunately, once you've sold something, it's not yours anymore. Which are true times a thousand for people."

"What do you mean sold? You can't sell a person," She stated as a matter of fact, how adorably naive. But she was still a child, despite being a magus in training.

"Unfortunately, you can," Andy said sourly. "And your father, the 'mighty' Tokiomi Tohsaka, as head of the Tohsaka clan, sold Sakura to the Matou family to be their new heir as a favor to the monster in charge of that family." He explained. "I simply...rescued her, along with the son of the household, from that horrible place."

"Rescued her? I mean the old man is creepy looking and using Magecraft can hurt, but there couldn't possibly have anything that bad that warranted a Sentai rescue." Rin said, with a very saddened look on her face.

Andy inhaled sharply through his teeth. "Well…How do I put it…" He tried to look for the best way to explain the situation to a _child_. "Um, Rinlet, are you perchance afraid of anything, like, say, bugs?"

"No, but they are really creepy, and I hate touching them… That swampy old man did something really bad to Sakura didn't he." Rin said as she seemed to realize what had happened. "Oh, I'm sorry Sakura I'm a bad sister, and I shouldn't have stopped talking with you because father said so." Rin began to cry.

"There, there." Mash comforted Rin as she picked her up. "If you're sorry you can just apologize to her. Say Senpai, how about we call it quits for the night?" Mash asked as she patted Rin on the back.

"I would really like that." The girl responded.

"That's great now can you walk on your own legs?"

"Yeah," Rin wiped her eyes of tears and returned to the ground.

"Alright, let's get you back to your sister," Andy said, holding out his hand to Rin as old instincts from dealing with his own family took over.

The girl slowly took the hand, as she seemed to have realized that he was not the bad guy.

Andy smiled at her as she did. A little after they started walking, Andy had replayed the conversation in his head enough to remember something she'd said. "So, Rinlet, you like Sentai, huh?"

"We don't have a TV at home, but I've seen a few episodes when over at one of my friend's house." She started explaining as they made their way to the Temple.

Xxx

"Andy, I will say that this is starting to turn into an elementary school." Waver said as he looked at the three sleeping children who used the Chimera as a teddy bear after a lengthy apology and tearful to Sakura from Rin and the abused girl accepting it.

"I don't have a problem you have a problem." Andy joked before getting a bit more serious. "But…Professor, what else could I possibly do? I can't just leave them be."

"I know if you didn't do that, you wouldn't be you, so I'm fine with it as you are the Master. And you always have the last word," Waver spoke the last part in a joking tone, as he pulled out another cigarette, and he looked like he was about to say something but instead shook his head. "...That can wait for later. Now let's start planning for the Banquet."  
"Right, right." Andy agreed. "Now, for Saber…"

Xxx

May 4

"Well, the front door is wide open, and since Kiritsugu is not on team Einzbern here, we won't need to worry about accidentally walking any mines or tripping any wires," Waver said as they made their way through the castle's front gate. Mash and Kariya besides him with the man looking so much healthier now, along with Lancelot docile and in Spirit Form.

And along with the Berserker, there was also the one Waver had suggested, Cu Alter, along with Andy's personal pick for this fight- little Gil. All the while Scathach was running the other way around, the Queen of Shadows ready to act as an assassin to kill Gilgamesh with a well-timed Gae Bolg. The Scottish warrior having used her Imperial Privilege-like Skill to obtain the abilities needed.

" _Master I would certainly say that bringing me to fight my Adult-Self is sadism on your part. Though it should be fun, haven't had a mirror match like… Sorry memories that are not relevant right now."_ Came Gil's exasperated mental voice.

" _It's less sadism and more giving you the chance to take out any frustrations you might have with this version of you,_ " Andy responded. " _I know if I turned out to be an asshole later down the line, I'd want to kick that me's ass."_

" _A spectacle that Uruku would have appreciated, though I do sometimes wonder which stage of my life my people appreciated the most, the child that laughed alongside them, the man who adventured with his friend, or the Wise King that returned to them after a foolish journey. I never know, but it is an interesting thought. Though right now, I am at your command Master."_

" _I sure would hope you are,_ " Andy replied jokingly. " _Since I believe it's time to start the fireworks, yes?_ " For he could feel Cu Alter starting to get impatient.

" _Yes, as they say, it's party time."_

They entered the courtyard where the Banquet was underway, Arturia, Iskander and Gilgamesh all sitting in front of each other with a barrel of wine by the conqueror's side, and over to the side was little Waver shaking nervously as next to him Irisviel just looked on impassively.

"Ohh it seems that we've have new guests here?" Iskander spoke with an aloof voice as he eyed them up.

"What are you doing here," Andy could hear the spite in Arturia's voice as she glared at him.

"Quiet down Saber I was the one who invited our little meddler and his group here, for they apparently seek to fight and eliminate me."

"You know who they are Archer, and you knew this situation would happen?" Arturia sounded beyond pissed.

"Of course the King's eyes see all."

"Heh, now I'm truly certain about your identity than I was before," Iskander said with a chuckle as he finished his cup.

"Sorry to interrupt this banquet, your respective majesties, but unfortunately the King of Heroes over there is correct." Andy apologized. "We do, in fact, need to end him. My apologies for preventing either of you from having the pleasure of doing so yourselves." He said with a bow that was at least half-mocking.

"You cur, you seek to further disrespect this Grail War."

"Ah, that's what you get for being a slowpoke I guess, very well if I do not get to fight the Ancient King right now, I shall bring my blade upon the victor!" Iskander declared.

"Rider you can just say just say-,"

"Be quiet boy, you're about to witness an epic unfold." Iskander cut off Little Waver.

"You're quite right Rider, you two shall be witness to this legend unfolding, now who have you brought along to fight against me? I almost wanted to take a peek put I didn't want to be spoiled," Gilgamesh stated as he stood up the Gate of Babylon opening at his side.

"Oh, just a boy and his dogs," Andy said, which was, of course, their cue.

Gil, Cu Alter, and Lancelot materialized.

"Three Servants!" The two Masters and Saber exclaimed at the same time as they witnessed their materialization. "I'm guessing the Black Mist guy is Berserker, but who is the other one, and is that also Archer?" Little Waver asked in confusion from his position.

"Hahahaha, I don't know if I should be amused or insulted Survivor to bring along two mad dogs, and my younger self."

"I would go with amusing myself, now at them, boys," Gil said as he brought out his own weapons.

"ARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!" Lancelot gargled as rushed at Gil.

"Not an actual dog, and for this Banquet, I do fit as I was a King briefly," Cu Alter spoke as he joined his fellow Berserker in the onslaught of weapons that were fired at them.

And now they just had to wait for Gilgamesh to get comfortable so that Scathach could actually catch him off guard. Cu Alter used his Protection from Arrows to dodge the launched weapons, while Lancelot grabbed and flung them back all the while Gil countered those that Lancelot could not catch, with own version of the blades. Now they just need for a little over five minutes, as that was recommended time by Gil. And it had been an excellent idea to bring Cu Alter along with while his protection skill was a Rank lower than Cu's he made up for it physical proves. But with a C according to Gil, he should be able to last six hours on his own compared to the twelve that normal Cu was capable of.

Of course, during this intense fight of bombarding and countering, Andy had other plans as he walked over to where little Waver. (And the irony of that occurred to Andy as he realized Waver was actually _older_ than him at the moment, though height wise it still made sense) and Irisviel, slow enough to show he wasn't about to attack, but fast enough that he wouldn't get hit by the stray attacks from the battle occurring not ten feet away.

He, of course, made it to the table rather quickly. "Greetings, Masters of the Holy Grail War. Would you like to join me for a cup of tea while my friends deal with your enemy?"

"Who are you, and how do you have so many Servants? They are Servants too, aren't they?" Little Waver asked as he pointed at Mash and himself, though he didn't know that.

"Well, I think the King of Heroes put it best. You can call me 'Survivor.'" Andy said, stealing the term Gilgamesh had used. He did actually kind of like it. "Now, I can answer all of your questions, but first, tea."

"Yes, I would like a cup," Iskander said as he took a seat beside his Master, and Saber besides Irisviel the two Servants having moved away from the fight.

"ARRRRRRRR!" Which was still going fine.

"Stay still, you Mongrels!"

"You know since I am you, you just called yourself a Mongrel."

"... I hate you."

"Well, you too. Though going by the modern Howard Dictionary, we _are_ , since we are Demi-Gods."

"Don't play smart!"

Yep, going just fine.

Andy pulled an already full teapot from his hammerspace while focusing on the task at hand, a _tad_ worried as he had thought the Servants would have been a little more interested in the fight, but going with his plan nonetheless. "Glad to have you join us, King of Conquerors," He said as he gave Iskander his cup "King of Britain," which was accompanied with Saber's, of course giving Irisviel and Waver some before pouring his own cup.

Saber sniffed the tea before taking a small sip, "At least you aren't dishonest enough to poison us."

Andy, who had been taking a sip of his own tea, choked a bit at that, which he thankfully hid. "O-of course, what kind of coward would do such a thing? Haha." He laughed, hoping this meant he had followed the instructions from the Grimoire properly and _not_ that he had taken out the wrong teapot.

" _Senpai did you poison it?"_

" _I_ tried _to!_ " Andy thought back at Mash. _"Just a sleeping agent, it's supposed to be masked by the tea, but it was supposed to be for the Masters, so please let me focus before I blow this._ "

" _If I were British I would be so offended, thankfully Galahad did not make me so."_

"This is actually good." Little Waver said in surprise, guess he would know as he actually was a true blue-blooded Brit.

"Well, of course," Andy said insulted. "As if I would give you anything of low quality." He said, taking another sip of his own tea.

"Who are you exactly outsider for these Servant of yours with the exception of that screeching Berserker they weren't summoned using the Fuyuki Grail, and the man behind you is the Matou Master?" Irisviel asked.

"Correct, he gave me something I wanted, and I let him borrow Berserker if he dies or not, I don't care. He has granted my wish."

"Which is exactly what I do," Andy said. "I grant people's wishes, one way or the other. Of course, all things have a price." He said, leaning towards his now captive audience. "For the two of you, the price is ridiculously low. And for the other two, well, in a way, you've already paid it."

"What my Master seeks is not something that can be granted by a charlatan like you," Iskander spoke. "I've heard words like that many times before. People like you only bring despair."

"Oh no no no, you misunderstand, O' King," Andy said, having been expecting this when coming up with this spiel. "I can't do anything quite so grand as grant access to the Root, or True Magic, or bringing the dead back to life. I'm no Holy Grail. I'm...just a Survivor."

"Then what do you mean by price already paid, what did you do?" Arturia asked as she began to stand up, but suddenly feel down to her knee. "What did you do? So tired."

At around that time, both Saber and Rider realized the reason their Masters had been quiet was because they had already entered a deep slumber.

Andy smirked. "Again, my apologies. I truly mean you no harm, but I _do_ require your Master's assistance, Saber, and you wouldn't let me close without me using...underhanded means." And she collapsed into sleep too.

A rush of wind passed by his head as the shock wave created by Iskander's blade colliding with Mash's Shield. Andy could see the rage upon the giant of a man's face, but Mash did not move a single inch.

"So, Saber was correct."

"Calm down, King of Conquerors, the idiot brat is asleep, he'll wake up soon enough. Take him and leave, this doesn't concern you," Waver told the man.

"Should have known you would be up to no good. Especially when you're accompanied by someone so shady looking, if my Master wasn't currently in danger, I would have taken you all on." Iskander sheathed his blade and put Little Waver on his shoulder like a potato sack.

"Do you plan to fight us?" Waver asked.

"Yes, of course, you stand in the way of my conquest of the Grail."

"Why, we have no desire for conflict with you, after the defeat of Gilgamesh. Just have the boy expended all of his Command Seals to incarnate you."

"Yes, that would be a non-violent solution, but I will conquer you and the Grail."

"Why?"

"Honestly, after speaking these few sentences I've come to a conclusion. I just don't like you." He said cold-heartedly. "That is all."

"Wha…"

"Zhuge, focus," Andy said, not wanting to call him by his proper name in case Iskander could still hear as he left, but also needing Waver's attention now.

"Boy issues later, right now we need to ensure that Saber and Irisviel _stay_ unconscious until we're back to base," Andy said, bringing out the Grimoire. "I honestly don't know how long it'll last on Saber, so your help would be greatly appreciated!"

"Right," Waver responded as Iskander jumped away, and right at the same moment, another heart was broken, though this case literally as the sound of Gae Bolg piercing Gilgamesh rang throughout the courtyard.

Andy turned around to see the end as Gilgamesh was turned into modern art as six more Gae Bolgs pierced various other body parts.

Though he could see the man laughing as he disappeared.

Though now another problem presented itself as Lancelot's current target had been eliminated, which meant he now sought out a new one.

"ARRRRRTHHHHHHUUUUUR!"

Xxx

A/N: If you like this or any other of my stories you can donate to my P A Treon. com (Slash) StreamingViking and read commissioned stories


	97. Perfect Homunculus

"GRAH!" Lancelot groaned as he was stopped in his tracks, Andy could see small golden threads binding the Berserker in place.

"I say, the chains that held Fenrir in place is perfect for such a mad dog," Gil commented as he walked up beside Andy Cu Alter following behind together with Scathach who decided to wear a mouth covering mask for the assassination.

"Nice one, Gil," Andy commented, his absolute faith in his servants meaning he'd already turned his attention back towards the more pressing matter at hand, namely the slumbering (for _now_ ) Saber. "Kariya, do you have any command seals left?" He asked distractedly as he began concocting the most potent temporarily disabling cocktail he could.

"I've got one left," He lifted up his hand towards the struggling Berserker.

"Good. Don't use it now, I have a hypothesis I want to test once Saber is dealt with." Andy said, before showing the specifics of what he was about to make to Waver. "Prof, you think this'll work?"

"I see no reason why it should not," Waver responded as he took out a new cigarette. "Now let's just get back to the Temple, for this has been a shitty night for me."

"Right, probably for the best." Andy agreed as he activated the grimoire and created the poison (silently thanking Janus for his sacrifice once more) before carefully giving it to Saber. "Okay, Mash, can you take Irisviel? Speaking from experience, your the best at carrying people." He said as he picked up Saber himself. Servants were pretty wack, considering he'd have been able to do this easily without his enhancements, she was so light.

"Sure thing Senpai," Mash responded as she picked up Irisviel in a bridal carry.

Xxx

"So… are you guys just professional kidnappers or what?" Shinji asked them as they came into the main room with Saber and Irisviel. The boy and Sakura having stayed up waiting for them to return alongside Rin who had shown up again.

"N-..." Andy had been about to deny that, before remembering _he_ had been kidnapped, too. "...Not quite. I'm not getting paid."

Silence was the only response that came from members of staff.

"Anyway since you're back. Ahhh, I can go back home now. See you tomorrow Sakura," Rin said as she began to exit the room.

"See you," The quiet girl responded.

"And I am just cheap liver," Shinji grumbled as the door closed shut. "Sakura and I'll be going to our room while you do all your adult stuff."

"Goodnight Mr. Andy," Sakura said as the two left the room.

"Goodnight sweetie," Andy said as they left and then spoke up and to the right. "Emiya, make sure Rinlet gets home safe."

"Who do you take me for?" The Servant asked as he appeared before vanishing again.

Andy grinned as he did, before turning back towards the occupants of the room. "Alright, down to business. Lady Scathach, are you fine being sent back now or did you want to stick around for a bit?"

"I'm satisfied for now, _thrusting_ my _spear_ into a divine aligned figure was a pleasant feeling to feel once again," She spoke with a sultry voice.

"Nymph," Came the response from Gil.

"Brat."

"See you later, Lady Scathach!" Andy said, not at all worried about a squabble between the two, nope, as he swapped her out for Medea. "Hey, Meds, it's time to test that one thing I've been wondering about for a while." He then realized he was still holding Saber as he said this. "Ignore this though, I'm talking about him." He said, motioning with his head towards Kariya and, indirectly, the still bound and still screaming (but silenced thanks to Scathach) Berserker.

"...I am not even going to ask." Medea turned around and faced Lancelot as she tried to execute the hypothesis that he had. Though it didn't take long before Medea groaned in frustration. "Sadly that is not possible Andy, well technically it is but you would lose yours, for the spiritual bond is incompatible at their foundation in regards to the Command Seals. For while they may look and function the same, mechanically speaking, they are night and day." Medea explained.

"Damn," Andy swore. "That would have been really useful if I could take Command Seals… oh well, no biggie. Could you and Gil maybe pacify Berserker then while I have a little chat with these two?"

"I should be easily able to do so if the King is willing to provide a needed material."

"Geez, I am starting to feel like a flea-market where the prize is zero."

"Hey, that's not true, you're saving the world, and all your stuff is there, right?" Andy piped in. "So its to keep all your stuff."

"A King shouldn't have to weed out his own garden that is for the gardeners, though considering most of them are dead. I guess I have to pick up the slack."

"More like a piggy-bank." Cu Alter added. "Gaarh," The Berserker groaned as he removed the spear that had pierced his leg. "By dad's left nut I can see why you turned out like that."

Gil just whistled innocently. "Well, Master and Lord Zhuge Liang do you not have an answer to the question that is this Singularity that needs seeking?"

"Right. I just need to get a proper look at Irisviel to see if my theory is correct or not."

"Oh yeah, the theory you still haven't told me about. Do you want to keep up the suspense and look over Irisviel while I talk to Saber, or should we do this one at a time?" Andy asked snarkily.

"A proper detective does like an audience then he resolves the case so just wake them up after we have secured them because I do not want my head cut off by King Arthur."

"Oh, you won't have to worry about that part unless Irisviel uses a Command Seal," Andy reassured. "I guess you didn't look it over very well, but even as a Servant's level of power, she'd be weaker than _me_ from that poison."

"Just precautionary she is part dragon, after all, now let's wake up our guests." Waver said as he placed his hands on their shoulders before removing them.

"Urgh, what happened?" Arturia asked as she came to, her eyes opening and closing as she returned to the waking world. "Y-you, you bastard you drugged us?" Saber tried to move but instead just slapped herself in the face.

"Saber, be quiet it seems that we've been captured… oh my head," Irisviel complained as she too woke up.

"Lady Irisviel are you ahh, okay?"

"Ahh, I'm fine Saber, so whaaaat do you want with us?" She asked with a yawn.

"Well, simply put, we just needed to ask you some questions, and maybe ask for a favor, but due to Saber misinterpreting my actions-"

"There is nothing to misinterpret cur you acted against my Master, so you're the enemy here and the offender!" She tried to shout, but she was still too drugged up to be very loud.

"- _and jumping to conclusions_ ," Andy continued as if he hadn't been interrupted. "We were forced to either use underhanded tactics to actually have that conversation. That, or kill Saber, and honestly, I didn't want to do that."

"Well, we're here now so what questions do you wish to ask?" Irisviel asked, the Homunculus sighing in resignation.

"First of what is your relationship to Kiritsugu Emiya?" Was Waver's first question.

"I, I don't know who that is?"

"I see that was all I needed to know, and with the analysis of you I just did I now have my theory confirmed."

"What theory, why are you all here?" Irisviel demanded weakly.

"This city, this Holy Grail War has become a Singularity, one that is different from a normal one but still is one. This was created by the Holy Grail to protect itself, but not the Greater Grail beneath our feet, but a perfect Lesser one that has the same power as the ones created by the King of Mages. In this timeline, the Einzbern managed to create their perfect Lesser Grail a generation earlier than normal, one that could act as Master while surviving absorbing all the Servants until the end. Which is why that Counter-Guardian is here. He is here to kill you for due to this change the Einzbern would have won and obtained the Third Magic. That seems to be a thing the World doesn't want," Waver exposited.

"How could you know all of that?" Irsiviel asked.

"Being a Servant and also from the future helps."

"Wait, you're from the future?" Saber asked as she looked like she had fried a few brain cells trying to make her sleep-addled brain absorb what Waver had just said.

"Yup, the far off year of 2018," Andy said, gesturing grandly. "I haven't even been born yet at this point in time." He said as if that wasn't true for literally every single singularity proper since Fuyuki the first time.

"What do you plan to now? You said Lady Irisviel was the one who created and maintained this 'Singularity' albeit unknowingly."

"The same thing we do with every Singularity we just removed the Grail and transport it back to Chaldea. And since Irisviel is a Homunculus and a Grail she can be Rayshifted. So, she doesn't need to die. Though we have to do that after we destroy the Greater Grail beneath us." Waver said.

"And get the Dress of Heaven!" Andy added in.

"How do you?"

"Wait, why should we destroy the Grail, I need it!" Saber stated bitterly.

"The thing won't grant your wish, its cursed," Waver simply responded.

Which resulted in Irisviel cursing.

"Master!" Saber exclaimed in shock at the foul language that flowed out of her mouth.

"Sorry, just cursing my previous model and the old man. Angra Mainyu resides within the Grail still?" She asked.

"Yes, and now it has truly become a Monkey's Paw."

"Sorry Saber it seems you won't get your wish," Irisviel apologized to her Servant.

"It is fine, I am beyond saddened. But this way you will not have to die." Saber said, trying to sound positive.

" _Un_ fortunately, Saber, we can't bring you with." Andy broke the bad news to her.

"It's fine, so how do we go about destroying the Grail?" She asked.

"Well, first we-." Waver's sentence was cut off as Andy watched his hand explode into bloody chunks. "Get down!" He shouted as the walls in front and behind them were riddled with bullet holes.

"Who is attacking us?" Saber asked as she covered Irisviel with her own body.

"Only one person brings guns to a Servant fight," Andy said as Tenfold Shields deployed around him. "Gil, protect the kids and the monks. Everyone else, either protect Irisviel or find him!"

That was when a grenade bundle flew into the room.

"Oh, come on!" Medea shouted as quickly placed a barrier around the thing where it exploded harmlessly. "Fool you've invaded the territory of one from the Age of Gods!" Medea declared. "Force!" She shouted in Ancient Greek, but to Andy's ears it was easily translated.

The sound of something slamming into the ground outside with a loud _thump_.

"Well, that takes care of that," Medea grunted in displeasure. "I fix the place up you either go and convince the rat to join you or kill him. I don't really care which."

"Thanks, Meds, the ever-reliable," Andy said.

"Of course, as the Elder Sibling I have to be." She grinned at him.

"Huh. So that's what that feels like…" Andy said to himself as he contextualized it like that, before shaking his head as if to clear his thoughts physically. "Irisviel, you're willing to work with us, right?" He asked, holding out a small vial with a green liquid in it. "Cuz this is the antidote to the stuff we put in Saber, and she'd be more useful for stuff like this if she can move and you're on our side."

"I am," She took the vial.

"Still a cur," Saber said as Irisviel feed her the liquid.

Andy grinned under his helmet at her words before heading out of the room to get to the downed Kirigitsu, only to find him barely three paces from the door, where he was stuck against the wall, straining against it in a way Andy instantly likened to when Souren did his thing, just more vertical. "So. You're here to destroy the Grail, aren't you, Counter Guardian?" He asked, a bit harsher than he'd normally speak.

"Yes, that was the mission I was given," he spoke solemnly. "Normally, I would have no mind or opinion, but the moment I was summoned, my mind became my own. And because of that for some reason I've been unable to pull the trigger despite having her in my sight so many times." The emotional dead-voiced man stated.

"Mhm. To clarify, is destroying the Grail your _objective_ or simply the _means_ to fulfill your mission of preventing the Einzberns from acquiring the Third Magic?" Andy asked, an idea coming forth.

"The later, it was the only option that I saw available."

Andy grinned wide under his helmet and grand gesturing with his arms. "Well, worry not, wayward Counter Guardian! For I, the Survivor, am here with an alternate solution! For my group and I can easily remove her from the timestream entirely, before she would be given a chance to use the Third Magic, without killing her." He explained.

"That is an acceptable solution," He quickly responded.

"Good. Then, in line with fulfilling your objective, could you help us with destroying the Greater Grail, which we need to do before we can safely remove the Lesser?" Andy asked. "Of course, if not, you can simply stay out of the way. We'll be fine with or without your help."

"I would be incapable of such a thing, I do not possess a Noble Phantasm capable of such a destructive act. If I did, that would have been a possible option."

"Oh, not you destroying it directly, more like killing whatever gets in the way of _us_ doing it." Andy corrected.

"I possess a great deal of anti-magus weaponry, that also works on most Servants." He answered.

"Fantastic," Andy said. "Meds! You can drop the spell!" He said, opting for speaking louder instead of using telepathy since she hadn't gotten too far away yet.

And she had heard him as a second later Kiritsugu landed on the ground. "My Class is Assassin, as Counter-Guardian I have no name. But in life it was Kiritsugu, so you may call me that Master," He presented himself as he took his hood down and remove the bandages around his face.

"I see. Tell me, Kirigutsu, before making your contract with the world, did you participate in a Grail War yourself?" Andy asked.

"Never."

"Okay, what the hell happened while I was gone?" Emiya asked as he walked up to them.


	98. End of Zero

"Your dad's mine now," Andy answered seriously. "Which means with the power Time Alter on our side...wait a minute," Andy said, remembering he could have just used his Stat-o-Vision on Kirigitsu this whole time, and promptly did so.

[spoiler=Kiritsugu's Stat Sheet]

True Name: Kiritsugu Emiya

Class: Assassin

Master: -

 **Parameters:**

Strength: D

Endurance: C

Agility: A+

Mana: B

Luck: E(EX)

Noble Phantasm: B+

 **Skills:**

Presence Concealment: A+

Independent Action: A

Magecraft: A

Affections of the Holy Grail: A+

Scapegoat: C

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Chronos Rose: Gather Ye Rosebuds While Ye May(Anti-Unit): B+

Phantasm Punishment: Mystery Bisection(Anti-Unit): C+

[/spoiler]

"Mhm. Kirigitutsu, I'm guessing your first NP is Time Alter, but what's the second one do?" Andy asked, now sidetracked.

"My Origin manifested as my Thompson Contender and knife."

"Ooh, the knife too? Nice bonus." Andy noted, before registering that (Shirou) EMIYA was scowling at him still. "Uh, sorry. The point was, he's on our side now so, yay?"

"I should just accept that this stuff happens with you and move on," He grumbled. "So… what now?"

"Now...hm." Andy stalled as he thought. "I think we're gonna regroup, make a plan, and then raid the Grail tonight."

"Sounds reasonable, I'm rather getting tired of this Singularity already," Emiya responded.

"I have no objection," Kiritsugu added.

"Great! Then back in we go." Andy said, pulling the two EMIYA's back into the room. "Alright everyone, recruitment was successful."

And what followed that announcement was Saber's gauntleted fist smacking him into the ground.

"SENPAI!"

"Argh… guess that is what they call cathartic? Honestly, I have no idea why my now most adorable knight (sorry Gareth) is following you around?" Saber's voice was directed at his cratered form.

"...That's your only free shot." Andy wheezed out as he shakily got up out of the crater. "Do that again-" he let out a bloody cough that splattered the inside of his helmet. "- _and you won't_ like the consequences."

"I follow him because he is my Senpai, I am not your knight; I am his, and my loyalty is to him only, _your Majesty._ " Damn Andy could hear the venom in Mash's voice.

" I see."

"Now, now let's not fight we are all friends now aren't we…hehe," Irisviel's awkward laugh filled the room.

"Your Master has a point, Saber." Andy agreed. "If I, basically a human, and as you have put it, an honorless cur, who you have repeatedly injured, am able to work with you for the greater good, shouldn't the King of Knights be able to put aside her anger as well?"

"You're right, but I will not apologize." Saber's face was stern.

"Good enough for now," Andy said. "Now, we _were_ going to figure out how to go about raiding the Grail, but we're going to have to put that on hold because I think I need medical attention."

"Good thing I'm here isn't it?" Medea said as she spoke her Divine Words, and Andy felt his raging headache disappear along with the concussion he had probably received. "Though I will say while the force was excessive, you did deserve it. Cause you were a bit of a dick."

"I only poisoned her one time!" Andy defended himself, mostly jokingly.

"I think that is one time too many," Waver intruded on the conversation holding a cigarette in his now healed hand. "And as for the Greater Grail we just need it to manifest, and then blow it kingdom come via Excalibur. And our troubles should be over."

"That simple?"

"It is… Savant when it comes to Magecraft like a certain student of mine and Servant/Master relationships, but by god other times you're an idiot Andy." Waver both praised and insulted him.

"At least I'm not a chain-smoking douche, _Professor_ ," Andy said, in more of a joking tone than angry.

"I take pride in that." A smile was on his face. "Though now just have one problem and that is Servant numbers, cause we need like one or two more to bite the dust."

"Mhm, well... EMIYA...Shirou, how many Assassins did you destroy during our excursion?" Andy asked.

"Pfft, I think we're at the eighties now?" He responded.

"I can just use a Command Seal to have Berserker kill himself, I'm basically out of this War, and there is no reason for me to be a Master. So, I just go and stay with Sakura and Shinji while you do your thing."

"Oh, no need to waste precious resources like that," Andy said. "Plus, I think we should at least give Lancelot a proper Warrior's death, while your Command Seals will go to Irisviel."

"Lancelot! Are you telling me that Mad Beast was Lancelot?" Saber asked in shock.

"...Whoops." Andy said upon realizing he'd slipped up. "Uh, yeah. Berserker is Lancelot. Honestly kind of surprised you can't tell, his silhouette is very distinctive even with For Someone's Glory active."

"It must be because you're already aware of his identity for to my eyes and others he looks more like a mass of dark mist, and with what little I saw of the armor… it is the wrong color. Perhaps I'm not fit to be King if my actions let knight become such a sorrowful and hate-filled man."

"Saber that is not true, whatever happened to Berserker is not your fault," Irisviel tried to cheer her up.

"No, Saber's right," Andy interjected. "At least partially."

"Smooth." Andy ignored Emiya.

"No he is correct this one time, I could have been a better King and just let Guinevere and Lancelot go and just said that they escaped. But the people called for her death, and I served them, which then resulted in Gawain's siblings dying along with other knight and the two running to the mainland. But that is not the point if Lancelot has to die for our plan to continue on I will do so as his King."

"Yeah, that works," Andy said. "But, to note, I was just going to say the 'robotic ruler' shtick was the part where you messed up, given how you did it to _all_ of your subjects." He decidedly did _not_ mention that he knew this to be true from Mordred airing her grievances with Saber and backed up by, well, _all_ of the other versions of herself.

"...Let's just kill my knight and blow up the Grail." Came Saber's curt answer.

xxx

It was both a familiar and alien sight to Andy's eyes as the group entered the cavern below the temple where the Greater Grail would manifest itself.

He had been here once before in what seemed like a lifetime ago, while in fact it was only about nine months since they had entered Singularity F and fought Saber Alter... and watched Lev kill Olga-Marie.

"Not to be rude, but please do this quick, Saber," Andy said, holding his hands by his sides tightly as fists so as to hide the fact they were shaking at being back in this place.

"I will release Lancelot, and I shall do the duty I delayed for so long."

Andy gave the signal to Gil to let Lancelot go, the Berserker having been practically frothing at the mouth from being in such close proximity to Saber this whole time.

"ARTHUR!" He screamed as the smoke vanished, and Arondight was summoned forth.

But like a standoff, it was in an instant as the glowing of Excalibur pierced through Lancelot's stomach. He collapsed on top of Saber and began to vanish.

And it seems that the effect of Mad Enhancement had ceased as Andy heard Lancelot begin to speak in a low tone into her ears before he fully vanished. And it was almost like with Lily then it had happened in France as the look upon Saber's face was one of great sadness and relief.

"Saber are you okay?" Irisviel asked.

"I am fine Irisviel, now what-." Saber was cut off as another voice rang through the cavern.

"Sorry to interrupt this emo-." Andy turned around, and he and Kiritsugu immediately fired into Zouken's face. "-But I just need to make sure that there is enough juice." He held up his left hand and there Andy saw three Command Seals on it. "Assassin please kill yourself." They lit up, and Andy felt one his 'Pokeballs' get much emptier.

"Zolgen Makiri what did you do?" Irisviel shouted at the worm.

"Accomplishing my desires, I helped design this Ritual, I know all the tricks." He tapped his cane on the ground, and a massive magic circle appeared beneath him.

"You… you just took out all the Servants' Spirit Origins out of me?" Irisviel stated in disbelief.

"Yes, now let the Grail be truly manifested into a proper form!" Zouken shouted as besides black sludge oozed out of the ground and began to take shape a somewhat human one.

"Oh, Zolgen it has been so long since I saw you." Said the Irisviel? Now standing besides Zouken.

"You, you're the core of the Holy Grail! You're Justeaze von Einzbern?"

"That is correct but, first thank you Zouken, but I don't need you anymore," She spoke and in a second Andy saw Zouken be torn apart and consumed by black ribbons that had appeared out of the ground. "I am Justeaze, I am the Black Grail, but first and foremost you can just call me Avenger. But I'm not whole yet, so dear Servants, please feed me?" She asked with a sadistic smile all the while she licked her lips.

"Don't like that," Andy said. "So, Irisviel, Saber, please do the thing!"

"Saber by my Command Seals, eliminate this disgusting creature!" She proclaimed.

"EX-."

"Oh, that is not fair!"

"-CALIBUR!" And in less than a second, the golden sword of promised victory's light descended upon the corrupted Grail.

And just blasted it out of existence.

"Guess that does it." Saber stated as the were no Black Grail to be seen.

"Honestly so far this War has just been us coming a little too late." Spoke the booming voice of Iskander as he entered the cavern with little Waver in tow looking like absolute shit.

"The War is over Rider, the Greater Grail has been destroyed we will vanish soon enough," Saber spoke.

"Yes, I can tell I only have a few minutes left."

"So, lemme guess, you wanna go out in Glorious Combat, King of Conquerors?" Andy asked, seeing where this was going.

"Of course I want to fight that Shady Caster by your side."

"Do you really have to Rider."

"Be quiet boy/you moron!" Iskander and Waver shouted at the same time.

"Why are you even shouting at me who even are you?" Little Waver shouted at his adult self.

"An idiot that wishes to fight the man he admires the most," He responded.

Which caused Iskander to let out a roaring laugh. "Ah, I see, I see. So you're… Fate is a cruel thing." He turned to little Waver. "Boy, this shall be the last time we shall speak to one another. But remember Glory lies beyond the horizon. I know that you already know what you want, so go seek it with all your heart. Now get out."

"Wagh," He shouted as Rider threw him out of the chariot. "Why did you do that, you stupid ass dolt!"

Iskander just grinned in response. "Ionian Hetairoi!" He shouted, and a second later both he and Waver vanished from view, but Andy could still feel his bond to the Caster.

"Idiot!" Came the complaint from little Waver as he stood up.

"Hey, kid, don't worry about it," Andy said as he walked up to Waver and put a gauntleted hand on his shoulder. "Speaking from experience, your Rider is definitely stronger."

"If this fight was fair yeah, but ain't he got any mana left, so your Caster just need to outlast Rider." He stated. "But this is what he wanted, and a subject can't stop his liege's desires can't he?"

"I suppose not. Sorry kid." Andy said sincerely as he realized they'd kind of fucked over this timeline's Waver a bit. "Hey, remember what I said at the Meeting of Kings? About granting wishes?"

"I do, and then you drugged my tea you fucking asshole who the hell does that? It would be fucking tea if it were coffee sure, but not fucking tea you fucking wanker!" Little Waver shouted at him.

"Sorry about that, it was a rather spur of the moment decision," Andy admitted. "But, my point is, if there's anything I _can_ do for you before we go, I'll do it. You've already paid the price, after all."

"There really isn't, there is only thing, and you can't give it to me." And the second he said the adult Waver popped back into existence his suit ruined and bloody.

"Here kid, he wanted you to have this," Waver stated as he threw Iskander's cape onto his younger-self. "That was everything I ever wanted, now Master how about we go back home?" He asked.

"Right, probably for the best," Andy said, before remembering something. "Wait, the Dress! We can't leave without the Dress of Heaven!"

"Don't worry a version that I can use currently doesn't exist, but the plans for it is in my head, I just need to make it. Do you have an Alchemist that can assist me if I go with you to Chaldea?" Irisviel asked.

"Not just _an_ alchemist, we have _the_ alchemist." Andy bragged. "But, if that's everything, then I suppose we really should get going. Boss, we ready for Rayshift?"

" _That we are, starting the sequence now."_

"That sounds promising. And goodbye Saber it was delight getting to know you."

"You too Irisviel," Saber responded as she was starting to vanish.

"And perhaps we shall see each other some other time Andy Murphy," Kiritsugu spoke. "I see if I can't let it know that I would like to be summoned by you."

"And I would be glad to have you, Kiritsugu Emiya." Was Andy's response.

He turned his head towards Shirou. "That me must have been a much luckier man." He stated as he vanished.

"Yeah… I think so too." Emiya responded.

At that, Andy saw the blue Rayshift tunnel and soon after he exited the Coffin.

"Welcome back, Andy, Mash, and others," Roman greeted them.

"Good to be back, Boss," Andy said, storing away Tenfold Shields, which revealed that he had several significantly large bloodstains on his undersuit. "I _really_ need to get cleaned up."

"You certainly do. Now Miss Einzbern, please come with me, I just want to check that your health is stable for this is the first time we have done such a Rayshift with someone like you."

"Of course, you are the leader of this organization are you not?"

"Temporary leader."

"Senpai let's get going."

"Right, yes, thank you Kouhai. Oh, and everyone is dismissed." Andy said with a wave towards the Servants, who took that as their cue to all disperse at light speed to go off and do their own thing.


	99. Cryptids

May 5

"I'd like to call this Meeting of the Minds to order by introducing our newest member, Miss Irisviel von Einzbern," Andy said, causing the previous chatter of the numerous Servants involved in the think tank to cease. "With her help, Project Mashu can _finally_ commence its operation, once we construct the Dress of Heaven, of course."

"And I am thankful to be here when the good doctor fully explained to me what it was needed for. I became a hundred percent on board as one would say. To think that the head of the Animusphere family would design a child like that deliberately. If she had been a Homunculus, I would have expected a short life period, but she is not one." She talked while she massaged her temple.

"Good, so you're on the same page as us then," Andy said. "Since the Dress is made using alchemy, Paracelsus, this will be your #1 priority until it is complete. All other projects will be put on hold until Project Mashu is fully finished."

"And that will probably take some time, as saying that it's made using Alchemy is like saying a spaceship was made using engineering," Paracelsus responded.

"Yes, the process is rather specific as it is going to involve us making the perfect failed Einzbern Lesser Grail Homunculus. And then converting it into the dress," Irisviel explained to him.

"I'm sorry, you need to make the what, the what, the _what?!_ " Andy asked, confusion obvious.

"The material that the Dress of Heaven is made out of is a homunculus that failed to become a Lesser Grail in the most basic of terms."

"Does… does it have to be sentient?" Andy asked, suddenly not feeling too good about doing this.

"No, no, it does not thankfully for what we need," Irisviel responded.

"Oh, thank god." Andy sighed in relief. "Though, if I may, why would making it take so long, exactly?"

"To make it grow the way we need it, the art of Homunculi creation is not an exact science more of an art really. I took almost two centuries for the Einzbern to make another Homunculus that was on the same level as Justeaze, namely me. Thank we don't need one as good, but you can still see we need one that can actually work as a Dress of Heaven so a lot of trial of error," She explained.

"O _h.._. And, on average, how long would you expect that to take, given you'll have the Father of Alchemy to accelerate the process somewhat?" Andy asked, heart rapidly dropping.

"Without Paracelsus help, it would have taken about a decade, but with his assistance to get the right one… Mash should get a nice Halloween present. Give or take a month or two." The man nodded in agreement with Iriviel's words.

"Thank _god_ ," Andy said, rapidly wiping away the forming tears of relief with his arm. "Okay. So if you two have Project Mashu on lockdown, I suppose it wouldn't hurt to move on to other business now?" He said after a moment.

"No, it would not. Now, what else do you have on the agenda, Master?" Babbage asked, the mathematician's steel body rumbling.

"Good, now as for the 'what else,' Project: Rebirth and Sub-Project: Silk Road." Andy started off. "Firstly, I must thank everyone in this room responsible for making my current body. Without it I have little doubt I would be dead right now. However, after several months of testing this current one out, I have come to the conclusion that the current transformation ability is...inefficient, in that with its large wind-up time and short duration, I have never used it for actual practical purposes, due to the risk of pausing in the middle of a fight not being worth it. Thus, I am proposing that for Andy 3.0, that instead of being a once-a-day, 5-minute transformation the body be outfitted with an ability to transform more frequently, even if the transformation itself is weaker, to lend itself to usability. A Devil Trigger instead of a Devil-man if you would." Andy proposed.

"I understand, yes that would be more useful to you," Da Vinci muttered as she began to write stuff immediately. "Going to have to study some Quantum and Imaginary Numbers for this. Oh, this could be exciting. Do you have any other desires for the design?"

"Well, I was thinking something like Nero from Devil May Cry, with like the ghostly overlay, y' know cause of my Affinities, and to make up for how I don't have a Stand," Andy said.

"Yes, you're rather salty about that aren't you sadly we don't have an arrow in storage, or we would have tried that… No would that even work… The conditions…" Da Vinci began to trail off.

"Lady Da Vinci is there something you would like to share with us?" Edison asked.

"Just an idea, but one I will have to investigate on my own to see if it would even work due to our current situation. But… there is something else I wish to say. That is if Miss Einzbern wishes it you can join Andy on expeditions into singularities as you do have Master potential and Rayshift compatibility due to your Grail nature. Not to the silly levels that Andy has, but you can act as a Master for a Servant or two," Da Vinci announced.

"Even if you don't decide to come for most missions Irisviel, you should definitely try and summon at least one Servant, in case you get a Caster we don't already have or something." Andy chimed in.

"I will think about it, but yes me summoning a Servant does sound like a good idea."

"Great so I'll start making two tickets for you to use before we locate the sixth Singularity at maximum," Da Vinci responded.

"Never thought I'd be happy to give up Tickets…" Andy mumbled to himself.

"Master control your summoning addiction." Came the sassy comment from Tesla.

"I'm not addicted, I can stop anytime I want!" Andy rebutted jokingly. "I just don't want to!"

"Sounding like Holmes and his opium Master," Came the comment from Helena.

Andy gave her a flat look. "Okay, I'll stop when the world isn't at risk of being destroyed." He then cleared his throat. "Back on topic, with that part of Project: Rebirth in motion, Sub-Project: Silk Road. We now finally have samples of the Crest Worms of Zouken Matou. Once we've completed our analysis of the samples, they are to be incinerated with at least one Saint present to consecrate the act, and all samples must be closely monitored. I'm not risking the chance we accidentally brought Zouken back with us somehow." He started. "On that, Amakusa. I've already created rudimentary blueprints and models for the Silkies, so once we've finished analyzing the Crest Worms, I'll need you to hand-make the first ten or so to ensure quality and minimize error."

"Of course Master, I shall start immediately," He responded.

"Good. Alert me as soon as you are finished with that, but as it isn't a priority project, make sure you take breaks. We don't want a repeat of last time." Andy said, remembering how Amakusa had, after a period of working nonstop for 30 hours and had subsequently tried to use his Black Keys as knitting needles on Andy, and had since then been limited to no more than 5 hours work a day. Which, of course, had been Andy's fault for forgetting Shirou, in fact, could not work like a Stuffy. Edison had been proud.

"No, no, we would not." Came the venomous reply. The man was still pissed about that.

"Moving on!" Andy said, voice an octave higher before he cleared his throat. "Moving on, is there anything anyone else would like to put forth during this Meeting?"

"No no at this time," Tesla said, and the others gave similar responses.

"Well if that is all for today. I need to go and do my investigation." Da Vinci stood up and left through one of the doors.

"...Why do I have a sudden creeping feeling of dread?" Andy asked.

"Well, whatever she had planned is probably going to involve something unpleasant as from her words, I can gather she is going to do something about the whole Stand issue, and your suggested Devil Trigger," Helena spoke as she pulled out a book.

"Yes, that was the implication, Blavatsky," Andy said flatly. "I was trying to be a bit dramatic for the lulz."

"I knew, and I deliberately ruined it, hehe." She chuckled to herself.

"Well, I suppose it is normal for _old ladies_ to ruin the fun of youngins," Andy said as if it were merely a fact.

"Pull the other lever, would work if I looked my age, but I have been sexy for forty years straight. Now my dear child go along while the adults are playing." Her face was made of smug.

"Okay, first, gross, you literally look like a child." Andy started. "And second, I am an adult! In like a month and a bit I'll have been one for a whole year!"

"I'm taller than Euryale! And is your birthday soon? We have to celebrate that," She said, changing the topic.

"Yeah, well at least date-wise. Time-wise I guess we should have celebrated back in January, but semantics." Andy said, having decided he'd rather just stick with the actual date than shift his birthday due to the timeline shenanigans.

"That's great to know, guess I have to start making a present for you," She responded.

"Nah, don't worry about it. Everyone here has already given me so much I'd feel bad if I took anything more." Andy said dismissively.

"It'll just be a small trinket nothing too complicated. Though don't you have something to do now? The meeting has ended, and we're the only ones left." And she was right, they were the only ones left in the Hall of the Minds.

"Right, I need to start analyzing the samples we got from Fuyuki," Andy said, remembering what needed to be done. "Thanks for reminding me, I need to start doing what I can…" He said as he left the Hall.

xxx

"So, you're done with the big brain meeting, Andy?" The small King of Heroes asked as he stood by the door to his room.

"Hm? Oh, yeah, Meeting's done. What's up, Lil' King?" Andy asked as he looked up from where he was pouring over the data he'd already gotten on the Crest Worms at his desk.

"Just wanting to be a little condescendingly cryptic, I have a little trouble controlling my Clairvoyance in this form, so my eyes tend to wander. And this is about what my adult-self called you when we crashed the Banquet." A smug smirk was plastered across his face.

"What, Mongrel?" Andy asked, knowing precisely what Gil was referring to despite the question.

"Survivor? Truly a name I had first thought to be relating to our current situation, but it truly fits amongst the others to describe what you are," Gil's tone held some flight to it like he wasn't all there.

"...Would you mind elaborating on that?" Andy asked, turning around fully to face Gil and putting all his attention on the little King's words. "Cryptically, if needed."

"I just wonder if both you and that other boy had both been thrown out and he had been to forge a contract with Mash. Would you have done so with that… yes, man would be the best way to describe him." He spoke.

"What does Fujimura have to do with anything?" Andy asked, Gil's words rekindling old doubts about his whole situation. "And what, man?"

"A twist of fate happened, so you ended up taking his role, and your own being changed from what it should have been, but a similar one. And that man is not relevant right now as he has not shown himself to you. And so that power has changed to fit the current situation from what it should have been. But that potential still exists within you, though in a much more limited fashion though we have to rely on Da Vinci to pull it out. Andy, no, Andrew, you're one of those humans who have potential for anything to happen to them a thing that almost reaches infinite. Truly Fools the lot of you. Well, see you later." The king exposited to himself and him as he left his position and the door closing.

"...What the fuck was that?" Andy asked to the empty room. Something with Fujimura (it had to be him, he looked _exactly_ like a stereotypical Protag-kun he had to be the one Andy stole the role from), some hidden potential within himself he could have made a deal with. Potential. Deadnaming him for some reason being important. Something only Da Vinci could extract. "...Survivor." Andy said aloud as he wondered what the hell it all meant. Was it his Origin? Did he actually have magic ancestry he didn't know about? Was Actually Satan in his soul somehow? It didn't make any sense.

"...Y'know what? Fuckit! I'm not dealing with some oracular bullshit right now." Andy said to himself, deciding now was not the time to stress about this. He checked to make sure the recording of their conversation had everything, and then promptly did literally anything else, in this case turning on some tunes while he went over the anatomy of the Crest Worms from his initial dissection.

Yet, despite himself, in the back of his mind, the question was still there.

Would he survive?

Xxx

May 7

"So, do you want a ticket or Craft Essence?" Da Vinci asked.

"Ticket, but let Irisviel use it." Was Andy's response. "There's a better chance that she'll get something good then if I do it since she's only summoned one Servant as opposed to my… what is it, 90 something? I can't keep track…"

"Yes, it is quite the collection you have, but honestly they are almost a full-time job, aren't they?"

"What are talking about, 'almost'?" Andy asked, half-jokingly. "It's like being a parent, a kindergarten teacher, a cat daycare, and a _lion tamer_ all at once back to back to the point where I only have time for _more work_ on the side to _relax_."

"But you don't sound displeased, do you? Though with the Dress of Heaven after Mash has been fixed we can slowly start fixing up the other Master Candidates. To lighten the load a little," She told him.

"Wait, seriously?" Andy asked, shock evident. "We can do that?!"

"Yes, the Dress is the tool needed to heal the spiritual damage done to them, as all of them were about to Rayshift and Lev's bombs disrupted that process causing immense damage to their souls. The coffins are the only thing keeping them alive, by Schrodinger them."

"Yeah, I think I remember you explaining that before, I just never made the connection with what the Dress could do." Andy said, not mentioning how he'd been thinking of it as 'the thing I need to save Mash' since it was a given. "In that case, we'd probably start with the ones with the highest apti-...no. We'd start with Ritsuka, and then the ones who were nicest to Mash, and _then_ the ones with the highest aptitude, right?"

"That would be most of the A-Team as the others like you were recruited basically in two weeks from when we discovered Singularity F. Though the A-Team are the ones I'm most concerned about as they are worse off than the others. So, they probably won't be able to leave their coffins for a long time."

"Ah. Shame." Andy said, shaking his head. At least they had survived. "Oh, right, Leo, Gil said something to me a few days ago that's been bugging me."

"Oh, and that is?" She asked with naked curiosity.

"He implied that there's... _something_ I could have made a deal with, way back when in F if Ristuka had been the one to become Mash's Master. He said it had to do with the whole 'Survivor' name the 1994 Gil said. And he said that only you had the ability to show the now-limited power of this thing -Gil settled on 'man' but sounded unsure btw- which has got me really, really, _really_ confused." Andy exposited.

"Nothing escapes the King of Heroes' sight, does it?" She responded. "Though thanks for telling me that now I know that it will work, just have to make it now. It would truly make for the perfect birthday present."

"Wow, so whatever this was you knew the whole time, huh?" Andy asked, not surprised. A bit hurt she hadn't said anything, but not surprised.

"I have no idea who that 'Man' he spoke of is, but that potential, that power is something I had an idea you might possess since you started contracting and befriending so many Servants. But it left my mind until you during the meeting when you brought up Stands again," She explained.

"Any chance I could get a better explanation to what you're getting at, or are you gonna let the suspense build up till the big reveal for dramatic effect?" Andy asked flatly.

"Oh no, I am not explaining right now, I'm going to explain on your birthday when you get your present. Cause I want to be a 110% Sure what is going through is the correct thought," She responded with a tone of finality.

"Man, ever since I told Blavatsky about it, everyone's been making a big deal about my birthday…" Andy said, finding Da Vinci's explanation acceptable. Writers don't publish till the books finished, artists don't sell a painting till its dry, and scientists didn't make promises on research until it was done.

"Well, it's your birthday you only have those once a year," She cheekily replied.

"I mean, if you wanna get pedantic, I could technically argue I get two based on date and chronologically," Andy replied back just as cheekily.

"Don't get smart with me. But on that day I will explain."

"Alright, alright, fine," Andy said, preparing to leave, before realizing something. "Wait, I never said the actual date, did I? Or is that on the fake id stuff you guys had of me?"

"It's probably on a file somewhere, but I can't remember right now."

"The 18th. _June_ 18th." Andy said, correcting himself upon realizing it was still next month.

"Sure thing Bond."

"I'm bad with dates, sue me!" Andy said jokingly, throwing his hands up in surrender. "But, seriously, now you _have_ to tell me whatever this is about that day whether it worked out or not, understand Leo?"

"Trust me it will or do you doubt my abilities? Though I have to find the files on the damned thing first, I should really learn to keep this shit clean." Yeah, Da Vinci's main Workshop was a paper mess.

"Yeah, you'd think you use some kind of organization system. Or the assistants I keep offering you." Andy said, pointing at the two Stuffys currently acting as a simple mannequin and a coat rack, respectively.

"I deal, now can you give this Ticket to Irisviel?" She requested as she took out the golden tickets out of the machine.

"Yeah, sure. See you later, Leo." Andy said as he took said ticket, eager to see what Irisviel would summon.

Andy headed straight to Irisviel's new room straight from Leo's workshop, on a whim switching over to female as she went. In no time flat, she reached the place in question before knocking on the door. "Miss Einzbern? Do you have a moment?" She asked.

"I do Andy, you can come in," The woman responded.

Andy entered the room and saw the Homunculus wearing a simple white dress sitting at her table in the middle of putting together a 3-D puzzle. "Oh, so that is the female form I've heard rumors about?" She asked as she looked at her.

"Rumors from who?" Andy asked. "And ye. I just change whenever I feel like it."

"Well, more like I was warned that you do that so I wouldn't be shocked to see you show up with breasts and an ass to match. That being Astolfo's words, not my own."

"Dammit, Azzy…" Andy said under her breath, not even being able to be mad at the Paladin. "Well, I came down here so you could use this little guy." She said, waving the Golden Ticket. "It's what we use to summon Servants around here, though I bet Leo's or someone else has already explained that to you by now."

"They have."

"Aight, then in that case you want to try your luck on Everyone's Favorite Gambling Game, the Servant Summoning System?" Andy said with dramatic flair, like a gameshow host.

"I will, I have decided to help you out beyond that off making the Dress of Heaven."

"Great! We'll go meet Mash down at the Summoning Room, her Shield is what we use as a Summoning Circle. You can technically use a Catalyst too, but you don't need one." Andy explained excitedly.

"I don't have one right now, I already gave Avalon to the Saber that lives here, so this would be a free summon as it were." She told him. "Though there are certainly a lot that have similar faces to her, though that Japanese swordswoman is pretty weird along with that friend of hers."

"Oh, you must mean Okita and Nobu," Andy said with a nod as they began heading down towards the Summoning Room. "If you think they're weird then praise whatever you worship you weren't there for when we met them."

"I shall take your word for that."

The rest of the walk was passed with inane conversations about other things, which ended shortly upon getting to the room in question, Mash already inside due to Andy asking her to. "Yo, Kouhai, thanks for setting things up awhile."

"Your welcome Senpai, so Miss Einzbern do you need any assistance?" She asked.

"No, I do not, and please call me Irisviel." She responded as she stepped up to the summoning circle and activated the ritual.

"Servant Assassin, it seems that this time you shall be my Master instead of my target," Kiritsugu spoke as knelt before her.

"Fate is a weird thing."

"Then, I shall serve you."

"Soooo," Andy interjected. "Since you'll be staying here Kiritsugu, the room next to Irisviel's is still empty, and the room system is legitimately important to how we operate I must add, and then with this armband you can navigate the facility." She said, handing said armband over. "And from here, he's yours so you can do whatever with him Irisviel."

That caused the woman to blush heavily, as she tried to look anywhere else.

"Oho~? And what's with that reaction, Irisviel?" Andy asked mischievously, knowing precisely what was up but not having been sure if there was anything there with this iteration of the couple.

"Nothing, nothing at all. Come along Assassin it seems our friend has impure intentions regarding the two of us." She babbled as she dragged the tanned Kiritsugu out of the room.

"That was terrible Senpai."

"Whaat? I didn't do anything." Andy said, 'innocently.' "You must be thinking of someone else, everyone knows I'm the best Senpai."

That just caused her Kouhai to giggle in response. "I'm hungry want to see what our dear cooks have made for us today."

"Why, what a delightful idea my wonderful Kouhai!" Andy said, putting on a stupid accent. "To the cafeteria!"

It was fun to just goof around sometimes.


	100. Chapter 100

May 12

"Morning the two of you," Romani greeted them as she and Mash entered the Dining Hall for breakfast.

"Mornin' Boss," Andy said with a yawn.

"Get some energy cause you've got a mission today," He informed them, as he put down his coffee.

That instantly woke Andy up. "Already? That was fast." She noted. Usually, it was more than a week between stuff like this. "I'm not complaining btdubs, just surprised."

"Sheba detected a Singularity last night that seems to contain a Holy Grail, though it is not one of the seven. It is much weaker and kinda distorted, closer to what Elizabeth obtained to form her 'Special Halloween Singularity.' I sent Kintoki in, to scout as it is located in Kyoto and he is very familiar with that area, you will be meeting up with him there, as according to him someone filled the air with something." Roman told them.

"Filled with 'something' like the Demonic Fog in London or like, poison?" Andy asked.

"No, it isn't, but it has made the people in the singularity frenzied, so someone is obviously doing something nefarious."

"Mhm. Then I'll call in a landing team, and then we'll head in immediately."

"Eat something first."

"The doctor is right, Senpai food first."

Andy sighed dramatically. "Yes, mom." She said sarcastically.

xxx

The tranquil tunnel she saw when Rayshifting vanished from Andy's vision as her feet felt the ground beneath.

And in front of her, she almost saw a sea of Sakura Petals before laying on the ground up to her ankles, and Kintoki was right with saying there was something in the air. As there was a pink mist being carried by the wind floating about. It did not have the density of the Demonic Fog, but it did obscure their vision somewhat.

"Huh. That's...different. Or is this normal around here?" Andy asked regarding the dual seas of pink.

"The amount of Sakura Petals? Yes, during this age and season, this would be a common sight, but the mist? This is clearly supernatural," Tamamo answered, the fox spirit sniffing the air, and sticking out her tongue. "Oh, my." She spoke in response with wide eyes to what she had just discovered.

"What's wrong?" Andy asked, having come into this one already fully armored in case the air was, in fact, poisonous.

"Well, I certainly know what it is now; it's wine," Tamamo simply responded back.

"Well, now Lord Kintoki's words about the people being frenzied makes sense." Kojiro began.

"They are all drunk of their assess." Kiyohime finished with a sigh.

"Thankfully, in this diluted state, it won't make us drunk, but I certainly feel… stronger in its presence, how curious," Ushi added, as she looked around the place.

"Speaking of Kintoki, where is he?" Mash asked as she tried to find the golden boy.

"According to our connection, he's right over there," Andy said, pointing at an extra-large pile of sakura petals near one of the trees that was slowly undulated in time with Kintoki's breathing.

"He must have fallen asleep," Kojiro stated as all eyes landed on the pile.

"I mean, how long has he been in here? He might have been breathing in enough to actually get drunk and pass out." Andy suggested as she walked over to the pile. "Or he could have just been tired, and I'm overthinking things again." She said, before lightly kicking the pile.

And Kintoki exploded out of it as he woke up. "Yo, Master sorry for falling asleep, I only wanted a little nap after wrestling a bear. So are all of you ready to go to work." He smiled with a shining golden smile.

"Why were you...never mind." Andy said, deciding 'it's Kintoki' was reason enough for the bear thing. "What's the situation, Kintoki? I'm assuming it's not quite Golden."

"You're right about that Master, it is not golden at all. We've got an Oni problem on our hands." He answered with a serious expression.

"Oni?" Andy asked excitedly. She'd been waiting to run into some Oni ever since Andy 2.0 had begun production (more like since summoning Kintoki, but now there was an actual _reason_ for it) to further the project. "What kind of Oni? How many? Servants or non-Servants? Do you have any already? Did-"

"Senpai let Mr. Golden re-respond," Mash spoke with a now slurred tone.

"Oh fuck, the _wine_ fog." Andy realized. "Mash, try and breath through your Team Scarf, we can't have you getting drunk on us." She said, cursing not having thought to bring a gas mask or something with for Mash for situations like this.

"I swear to you drunk, I am not senpai, hic," She hiccuped, her face now a drunk red.

"Wow, I had thought that she would be immune due to Demi-Servant nature. But that doesn't seem to be the case, and she is a light-weight to boot," Then Tamamo suddenly got a mischievous smirk on her face. "Hey Mash, what do you want the most?"

"H-huh? I want, I want Senpai too-"

"Okay, stopping this right here!" Kiyohime shouted as she slapped her hand across Mash's mouth to stop her from speaking further. As she quickly tied the scarf around Mash's mouth. "Okay, Fox, detoxify her and bless that thing before I smack those cow tits of yours."

Which just caused Tamamo to twitch in response. "You're lucky that Master is here, Lizard. Give me a moment, Andy, I get her running at optimal." She stated, with Mash's voice being muffled by the scarf, as she still tried to respond to Tamamo's earlier question.

"Please do, the idea of drunk Mash terrifies me," Andy admitted. "And not just because of the combat effectiveness…" She muttered to herself.

"Let us get back to the problem at hand," Ushi spoke as she turned towards Kintoki. "Lord Kintoki, what kind of Oni are we dealing with here?"

"You're definitely one of the Boss's descendants just as serious when it comes to 'work.' We're only dealing with a singular Oni, and she is definitely a Servant, though she feels more powerful than she should be." He stated with a grimace. "Can't get an accurate reading from here, so we need to go to the center of Kyoto where she currently is staying."

"Then, we should get going unless you already have a suspicion as to this mysterious Oni's identity, Golden Boy?" Andy asked.

"I do, but I want to be a hundred percent golden about this, so let's go, Master. Even if it isn't her, an Oni is causing trouble and harming humans, and so it is my job to deal with them as one of the Four Heavenly Kings!" He declared.

"Then, we'll head over at top speed ASAP," Andy said, before turning towards Tamamo and the still muffled Mash. "Tamamo, did you do the thing?"

"I'm fine now, Senpai," Mash spoke more loudly now so that her voice was heard. "And… ignore what I tried to say earlier, it never happened. Is that understood?"

"Yeah, I gotchu, Kouhai," Andy said, relieved he wouldn't have to worry. "Now then, let's go get that Oni!"

"Yosh!" Came the response from the others as they waded through the Sakura Petals and entered the city proper. Along the way, knocking out any drunk humans, they stumbled upon that attacked them first.

Thankfully I did not take long for them to arrive at the center of the city, which contained a massive wall that seemingly stretched from one end of the city to the other.

"I believe this is not supposed to be here?" Kojiro asked as they all stood in front of the ornate wall.

"Kinda," Tamamo answered. "There are few gates throughout the city, but definitely no one like this."

"I believe looking up the color that this is a heavily modified version of the Rashomon Gate," Ushi stated. "Though it's not supposed to be here and like this. It's supposed to be a guard post protecting the 'upper class.'"

"So, I'd assume the reason it's here because of the Oni?" Andy asked.

"YOU'RE RIGHT ABOUT THAT!" Shouted a high-pitched female voice as suddenly a massive flying and flaming red fist punched Kintoki, sending the Berserker into one of the buildings. "You finally showed up, boy, and you brought along friends." The fist flew back and joined another one, the two flying beside the enemy Oni who stood on top of the gate.

"Well, now I know it is you, Ibaraki," Kintoki stated as he returned to them in less than a second, looking a little toasty.

"That is Ibaraki-Douji to you, brat."

"Oh my Ibaraki, is that really you? You look a little different?" Tamamo asked, "A lot shorter, is Shuten her too?"

Andy, meanwhile, was busy trying not to die laughing as she noted the difference between the image of Ibaraki Douji as the terrible, horrific leader of Mt. Ooe (which she had been so inspired by she'd been writing a story about one of his descendants as a mob boss before this whole mess started), and the little girl who was _shorter than Nero_ before her. The hands were pretty neat, though.

"What about Shuten? And you human, are you laughing at me?" Ibaraki spoke with a sneer as she looked directly at Andy.

"S-sorry, sorry." Andy wheezed. "I just- I'd kinda been picturing you as this bi-i-ig intimidating oni, and then now you're just…" She broke down again. "So smol! So cute! Probably just as deadly but by God!"

"Oh, boy." Came the comment from Kintoki. "Master has done it now."

"Okay, you, you die first. **GREAT GRUDGE OF RASHOMON!** " She shouted, and the left fist went flying towards her.

Though it was immediately parried away by Mash, and then punched away by Kintoki. "So, that is your Noble Phantasm?" He asked.

"Correct you damn meathead, these are the hands cut off by Watanabe, which I can summon and freely control in any way shape or form. Though I might have been a little too hasty for now that I can smell it, you're a half-blood from the west, aren't you?" She asked Andy.

"Aww, that was gonna be a surprise," Andy said, disappointed, still a titter with laughter. "And yeah, I am. It's part of why I'd been so excited to meet you." She said, getting a hold of herself through force of will to _not_ immediately break down laughing again. "And then. Y'know." She said, just giggling.

"You know I don't care about the origin. All those that carry demonic blood are the same to me if you had done a dogeza and apologized. I would have let you live and invited you to Mt. Ooe to be my Servant. But it seems I have to rescind that offer. I just kill and eat you instead."

"Oh, is little Iba angry?" Tamamo teased. "Still, you didn't answer my question about Shuten. You two are as close as thieves, where one goes the other follows. And also what is that increased power of yours? It's like me at six tails?" She asked.

"Well, since you asked so _nicely,_ I guess I answer," Ibaraki snapped her fingers, and above her appeared some form of crystal containing a singular figure.

"Wow, so you finally grew a spine and stabbed Shuten in the back and are now draining her powers to fuel your own. Typical Oni behavior." She scuffed at Ibaraki.

"Urgh, why does she have to be in that form of hers," Kintoki muttered with an embarrassed tone.

Andy, meanwhile, had broken down into hysterics again. The second punch may not have been as strong as the first, but it hit the same spot, so to speak.

"Master, what is about this situation you find funny?" Ushi asked her blade drawn to swing the moment Ibaraki attacked again.

"I-I don't know?" Andy asked as much as said. It was hilarious, that was to be sure, but even to Andy, she was laughing too much, given the circumstances. "I-I think the filter on Tenfold Shields isn't as good as I tho-o-ought it was? Or maybe this stuff has a special effect on demons, who knows." She said, once more trying to force down the laughter, this time mostly succeeding.

"So, ignoring our Master's bouts of laughter, what is your plan oh great leader of Mt. Ooe?" Kojiro asked.

"That should be obvious Mr. Samurai revenge against Kintoki and his comrades for the defeats and humiliation I suffered at their hands. Shuten and I found ourselves within this little bubble of space and time. I immediately planned out my revenge and told it to Shuten, but she didn't want to. She only wanted to party and munch on the local humans. She poured her alcohol into that weird cup and got everybody drunk." She began to monologue. "But I knew we could only defeat you if we worked together, so I decided to take her power as my own. And I knew if I caused trouble to these humans you would show up at some point because Karma and all that." She explained. Sounding like she was currently the smartest person in the room. "Though even if Yorimitsu and the others didn't show you still came, with another Minamoto, so I will take it."

"Neato, so you're out for revenge!" Andy said, nodding. "Y'know, it might just be something about this place, or how _absolutely hilarious_ you are, but…" She grinned widely under her helmet as the transformation occurred, having started a few moments ago. In a scant few seconds, she was standing tall, demony, and armored, before cracking all of her knuckles as she stretched. "I _really_ want to fight you, little Miss Banana."

Ibaraki just grinned in response to Andy's declaration. She sprung into action, jumping from her position straight at Andy swinging her sword coated in a layer of fire.

Andy met her head-on with her own blade, crackling with lighting before her larger arms shot down at the oni's head to crush it like a grape while their swords clashed.

Ibaraki countered with her own hands, catching Andy's claws before pushing back and away while she pushed back with their swords, sending Andy flying back.

"You're pretty strong for a half-breed, but compared to me you're nothing, Great Flame!" She shouted as one the floating hands opened up, and torrential flow of fire spewed forth.

"As if!" Instead of dodging to either side, Andy ran _forward_ towards Ibaraki, a mad glint in her eye as she ran straight _through_ the fire to move into a slashing leap at Ibaraki, her whole body crackling with electricity, the crimson blade turned white from all the lightning. "LIGHTNING CUTTER!"

"Are you insane!" She shouted as she brought up her sword to block the attack, but the bone blade that the Oni wielded was not up to par with the one Andy swung.

The blade cut through Ibaraki's blade, and made a severe cut on her body it would have cut deeper, but before it hit Ibaraki's body had moved in an unnatural way to dodge.

"Damn, Disengage didn't activate completely," Andy heard her mutter as she jumped back away from her. "Definitely underestimated you, girl."

"Senpai, are you okay?"

"I will be once I finish her off!" Andy said with manic glee as she kept her sights tracked on Ibaraki. "I think the banana needs to be _peeled!"_ She said with a deranged laugh.

"You're definitely a proper demon girl, our blood is singing to kill each other, but so long as I have Shuten, you can't beat me," Ibaraki said as her wound sealed shut, and even her clothes fixed themselves no longer leaving her exposed.

" _Fantastic!_ " Andy said without a hint of sarcasm and a lot of eagerness. "That means I can go all out and still get some nice feedback!"  
"Should we help Senpai out?"

"Nah, she seems to be handling it for right now."

"But let's put this fight to an end I've got a golden moron to kill!" Ibaraki shouted as her hands floated higher up and seemed to start growing even larger before just whizzing out of existence.

"...Huh?" Came the shocked expression from the Oni as she tried to comprehend what had just happened.

"You know Ibaraki, you should pay more attention to your surroundings," Came the voice of Tamamo as she walked over to Andy carrying a now freed Shuten-Douji like a sack of potatoes.

"Wha, what… You can't do that. It's not fair!" She almost cried as she pointed the finger at one of Japan's three great monsters.

"Y'know what else isn't fair?" Andy asked before once more crackling with lightning as she pounced using all six limbs to boost her off of the ground towards Ibaraki, tackling her to the ground and holding her there using her superior size, leaning down close enough to Ibaraki's face that she could see the wide shark-toothed grin through her faceplate. " _Me_."

"...I'm sorry."

"Hmm." Andy hummed, a sadistic grin on her face. "Y'know, there are a lot of ways you can prepare a banana. But first, you always _peel off_ the outer layer, but then you can eat it _raw,_ or you can _mash it_ or even _dice it_ into _itty bitty pieces_ , did you know that?"

Though her words seemed to be too much for Ibaraki as she passed out foaming at the mouth.

"Awwwww." Andy whined. "That wasn't supposed to happen yet." She said, getting off of the small Oni and dusting her armor off. "Oh well. It just means we have to stay a bit longer." She said as she picked up Ibaraki and held her in a princess carry since over the shoulder wouldn't work very well considering the extra arms.

"Oh my, I've never seen Ibaraki react to someone flirting with her like that before," Spoke a sensual female voice that sounded both incredibly drunk and sober at the same. Something that would fit an ASMR video or something like it. Shuten-Douji now awake stood on her two feet, the scantily clad Oni already holding a massive gourd of Sake in her hand.

"Pfft. Flirting? As if." Andy scoffed. "Waaay to young for my tastes. Also, considering you didn't have that a moment ago, I'd guess you're the reason for this fog, and why I haven't turned back to normal yet?" She noted, the timer that went off every time she transformed, having been flashing 'over' for a few minutes.

"To an Oni, those words are the same as asking that eggplant over to strip and spread her legs, but she could always change shape to fit your taste. She always tries to please those stronger than her. Tehehe," She laughed all the while Mash turned a bright crimson at the Oni's words.

"Ah, I see," Andy said, nodding, before suddenly being right in front of Shuten, larger hands mere centimeters from her head, a Black Key extended from each wrist just barely not stabbing her head. " _Never_ talk about my Kouhai like that again, _understand?_ "

But Shuten didn't seem to be threatened by her words as she turned to Kintoki. "Oh, my boy, where did you find this one? Should I be afraid of her stealing my precious husband away?" She asked.

"First off, I am not your husband second of no. Master is like Boss. Family. And third, why do you look like that?" He asked as he averted his gaze from the small Oni clinging to his side.

"Oh, but didn't you tell me I looked pretty when we first met? When you were that rowdy wild child living the mountains before that Cow found you?" She teased him, and he just pushed her away, Shuten giggling in response.

"Don't talk about Boss like that."

"Tehee."

"That is Shuten-Douji, when not enraged she lives an utterly careless life, to think Orochi managed to birth someone like her," Tamamo sighed as she massaged her temples.

"Huh. Neato." Andy said, finally realizing she knew both Oni's names and deciding to use her Stat-o-Vision on them now that she could think a bit more clearly.

[spoiler=Ibaraki-Douji's Stat Sheet]

True Name: Ibaraki-Douji

Class: Berserker

Master: -

 **Parameters:**

Strength: B

Endurance: A+

Agility: C

Mana: C

Luck: B

Noble Phantasm: B+

 **Skills:**

Mad Enhancement: B

Demonic Nature of Oni: A

Disengage: A

Shapeshifting: A

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Great Grudge of Rashomon(Anti-Unit/Anti-Army): B

Great Flame of Mount Ooe(Anti-Unit): B+

[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Shuten-Douji's Stat Sheet]

True Name: Shuten-Douji

Class: Assassin

Master: -

 **Parameters:**

Strength: A

Endurance: B

Agility: B

Mana: A+

Luck: D

Noble Phantasm: B

 **Skills:**

Presence Concealment: C

Divinity: C

Alcoholic Scent of a Fruit: A

Demonic Nature of Oni: A

Battle Continuation: A+

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Multitude of Colors - Providential Oni Poison(Anti-Army): B

Bone Collector: Riot of Flowers(Anti-Unit): B

[/spoiler]

And she liked what she saw.

"So, Shuten-Douji. You seem to have a thing for Golden Boy, you wanna come back to Chaldea with us? There are a few rules, but in regards to getting drunk the main one is don't do...this." Andy said, motioning to the fog with the arms not holding Ibaraki.

"Master don't use me as a bargaining chip, she might be docile now, but I don't want to wake up one day and found out she melted you down and drank you."

"Hmm, you know me so well, boy, but if she treats me nicely I won't do anything so… But if she wants me to _eat_ her I won't be displeased, tehee." She giggled again.

"I prefer to stay uneaten, thank you very much." Andy said, catching on to the innuendo but being more focused on the literal part given the fact that Shuten was, y' know, _Shuten-Douji_.

"How did you and Ibaraki even become Heroic Spirits?" Kiyohime asked.

"I've been wondering that too, while my circumstances are different, you two are man-eaters," Kojiro stated.

"We have a little human blood in our veins due to our other parentage, but I do very much enjoy human civilization it produces so many things I like, and I would be sad to see it go. Ibaraki would say the same if she were ever honest with herself," Shuten answered the question.

Andy looked down at the (thankfully no longer frothing) knocked out oni in her arms. And for some unfathomable reason, now that she wasn't filled with bloodlust towards the Oni, she felt an overwhelming urge to _protect_ her. Dammit. "How long do you think she'll be out for?" Andy asked the conscious Oni, rather wanting to talk to Ibaraki now.

"Oh, let me, Ibaraki, to think that you would be so weak even with my power," Shuten said.

"Wagh, Shuten, forgive me!" Ibaraki shouted as she woke up and immediately fell out of Andy's arms and faceplanted onto the ground. "Augh." She groaned as she stood back up.

"I lost, didn't I." She admitted with a sullen expression.

"That you did," Shuten responded.

"And luckily for you," Andy said, startling the banana oni as she realized Andy was still there. "I'd rather recruit you than finish you off."

"..." Ibaraki pouted as she tried to prevent herself from speaking. Her demeanor was utterly different from what it had been a few minutes ago.

"Is something the matter?" Andy asked, putting her hand under Ibaraki's chin and gently turning the Oni's head to face her. "Is there something wrong with my helm? Or are you perhaps _afraid_ of me, O mighty leader of Mt. Ooe?"

"What, of course not!" She responded back. "You, you just don't say those kinds of words to an Oni of my stature, you damn pervert how do you respond to that?" She said back with a heavy blush on her face.

Andy smirked. "Well, I'd assume that fainting isn't the best way to respond, wouldn't you? Wouldn't it have been better to stay defiant to the end, perhaps throw some of your own threats in there of what you'd do if/when you got free?"

"Hmmm," Ibaraki groaned in response, and from her position Shuten seemed to enjoy this exchange immensely. "...I don't have to answer to any of your words, but I lost, and now my Oni Pride is at risk, so since you did beat I follow you as is our rules." She responded.

Andy grinned. "Good. Then just shake my hand to make the contract official." She said, hand outstretched.

Ibaraki, in response held out her hand while putting her nose in, sky. "Fine, just get it over with."

Andy grabbed her hand and shook it once, feeling the mana flowing, their words already sufficient for the pact. "Thank you for joining the fight, Ibaraki- _chan_ ," Andy said with a smirk.

Though in response, the Oni seemed to flinch before getting herself back under control. "Yes, just don't have this be boring."

"Oho, _boring_ is the one thing I can guarantee you won't ever have to worry about at Chaldea, Ibaraki-chan," Andy said with a more genuine smile. It still looked like a predator baring its fangs due to the whole 'devilman' thing, but hopefully the message came across.

"I hold you too that," She responded haughtily after flinching once more at the suffix Andy put at the end of her name.

"Do you not like being called 'Ibaraki-chan,' Ibaraki?" Andy asked, having thought the earlier flinch had been more about miscalculating the strength of the handshake.

"What, of course not," She responded. "Are we done here, this whole thing was a waste of time." She grumbled referring to her failed revenge scheme.

"Not quite, Ibaraki-chan," Andy said, curious now as to what she'd flinched at then but also needing to deal with the _other_ Oni. "But first, Shuten-Douji, will you be coming with us as well?"

"Hmm, why not you seem like an interesting bunch, I just want good drinks in return."

"Then I will be keeping an eye on you," Kintoki stated.

Which just caused Shuten to giggle again. "You can watch me all night if you want boy, maybe I should remove my clothes so you can see better."

"Let's, let's just fix Shuten's mess and go back to base," Kintoki muttered.

"Do not worry as a Minamoto I will cut her head off if she gets too unruly." Ushi proclaimed.

"Urgh, you're one of the Cow's. And here I thought my new vacation would not be filled with the stench of bovines," Shuten complained.

"Oi," Andy interjected. "I don't know what you mean about cows, but Ushi is a good girl." She said, giving said Rider a pat on the head. "And you shouldn't have to worry about anything as long as you don't try to eat anyone in Chaldea, or try to get the living staff drunk on the clock."

"I can deal," Shuten responded with a shrug.

"Then, just shake my hand to seal the deal."

Shuten took it and walked over to the wall, "The source of my lovely little wine mist is behind the wall. I tried to use it as a drinking cup, but when I poured my alcohol in, it made this thing, and everybody here in Kyoto got so much more fun." The sound of a drunk yelling in the background could be heard, almost as a response to her words. "Just a moment," She said as she inserted her fingers into the wall and in a flex of strength reduced a good section of it to chunks and dust.

"Wow!" Andy said in legit awe.

And as the dust settles on the ground as the grail spewing out, its pink wine mist.

" _Well, that thing is trash now thanks to whatever Shuten did, so you can just destroy the thing,"_ Da Vinci spoke over the internal com.

"I mean, is it really?" Andy asked as she walked over and picked up the grail. "I'm sure you can tell Leo, it's been almost fifteen minutes since I transformed. _Three times_ my normal limit. And I still don't feel like I'm gonna change back any time soon." She stared at the Grail in her hands, her helmet storing away to reveal her eyes were glowing pink instead of the normal red. "I took on a powered-up Berserker like this, _the_ Mighty Ibaraki Douji of Mt. Ooe! Imagine what we could do with this!"

"You only won because Tamamo cheated."

"And Senpai, no power-tripping it's bad for you."

"But Kouhai, it's not a trip," Andy said, staring down at the Grail, a grin growing across her face before she turned it over and chugged the contents, a goodly amount of it washing over her. "IT'S A RIDE!"

And a second later, she passed out.

Xxx

A/N: And the motherfucking Darwin award goes to this moron.


	101. Go Waist

May 14

"Moron!" Da Vinci shouted as she flicked her forehead the second she had woken up, sending Andy's head straight back into the pillow after she had tried to sit up. "You gigantic fucking idiot, what the hell were you thinking?" Da Vinic shouted as she kept flicking her forehead over and over again.

"Owowowow! Stop with that!" Andy said, covering her face with her arms. "What are you even mad about?!"

"You drinking the contents of that Grail, of course!" She shouted as she flicked Andy's forehead one last time. "What else would I be mad about?"

"I did _what?!_ " Andy asked, having lowered her guard at Leo's words and thus getting hit again. "When did that happen?"

"After you had Shuten-Douji and Ibaraki join the team, excellent Wololo skills by the way. Or have you forgotten the little trip to Kyoto?" Da Vinci asked as she folded her arms beneath her breasts, frustration clear upon her face.

"No, I remember going there, but…" Andy shook her head as if that would help jog her memories. "Ugh, the last thing I remember is...Shuten Douji destroying a wall? I think? And then I woke up and you were bruising my forehead."

"Clearly, that concoction of hers had a greater effect on your demonic body than I thought it did," She stated as she shook her head.

"You're talking about the wine-fog, right?" Andy asked before her eyes widened as she actually realized what Da Vinci had said earlier. "Wait, I _drank_ the stuff in the grail? How am I not dead yet?"

"Okay, how to explain this… Andy, you do know what a Grail is? Yes? And what it can do?" Da Vinci asked

"Uhh. Depending on the one, in particular, its either a former homunculus or a naturally occurring phenomenon that does crazy magic stuff?" Andy asked as much as said.  
"I see we accidentally left a hole in your education. That is our fault. A Holy Grail which the Church has found over eight hundred objects to be classified as. Are at their most basic principle Wish Granters. Be they capable of granting one simple one or many complex ones. Are you following so far?" She asked.

"Yeah, I got it."

"As you said, they can be either naturally occurring, such as the one Francis Drake had during Okeanos, and the Arthurian one. Or man-made such as the Fuyuki one, Irisviel, or the ones distributed by Solomon. Now, do you know the reason why we don't use the Grails we gather from Singularities for their intended purpose?"

"Uhm, they've been corrupted or something?" Andy guessed.

"Or something, there is a Shadow of the Demon God Pillars inside of them, so I dismantle them, so they don't accidentally manifest within Chaldea and use the remaining energy to repair systems and make you your Summoning Tickets and CEs. Now the one within Kyoto Singularity was thankfully a minor natural occurring Grail with no Demon Pillar inside. But Shuten poured her Alcohol inside of it, causing the situation to happen and everyone getting a little more swol and a bit drunk. But the wine poured in became a part of the Grail, and you drank it, so can you guess what happened?" Da Vinci asked as a finisher to her lecture.

"Uhhh…" Andy looked down at her body, not seeing any difference in her physique. "My, uh, liver exploded? Or something? I honestly don't know."

"It did, but the Grail… juice, so to speak reacted and fulfilled its purpose and granted you a Wish. Before you were just a human soul wearing a demon flesh body, but now you're a proper half-breed Andy. And I did a few scans and simulations now that other form should be a simple and indefinite change if you wished to stay that way. It's pretty damn close to what Shuten and Ibaraki can do if I had to make a comparison. You were lucky, Andy, extremely L-U-C-K-Y!" She spelled out the word to empathize how this could have turned out much, much worse.

"That is...a million times better than I would have expected. Wow." Andy said as she began to realize the implications and ramifications of this. "Wait, that won't interfere with the Servant stuff if my soul changed, right?"

"No, thankfully not, it is still partly human thankfully, it has been mixed with the spiritual remnants of the demonic flesh we used, but you're still you. And no, your Magecraft Abilities are still fucked thanks to what Solomon did. Though your lightning may have been enhanced or changed," She said before Andy had an opportunity to ask.

"I see," Andy said as she massaged her temples (while trying to ignore her actually bruised forehead, damn servant strength flicks). "...I think I need to talk to Jeykll. Something...didn't feel right in Kyoto, to begin with, but the fact that I don't remember…" She sighed. "Dammit. _I_ wouldn't have done something so _stupid!_ "

"Maybe not consciously, but deep down inside of you. A part of you wanted to do it to gain more power… Might have to this earlier than wait for your birthday, cause now I am 110% You have that potential," Da Vinci muttered.

"Does that mean you'll tell me now?" Andy asked, hoping to get some 'unambiguously' good news.

"Three days from now, I need to work extra hard to prepare what we need, but first take this." Da Vinci took out a Summoning Ticket and put it in Andy's hand. "And you also have a shitton of people you need to apologize for making them worried about you. Like a lot, also probably talk to Shuten and Ibaraki."

"Wait, how long have I been out?" Andy asked, having just realized she didn't know and was wearing actual clothes as opposed to her standard mystic code with its built-in armband.

"About two days, it is the afternoon of May 14th," Da Vinci answered.

"...Fuuuu-"

Xxx  
"So, do you have something to say to me, Mother?" Arturia asked. She was sitting at a table in the lounge, currently in the middle of putting together a one thousand-piece puzzle.

"Is it okay if I help with that?" Andy asked, avoiding the question entirely.

Arturia just glared in response. "Do you have any idea how worried I was then I saw Mash carrying your unconscious body towards the infirmary, and not because you ran into a tough enemy that got a hit in, no it was because you did something idiotically stupid, and then stayed unresponsive for two days." Tears were flowing down the side of her cheeks. "I was so worried that we would actually lose you this time."

"Oh, sweetie," Andy said, pulling the saber into a hug. This wasn't the first apology of the day, far from it, she'd already been lambasted by a good chunk of her Servants, Romani, and even a few of the living staff members. But almost all of them had been mad, or disappointed, or what-have-you. Arturia was the first to get this kind of upset. "I'm sorry. I know I messed up big time. I'm sorry."

"Just don't do something like that again. I, I know that this is temporary, that this relationship of ours is going to end at some point. But not like that, I want to properly say goodbye to you mom. So, please live until we've accomplished our mission." She cried into Andy's shoulder.

"...I promise...no. I swear that you, me, and everyone here in Chaldea, we are going to see the world restored. We will finish the mission." Andy said, the weight of Arturia's words hitting her for the first time, that everyone but Mash, Irisiviel, and Leo would all be gone once they were done. But it made up her mind. No more of the self-sacrificing bullshit. Andy Murphy was a goddamned Survivor, which meant dragging the world back into survival and bringing everyone with her. "And I _will_ find a way to keep everyone around for at least a little after we do. I promise."

"Okay, I can tell that you mean it, so mom? You said you wanted to help with this?" Arturia asked as she wiped her own tears.

"Yeah. I haven't done a puzzle in a while." Andy said after a moment to collect herself, too. "What's this one supposed to look like?"

"This is one of London," She answered.

"Oh,, neato," Andy said as she sat down and looked it over. "Let's see, this piece would go…"

Xxx

"Wow, Andy, I am starting to think that you might be my idiot king's reincarnation for that was such a Charlamagne move," Astolfo spoke with a grin as Andy entered her Boyfriend's room.

"Yeah, I know Azzy," Andy said, sounding rather tired since this _was_ apology #65. "It was a really, really dumb move, and I'm sorry for worrying you hon."

"Well, you just have to make up for, don't you?" Astolfo's grin was steadily going into slasher territory.

"...And what did you have in mind, dear?" Andy asked, a tad nervous.

"Get on the bed, I am going to give that gender-fluid ass of yours the attention it deserves," He spoke with a teasing tone.

"God, you're lucky I love you," Andy said, already eagerly getting on the bed.

Xxx

May 15

"My, my it seems we have gotten ourselves a rather reckless Master, don't we Ibaraki?"  
"I am starting to slightly regret coming along, even I wouldn't do that." The Banana added as she bit into a large steak.

"Speaking of reckless, are you two married like in some of the myths?" Andy said, a tinge of spite in her mostly genuine question.

That caused Ibaraki to blush heard. "I, I you, you just can't ask people that!" She shouted while pointing a claw at Andy.

"Well if that is what Ibaraki wants, I would be up for it, through Kintoki would have to join us, hehe. Though it was probably a rumor spread around by Iba's mother to up her own standing." Shuten responded as she lifted up her enormous Sake cup.

"Ah, I see," Andy said, not acknowledging Ibaraki's yell. "So, how are you two enjoying Chaldea so far?" She asked, having been unconscious for most of their stay so far. Or…' indisposed' until about five hours ago, as it were.

"Reminds me of Mt. Ooe, lots of _strong men_ all around me, some can even hold their alcohol. Even a fellow poisonous snake is here," Shuten answered.

"I like it, lots of strong Servants to fight, I really like that Archer in green he gives me sweets if I ask him. Though those children Servants keep asking me to ask join their tea party, they have chocolate and stuff, so I end up going twice already," She grumbled.

"Oh, word of advice, if you turn down the offer to a tea party and don't give a reason or are rude about it, you're going to get pranked," Andy said, speaking from both personal experience and from the complaints of some of her other servants.

"Maybe you should say no, Ibaraki, I wanna see the aftermath of such a thing," Shuten grinned.  
"I'm going to have to say no to that. It happened the first time and that Jabbawack thing is pretty scary." Ibaraki said with a shutter.

"Jabberwocky, and you must have been _really_ rude for Alice to bring him out," Andy said, having only seen the thing once and having decided that yeah, it may not have looked like a dragon, but it was still incredibly intimidating. "What did you say that got her that upset?" Andy asked, a bit more accusatory.

"...I said that tea parties are lame and that Oni didn't do them. Though after one, I actually kinda liked it." Ibaraki admitted.

"Sometimes, I wonder how you got all the other Oni's to follow you, then you're such a softie inside." Ibaraki blushed at Shuten's words.

"Don't say stuff like that in front of our Master, Shuten. We need to be taken seriously by her!"  
"Oh, don't worry," Andy said with a grin. "I take you _very_ seriously, Ibaraki-chan. You're actually one of the first Japanese legends I ever learned of." She had to suppress a giggle. "But then you're also so 'kawaii' I can't help but laugh!"

"I'm not cute; I am a fearful Oni!"

"Oh, Iba you're plenty of adorable especially then you try to act all serious,"  
Ibaraki just slightly fumed.

"Oh, but don't worry, cute and scary aren't mutually exclusive around here," Andy said reassuringly, for once aware of the pun she was making through the translation effect. "I mean, Alice and Jackie should have showed you that, right?"

"They would fit in if they were Oni," She admitted.

"...Note to self, make demon horn headbands for Kindergarten Squad." Andy said, armband flashing at the order.

"Teehee, you're definitely amusing Master," Shuten said. "Though I wonder if I should call you sister instead, for a little bit of me has gotten inside of you."

"Then, you'd be…" Andy's eyes widened at the fact she was actually getting this opportunity. "O-onee-sama?"

"And just like that, you've ruined it. Don't you have anywhere else to go, Master? Or do you wish to drink with us?"

"No, thank you," Andy said, crossing her arms in an X and violently smothering the inkling of disappointment she felt. "Doc said no alcohol for me for at least a month, and especially none of yours." She said with a shudder. Romani's 'talk' had been the longest and most draining of all the ones she'd had since waking up yesterday. "And, sorry for ruining your fun then, I guess. See you two later."

Shuten lazily waved goodbye while Ibaraki gave a bow, as Andy left.

Xxx

May 16

"So, Senpai, should we try and use that Summoning Ticket. Now that you're done apologizing to everyone?" Mash asked.

"Yeah, that sounds like a good idea," Andy said tiredly as Mash helped her stand. The Chaldea Training Squad had just got done with her first session since coming back from Kyoto, so she was a _bit_ tired from the brutalization workout, dressed in the standard Chaldea Uniform while Tenfold Shields was being repaired from it. "Next ticket's gotta go to Iri, though."

"Okay, let's go to the Summoning Chamber then," Mash said, and the two set off, and a few minutes later, Mash had finished preparing the ritual.

"One two three, c'mon, please be lucky." Andy rhymed as she summoned the newest addition to Chaldea.

The circle lit up, and suddenly Andy's vision went black, but her eyes were open. No, her vision hadn't gone black; she was now just surrounded in total darkness and unable to move.

Rock, her entire body was surrounded by rocks like she had just no clipped into the ground or something like that.

Though thankfully, her mouth was able to move, and somehow she could (barely, considering the rock was compressing her body) breath.

"What...the fuck." Was the first thing out of her lips.

"Huh? Did somebody just talk?" Said a female voice that sounded to be coming from outside of whatever she was trapped.

"Yes, hello, I'm here," Andy said, trying to remain calm instead of panicking, too little success. "Really don't want to be. Please help."

"Ah, there is someone inside this mountain!" The female voice shouted in response. "Don't worry, I get you out in a hizzy."

"Hizzy? Wait, _mountain?!_ " Andy asked, the _just barely_ constrained panic she was feeling coming back with a crowbar and a vengeance.

A second later, Andy felt the place she was trapped in shake like something was hitting it. "Hiyah!" The woman shouted, and suddenly sunlight met Andy's face as the little bubble her head was inside cracked open, and a second later, her body flopped onto soft grass.

"Whew, thank the Buddha I managed to get you out of there, how did you get in there, did you have it dropped on you like what happened to the monkey?" The female voice asked.

Andy's vision cleared up, and standing above her and looking down on her was a rather well gifted Asian woman wearing something that looked like a bikini.

Andy's eyes widened as the fact that the _sky_ behind the woman was blue and, y' know, there. "Um, thank you for getting me out of there and not to be rude or anything, but uh, who are you, and where am I?" She asked, panicking even more now.

"We are at the border between the Great Tang Empire and Gaochang, the foot of the five elemental mountain. And the name is Xuanzang Sanzang, and I am on a journey towards a far of western land." The woman named Xuanzang said happily.

"Journey to a western…" Andy had a moment of realization. "Say, that 'monkey' you mentioned earlier, that wasn't a fellow by the name of Sun Wukong?"

"Yeah, he used to be my disciple along with two others. Well, I've already made this Journey once, but hey, there is nothing wrong with a second round."

"Second round?" Andy asked nervously, seeing where this was going.

"A second round to Tianzhu, I think sorry there are a few holes in my memories," She embarrassingly responded with a blush.

"No, don't worry about it, it's fine," Andy said as reassuringly as possible as she decided this was her best option. "...So, if it helps, as thanks for saving me from that mountain, I suppose I could help guard you on your journey. Especially since I...don't really have anywhere else to go." She said, rubbing the back of her head both out of embarrassment and to activate the distress signal on her armband, cursing the lousy timing of needing to repair Tenfold Shields coinciding with this… reverse summoning? Whatever this was.

"Really? That's great. This encounter must have happened due to the will of the Buddha after the demon I subdued to be my guide ran away, and my horse got eaten," She complained.

"You subdued…" Andy stopped right there, deciding that this was too weird to even question. "Okay, since you said they were going to guide you, does that mean you're lost, or you just don't know how to navigate these mountains?"

"A bit of both," She admitted with a pout as she tapped her fingers together. "So, before we continue, can I ask who you are?"

"Ah, right, how rude of me," Andy said, before bowing theatrically to the Buddhist monk. "Andy Murphy, at your service. I do hope we'll be getting along, Xuanzang." She said, silently cheering for saying the name right on the first try.

"Great to meet you, Andy, I hope we get along too, so let's head west towards Tianzhu and collect lots of scriptures like the Buddha has ordained. Though how did you end up on the mountain?" She asked.

"Honestly, I have no idea. One second, I was just peacefully in my home, then next second, BAM! Mountain." Andy explained. "I didn't even do anything weird or different, I was just doing what I always do."

"That's weird. Do you have a way of getting back home? Or contact it cause you feel like a Mystic to me? You guys can do lots of weird stuff." She asked as she scratched her head with her staff.

"I've actually been doing the latter to do the former the whole time." Andy said, showing her wristband's display, which just says 'ERROR-NO SIGNAL' repeatedly. "It… hasn't been working out very well."

"...Hopefully, that will fix itself," She said with a tone of concern. "So, how about we just begin walking? Not like the situation is going to improve if we stay around. Perhaps if we make the journey, you will find a way home?" Though it sounded more like wishful thinking on Xuanzang's part.

"That sounds reasonable," Andy said, hating that she actually meant it. "Though, if you know the direction, I can actually get us going there much quicker than walking, though you may find the method a bit disorienting."

"Really? Well, my feet are getting a bit sore, and I can't even summon up the nimbus, I feel much weaker than I usually do, wonder why?" Xuanzang wondered out loud.

"Mhm, I dunno," Andy said, checking with her Stat-o-vision quickly to check if it was on there. It didn't exist as Noble Phantasm on her sheet though since she said she couldn't summon it. Andy wondered if it was a part of her High-Speed Sutra Chanting skill that allowed her say a spell that would call it to her. And sheet also revealed she was a Caster Class, but she lacked the Item Construction Skill. "But, just to be clear, you are willing to use my method of travel?"

"I am!" She said with a cheer.

"Good," Andy said, before suddenly picking up Xuanzang in a princess carry. "Prepare for launch in 5...4…" she started counting down dramatically, before realizing something. "Um, actually, which direction do we need to go again?"

"West! So we need to…" She looked up into the sky as a slight blush filled her face. "Go that way," She pointed in a direction after she reoriented herself.

"Right," Andy said, turning in the direction she had pointed. "Prepare for launch in 5...4...3…" This time, as she spoke, she shifted into demon form, pressing her non-preoccupied set of palms against the ground in preparation. "2…"

"Wow, you change shape, just like Wu!" She exclaimed in surprise. "Didn't know normal humans could do that?"

"Half-breed," Andy said simply with a shrug, before grinning as her body crackled with electricity. "And 1! We! Have! LIFTOFF!" She hollered as she launched them off the ground in her best imitation of Golden Age Superman, sending them flying through the air, Andy cackling all the while at the rush of doing so under her own power.

"WOOOHOOO!" Xuanzang hollered as the air rushed past them. "This is awesome!... Hm, I mean how… Nah this is fun! WOOOHOOO!" She screamed again. "...Wait, how are we going to land?" Xuanzang suddenly asked as they began to fall downwards.

Andy was silent for a moment before laughing again. "Simple! I'll land, but you won't!" Andy said as if that actually explained anything.

"That doesn't make any sense!" The monk shouted back.

"It will in a moment!" Andy said, cackling and crackling with lightning as she suddenly turned midair and launched Xuanzang up and slightly away, moments before Andy crashed into the ground, landing on all sixes.

And in-response, Andy heard Xuanzang began chanting prayers as she began to fall back down.

Andy, meanwhile, had already leaped back up and caught Xuanzang midway, meaning she'd only be falling about a hundred feet instead of feeling the force of their previous multi-mile leap like Andy had. "Landing strategy," Andy said cheerily as they landed much softer than they would have before. "Successful."

"Urgh my head is spinning," Xuanzang groaned as she hung limply in Andy's arms.

"I _did_ say my method would be disorienting." Andy cheerily reminded.

"Just give me a second, and I'll be okay," She responded.

"Hey, if it isn't Master?" Asked a familiar voice behind them.

Andy turned to face the one who called out. And it was David stuck in between two rocks his head sticking out. And why was he wearing a pig's nose over his own?

"David? What are you doing here?" Andy asked, walking over to the rocks and pulling them apart with her larger arms. "And what's with the nose?"

"Ahh thank you, Master, I've been stuck there for an hour now, and I don't know. Like I said, I got stuck here. Li Shuwen and I split up to look for clues, and I got punted by a monster into them." David answered. "And hello there pretty my name is David, King of Israel and currently single, would you marry me?"

"No, thank you, Mr. Zhu Bajie personality look alike," Xuanzang politely declined.

"Ah, another decline… Wait, did you say Zhu Bajie? Hmm, that means that you must Sanzang. I think already get what is going on." David said with a nod.

"Is that why you're wearing a pig nose?" Andy repeated the previously ignored question concerning the very obviously attached-by-a-string pig nose over David's own.

"Guess so, and I guess Sanzang here has already compared you to Sun Wukong as you do share similar qualities. Whatever caused this to happen, Master, seems to want us to reenact the Journey to the West. And I've been put in the role of Zhu Bajie as we both share a healthy love for women. Or because I am Jewish. who knows!" He said with a laugh.

"Das fucked up," Andy noted half-jokingly. "Wait, the part you said earlier, you're here with Li? Were you two just randomly pulled here, or were you sent in by the Boss?"

"We got pulled here, and before you ask no, we haven't been able to contact Chaldea," He said with a grimace as he shook the arm with the band attached to it.

"Mhm. Then, what got you stuck here exactly?" Andy asked, curious as to what kind of 'monster' would do that.

"Some form of Spriggan. It clipped me with its weapon, and I got sent flying. Ah, man Goliath must have cursed me or something because I keep getting smashed by big dudes." He said with winking eyebrows.

"...Ewww!" Xuanzang groaned in disgust as she realized what David had been alluding too, the innuendo flying straight over Andy's head. "I guess, like with Zhu, I shall use the teachings of Buddha to set you straight."

"Sorry I am a Jew, your religion has no bearing on mine. Only God can punish me, and I don't see any lightning falling from the sky…" The man looked up, almost expecting that to happen, but quickly breathed a sigh of relief.

Then there was an actual crack of thunder and lightning, causing launching David off the ground in fear, clinging to one of Andy's larger arms like a sloth.

And then he heard Andy's snickering change into actual laughter, and he just gave a mean look. "That was not very nice, Master," He said as he let go of her arm.

"I mean, what were you expecting, David?" Andy asked, still chuckling. "I'm not just like Sun Wukong because I can 'shapeshift.'"

"You've truly become a mean demon Master."

Andy shrugged. "More like I'm not scared and confused at literally every new thing happening, and finally have the power to go back to being myself again."

"Hey Mr. D, you said you were with some guy right? Shouldn't we go find him?" Xuanzang asked.

"Yeah, she has a point, where did you guys plan to meet up?" Andy asked, wanting any allies possible.

"By a little water hole we woke up by in this wasteland," David said as his hand motioned to the rather desolate landscape that surrounded them.

"Mhm. Well, we might as well head there for now and wait. Maybe that Spriggan you fought will be nearby." Andy said, eagerly. "I wanna see what those look in action."

"I lead the way," David said as he turned towards where their new destination lay.

"So, Xuanzang, am I just going to be carrying you the whole trip, or?" Andy asked after a few minutes of walking in silence.

She blushed again before answering. "Well, I wouldn't be opposed to that. Your arms in this state are rather comfortable," She replied.

"...Thank you?" Andy asked as much as said, confused as to how to react to that compliment. "Though, could we maybe try a different position? You're light-" And Andy was still not used to the disparity between the weights and sizes of Servants. "- like, really light, but my arms are starting to get stiff. You wanna try sitting on my shoulder for a bit?"

Xuanzang blinked before answering. "I would like that."

"Alright, then…" A few moments later, of shifting around, the monk was now comfortably seated on Andy's left shoulder. "There. Less awkward, and you can get down more easily now if you want." She said, internally realizing that now she could use this form more often she could carry all of the Servants who she had declared her children and decided to do precisely that once she was back home.

"I guess you're more White Dragon than you are Wukong right now, now go my steed!" She exclaimed with a giggle.

"I'm not a horse…" Andy grumbled, crossing all four arms to convey the Extra Big Mad™.

"I would describe Master more like a pack mule cause she loves to carry everything on her shoulders even if it is to her detriment," David commented.

Andy was going to respond before her protests fell silent. "Okay, that's fair, I'll give you that one."

"So Andy, is that kind of person?" Xuanzang wondered out loud, it seemed like the monk had a tendency to think out loud.

"Yeah, I guess so," Andy admitted. "I'm really good about delegating actual work, though, but I'm also kinda the lynchpin of the continued existence of humanity right now. Lotta pressure." She said nonchalantly, now somewhat used to it.

"Eh, what are you talking about? Did something happen?" Xuanzang asked in confusion at her statement.

"Do. Do you not know about the Incineration of Human History going on right now?" Andy asked, legitimately surprised. Most all the Servants she'd encountered so far had either known about it, been fighting it, or perpetuated it, so this was new. "Caused by Holy Grails inserted by that guy's son-" she pointed at David as she said it. "-using the Ars Goetia demon pillars to try and burn history to ashes and wipe out humanity? You seriously don't know?"

"N-no, I, I argh!" Xuanzang grunted in pain as she clutched her head in pain. "I, I think I did, but I forgot about it like I did most of my first Journey to Tianzhu," She explained, though she sounded deeply disturbed.

"Mhm. Probably tied to whatever's causing _this_ trip that brought us all here." Andy postulated. "Ox-King's not strong enough to do that without help, right?" She asked, the Ox-King being the only villain she knew for sure to be in Journey to the West and not made up for Dragon Ball.

"Nah, this is definitely done by someone higher up on the totem pole of powers," David answered. "And look, we're at the hole, and Li is here."

"Hey, Li, looks like we're in the middle of Journey to the West 2: Electric Boogaloo, and looks like you're our Sha Wujing!" Andy said by way of greeting the Assassin.

"Ah, hello Master, of course, you would be here, Journey to the West you say? And me, as Sha Wujing? Yes this is all starting to make sense, and I would also explain the presence of that Stray Servant I found who I guess is meant to be the White Dragon Horse," He stated as he mulled over the information given to him.

"Oh, you found Xuanzang's ride? That's good, I suppose." Andy said. She didn't mind carrying Xuanzang, but it was awkward to have a conversation as they were.

"So, where is it?" Xuanzang asked seeing no one besides Li Shuwen. Though she got her question answered as large mass dropped down from the sky.

"Haha, with a dramatic entrance, I arrive. My name is Red Hare the horsest horse among horses!" The horse-centaur shouted.

Andy, instead of any coherent response, let out a noise, not unlike a train whistle combined with a dying animal's final cry while it was being electrocuted, and jumped back and away from the… _thing_ that had just shown up that defied what little logic and fragile sanity remained in Andy's head.

"Well, I think Master just broke?" David stated.

"What the _fuck is that!_ " Andy almost screamed. By far and away, Red Hare was not the… strangest thing she'd ever seen, far from it, but the particular combination of traits he did have pushed the horse-man-horse straight past the uncanny valley and into the 'sanity breaking' territory. At least for Andy.

"I am Red Hare!" It shouted again.

Xxx

A/N: I then proceeded to torment him with pictures of the horse from Berserk and 'Resisting makes me harder'

If you like this or any other of my stories you can donate to my P A Treon. com (Slash) StreamingViking and read commissioned stories


	102. Fuck the Script

"Yep, definitely broke," David said again.

"Hmm, Andy, are you okay?" Xuanzang asked with nervous concern.

"No," Andy said firmly after a moment of trying to calm down. "Just… just give me a minute, this is hurting my brain." She said, massaging her temples and looking at literally anything except for the demon horse that had galloped straight out of the uncanny valleys of hell (in her mind).

"Well, you do that. In the meantime, we're going to take out that Spriggan that sent me flying; it seems he found us and has brought along some friends," David said as he looked south.

"Wait, no, that's perfect, lemme get in on that," Andy said, turning to face the same direction. Where the massive stone monster being at least a few stories tall, and with it there were a few other monsters. A dozen tentacle dogs the size of a car, and two massive chimera's that were almost the same size as the Spriggan. Andy's expression slowly morphed into excitement upon seeing the latter. "KITTIES ARE MINE!" She yelled, putting Xuanzang down before pouncing at the closer chimera and began trying to wrestle it into submission, despite the massive size disparity.

It didn't exactly go well, considering how it just slammed itself into the ground to knock her off. "...Okay, kitty is not mine. Understood." Andy said from where she was implanted into the ground.

"You think Master?" David asked as he quickly pulled her out of the ground. The others had begun engaging in combat, too, and she got a chance to see Xuanzang summing a staff that extended itself right into one of the Chimeras' stomach sending the massive beast flying.

Andy's most mature of responses was to stick out her tongue at the green-haired archer before shifting her arms into cannons and began taking out the white tentacle things. "Less sassing, more Goliath Toppling!" She said, motioning at the Spriggan with her head.

"All right, all right. Dude took me by surprise last time, despite that large size he was surprisingly stealthy," David stated as his staff transformed into a sling. "Hamesh, Avanim!" He shouted after spinning the sling for a few seconds and sent the stone flying breaking the sound barrier and into the Spriggan's face the entire thing crumbling down to the ground.

"Nice one David!" Andy said, having come to terms with not always having materials to harvest from interesting enemies. She ceased taking opportune shots at the tentacle dogs as Red Hare butchered through most of them, seeing he had it handled, and instead turned towards the remaining chimera just in time to see Li freaking Ki blasting a hole through it with a punch. "And good job over here, too!"

"Thank you, Master," Li responded to the praise.

"Great now that there aren't any more scary monsters let's continue towards Tianzhu," Xuanzang stated as she returned to Andy's side with what looked to be a scroll in her hand.

"Wassat?" Andy asked, motioning towards the scroll.

"It's scripture, it seemed to have been inside the Spriggan, I collected it after Piggy here broke it, and I sensed its presence. It has the Buddha's touch all over it," She informed them.

"Neato," Andy said, not knowing enough about Buddhism to understand if that was significant or not. "So, since you said about continuing onward, am I going to be your ride or is…" She sighed and motioned towards Red Hare, whom after seeing in battle she could now more easily parse the existence of. "Red Hare over here?"

"I am an actual horse and meant to be ridden," The horse-taur said in response.

"He is right about that. It was nice, but in the long run being on, you wouldn't have been comfortable for my behind," Xuanzang said giving her reasoning.

"Oh don't get me wrong, I'd rather you ride him, I was just wondering," Andy said, ignoring the realization that apparently Red Hare was just a horse as she tried to focus on literally anything else now that she could tolerate his existence mentally. "...On that note, I suppose we should continue onwards to the west." She said, silently lamenting not being able to take any of the massive chimera's parts with her.

"Master, you have a serious klepto issue," David said as they left the area.

"That is completely unrelated to our current situation," Andy said, arms crossed. "This is my 'I need materials to build things' issue, it's not stealing if it's body parts from dead animals."

"Andy, you shouldn't go around stealing things!" Xuanzang said from her position on Red Hare's back. "That goes against the teaching of the Buddha, do I need to discipline you, my disciple."

"When did you become her disciple?" David asked in a whisper.

"When I offered to bodyguard her, I think." Was Andy's response, before jumping to her own defense. "And hey, I only steal from Mages, who are usually bad people, and people who were trying to kill me."

"Really? That's okay then. Just as long what you took is used for a good cause, the Buddha and Karma will forgive such an act," She responded.

"I'm pretty sure saving all of humanity counts as a good cause, so it looks like I'm in the clear," Andy said with relief.

Xxx

?

"Bored, bored, bored!" Xuanzang complained as they all continued to walk the silk road towards Tianzhu a few days had passed since their fight with the Spriggan and Co. And in the meantime, they had only had a few run-ins with small Demonic Beasts. "And while I don't need to drink because Servant I still want some water and food, and we have yet to stumble upon another Oasis in this stupid dessert!" She complained louder.

Andy glared very, very hard at Xuanzang at that. "Laoshi. _Please_ remember. I _do_." She said, voice raspy from dryness. Even with her demonic body, the lack of water was not doing anything good for her. She'd even considered drinking the blood of some of the Beasts they'd killed, but that had been vetoed immediately.

"Hehe, sorry." She apologized.

"Fear not Lady Xuanzang and Lady Andy I Red Hare has found a solution to your problems. I can smell food, and where there is food, there is water to be drunk." The Rider Class Servant informed them.

" _Ohthankgod_." Andy sighed in relief. "Please lead the way to it, Red Hare. I'm so hungry I could eat a hor-..." Andy reconsidered her words for a second. "...horseradish, which one should not eat raw."

"Do not worry, I would too considering the circumstances, and I actually have I used to bite into enemy horses and rip out their necks," He said with nostalgic glee.

"...Please lead the way to the food." Andy repeated, deciding to, like most things Red Hare said, she file that away for later when she had the luxury to parse it.

"Yes, just follow me, my nose shall be our guide," He declared and began to gallop even faster than before.

It didn't take long for them to arrive at a cave entrance where even Andy could smell the scents of meat, and fruits.

Andy shrugged, remembering the last time she tried to do something clever with a cave didn't go well, and just led the way inside, hunger and thirst overriding caution. "Hello? Anyone home?" She asked as they did so, not wanting to be rude.

"AH, it seems that our guests are polite this time around!" Said a familiar haughty voice, which was followed by another one.

"Yes, it seems, so Sister let us introduce ourselves."

And out from the shadows stepped out. "Hello, we are the Horned Kings and welcome to the Lotus Cave."

"I am Gold Horn," Stheno said.

"I am Silver Horn," Euryale said.

"And, and I am Bronze Horn," Medusa said embarrassingly as she tried to cover herself up a bit due to the fact the outfit she was wearing was a lot more revealing than what she usually wore.

Andy was going to make a snarky remark, but her need for food snapped her back into 'be nice to the super deadly ghost people' mode. "Pardon the intrusion, your Horninessess, we are weary travelers in need of food and drink. Would you be so kind as to spare some for us?"

"You know for that one Master, I am going to kick you in the crotch when this is over," Stheno stated with a glare.

"And we would but, the script calls for a stupid fight scene to happen," Euryale continued. "So get to it, Bronze Horn!"

"Sorry, Master," Medusa apologized as she took out her chains.

"Huh, it seems we weren't the only Chaldean Servants that got pulled along while we got the roles of protags; the other seems to have taken the roles of the villains. This truly is a recreation of Xuanzang's journey," David stated.

"I apologize, Lady Medusa I shall get this over with quickly," Li stated as he took his stance.

"Please do."

And Li kept his promise as in less than a second, Medusa got put down with a single punch.

"Oh no, we lost," Stheno stated.

"Now we have to give you our food," Euryale continued with as little enthusiasm as possible. "Great now that voice is quiet."

"It is," Medusa stated as she recovered from Li's takedown punch. "Auchie," She said as she nursed the spot where Li had punched her.

Andy, meanwhile, was still reeling from the revelation that _her Servants could be forced to follow a script_ like this, meaning this was a thing that could happen regularly (third time's a pattern and all, even if it was slightly different each time), and had only just caught up a few seconds later. "What...what? Wait, hold up, what script? What voice? What the hell is going on right now!?" She asked, absolutely befuddled.

"No idea, Master, but we were doing our own thing, then we suddenly woke up here, and a loud ambiguous voice told us we needed to fulfill the roles we had been chosen for," Stheno exposited.

"We tried to ignore it and leave this cave, but it just got so loud we didn't want to deal with it and just went along with it to keep it low," Euryale continued.

"We're probably dealing with some sort of Divine Spirit Andy, as that is the only kind of being with the power to pull this off," Medusa finished.

"...Oh," Andy said, as she came to her own conclusions from that. "That's it. The Buddha is fucking with me. Or I'm being used as a cosmic plaything to help advance Xuanzang's story, which is the same thing."

"I would normally say that kind of thoughts would be… blasphemous. But I agree with Andy that is probably the Buddha that is behind this. He probably trying to teach me another lesson since I can't remember the details of my first Journey to Tianzhu," Xuanzang responded.

"Uugghh," Andy groaned. "What is it with the divine always messing with my Servants and me? And why is it never the fun ones, like Loki?"

"The minds of such beings are different from humans, they do not see the world the same way as we do, and such they can be considered alien in their thinking compared to us," Red Hare stated after having stayed silent.

"...You're right." Andy said, as much as she hated to admit the horse was right. "Y'know what, thinking on an empty stomach like this is bad, you guys said we can have the food, right?"

"You can Andy, it's further in some come on into our 'home.'" Medusa said with air quotes around the word home.

"Thank you!" Andy said as she shot off further into the cave to get some sustenance, and she came upon a massive table filled with food. "Ohhh, finally!" She declared before digging in with gusto.

"Foooood!" Xuanzang groaned with joy as she quickly followed Andy to the table and dug in herself.

After a few minutes of eating in contented 'silence,' Andy smirked as she slowed down in her ravenous rampage. "Hey, isn't overindulgence against the Buddha's teachings, Laoshi?"

"Only if you eat more than you can handle," She responded. "And my stomach is as empty as Mara is lustful."

"You seem to have a knack for finding Servants with black holes for stomachs Master," David said as he took a bite out of a peach.

"Though I will say this ruining the image I had of Sanzang as a child even more," Li commented as he drank water from a cup.

"What, and the last few days, _haven't_?" Andy asked rhetorically before she chugged a barrel of some drink or another, not caring what it was.

"That is a good point."

"Aww, you guys are so mean."

"So, Andy, what have you done since you arrived here?" Medusa asked as she took a seat beside her.

"Got trapped in a mountain and rescued by Laoshi -as in she made me her disciple like five minutes later- jumped a few mountains, fought some monsters, met up with these guys, traveled here with no food or water for a few days." Andy shrugged. "Business as usual, basically."

"Ah, I see. Hopefully, this situation is resolved soon."

"Like our little sister said, we want this situation resolved Master. So get to it I don't want Asterios to be alone longer than necessary," Euryale ordered.

Andy waved off her concern. "Once we pack up as much of this as we can carry, we'll do it post-haste, don't you worry. You'll be reunited with Lil' Lightning soon enough."

Euryale blushed in response. "You better."

"Let us finish our meal, and be on our way though we should try and bring as much along as possible, especially the water for Lady Andy," Red Hare said as he bit into an apple.

"You'll be fine carrying that, right Red Hare?" Andy asked, simultaneously not wanting to burden the horse-man-horse more, and wanting to not carry it herself.

"I have enough space upon my back for that and Lady Xuanzang," He responded.

Andy nodded as she finished off the table of food that she'd claimed. "Alright, so let's pack up and head out!"

Xxx

?

A few days had passed since their encounter with the 'Horned Kings' who sadly could not leave the cave they had been staged in, as that went against the 'script' according to them. Though they did give Xuanzang the scripture, they had.

And so they had left the sisters behind to continue on, though thankfully they had managed to leave the desert and had entered a grass plane a much more temperate climate containing wildlife, and clear rivers of water.

"If I remember the story correctly, we should be able to see the Flaming Mountain soon enough," Li stated as they all continued west.

" _Please_ tell me we're gonna put it out with a Kamehameha." Andy half asked half begged Xuanzang, eye's sparkling.

"What is a Turtle Wave? Is it like a giant wave of turtles? How is that going to put out the fire? And oh yeah I remember something we should avoid most caves from now as they contain a lot of demons and enemies belonging to Ox-King," Xuanzang informed them.

"Not a wave of turtles, a 'wave' of energy devised by a turtle hermit." Andy corrected. "And if you can't do that, we might need to go into caves to find the right tool to put it out...we do need to put out the mountain, right?" Andy asked, knowledge of this part stemming solely from Dragon Ball.

"Now this time, this time, I know a chant that can make us immune to flames," She answered with a smile.

"Oh sweet, then we can just plow right through, right?"

"We, should be able to… Oh, we're getting close now I can see the smoke from the mountain," Xuanzang pointed to the air where a pillar of grey was surging up.

"Wow," Andy said a few minutes of walking later, as the mountain came into full view. "That's the biggest fire I've ever seen!" Which was saying something, since she'd seen Fuyuki 2004.

"Ahaha, I have found you Xuanzang now I the Red Boy shall have your head, and present it to Father so that he will praise me… Hey, Grandma, you've been forced in this stupid shit too?" Mordred asked, dressed in a very caveman-like outfit. Clarent in her hand.

"Yeah, I'm the Sun Wukong of this mess, I guess," Andy said with a shrug, before her expression turned stern. "And young knight, we will be having _words_ once this is over about that outfit."

"What?" She responded with an exasperated look on her face. "It's not like I choose to wear this; I just woke up in it." Her face was heavy with embarrassment.

Andy shrugged. "I know, it was just to distract you so Li could get into the best position. Sorry, sweetie."

"Wha?" Was the only thing she managed to say before Li knocked her out before even her Instinct skill could warn her of the danger. Sphere Boundary was a pretty damn bullshit Skill that Li possessed.

"Ugh, I feel dirty now," Andy said, not being against the tactic but more because she knew about the script issue as she went over and picked up the unconscious Mordred. "Let's get going, we still have anOx-King-who-is-likely-an-Artoria to fight."

"So, Andy Red… Girl here called you Grandma, I didn't know you were that old. What is your secret, I must know?" Xuanzang asked as she cupped Andy's cheeks looking for wrinkles.

"Lemme go, and _maybe_ I'll tell you," Andy said, unable to remove Xuanzang's hands from her face herself due to holding Mordred and having still been in human shape.

"Heh, sorry," The Monk apologized as her hands retreated.

"Alright, so, my secret is simple," Andy said with a smug smile. "Be 18 and accidentally stumble your way through adopting a Servant while they're a child and then summon that Servant's child. Or alternatively, literally build yourself a new body using the magic and science knowledge of some of the best and brightest in history."

"Ah… I don't get it, but the first one is beyond cute," Xuanzang simply responded.

Andy's smile lost its smug. "Yeah, they are." She said, looking down at the unconscious Mordred, before shaking her head and looking back at the path. "Anyway, like I said, we need to get to the Ox-King."

"Just lay her on Red Hare's back. I can walk on my own for a little bit," Xuanzang suggested.

"No, this is fine," Andy said. "You all are the Servants with the Noble Phantasms and such. I'm used to staying out of battles anyway."

"Though you have definitely risen up in the power rankings Master, with your now Demonic body, armaments, and Electrokinesis," David said with a tone of praise.

"Yeah, but I'm still only good for small fry or cocky oni," Andy said, dismissing the praise. "I'm only here due to the efforts of my Servants anyway." She paused as she once more remembered someone was missing and sighed. "...I miss Mash."

"SEEENPAIII!" Shouted Mash from the armband, "CAN YOU HEAR ME? DO WE HAVE A CONNECTION!"

"Speak of the devil," Li stated in response to the Shielder's voice coming from Andy's communicator.

"Kouhai! I'm here!" Andy responded at a much less shouty volume, but with just as much energy. "You have no idea how happy I am to hear your voice."

"I am too Senpai," Mash responded at a much more normal decibel level. "Doctor, Da Vinci we have a connection for now. Senpai, what happened? You were in the middle of summoning, then you just disappeared, and so did a bunch of other Servants? Have you figured out what has happened?" She asked getting straight to the point.

"We're in some weird recreation of Journey to the West, with our Servants filling in the spots of everyone but Sun Wukong, which is me, and White Dragon Horse, which is a horse, in an effort to teach the slightly amnesiac real Xuanzang...something. Not sure why or how, but we're thinking its the Buddha's efforts." Andy summarized.

"Ah, I see that sounds like something that would happen to you, Senpai, but how are you doing? Are you okay?" She asked.

"Eh," Andy said with a shrug. "I haven't really been injured or seen anything... _too_ traumatizing." She said, not looking at Red Hare as she said it. "So other than a bout of starvation a few days ago, things are going pretty well, all things considered."

"That is good to hear, though sadly we can't force a Rayshift right now, the connection is unstable. But Sheba is telling us there is a soft spot in that Singularity like thing you are in, where we can get you home, though when you continue our current connection will be cut and we won't be able to talk until you arrive at that destination," Mash informed her.

"Mhm. Hopefully, Ox-King is guarding the 'soft spot' so we can do that." Andy said. "Oh, wait, before we go, which, if any, of the Artoria's disappeared?"

"Yes, Storm, aka Lancer Alter, aka the one with the big breasts… Doctor you shouldn't write profiles like that!"

"I thought it was funny," Came the much more muted sound of Romani.

"I mean, it technically _is_ an important distinction, though I would have written it as 'only one who's physically an adult.'" Andy defended the Doctor.

"You two are the worst, I will be talking to you later, Senpai hurry up and get back," Mash responded, deciding to cut the conversation then and there.

"...Welp, no point in waiting around now, let's go! I'll tell you two about Storm's abilities on the way." Andy said, the latter part to Red Hare and Xuanzang.

Xxx

"Well, that was more annoying than expected," David said as he was the last one to pass through the Flaming Mountain on Red Hares back.

For while Xuanzang's sutra chant had made them all immune to damage from the fire, it did not stop them from being unaffected by the fumes of the fire and because cognition was a bitch. Servants still needed to 'breathe' as it were due to the fact they still thought like humans.

So, the plan had been one at a time to ride on Red Hares back and have the Rider sprint through the flames with a single breath.

All of which had taken a few hours due to the Servant having to recover from all the mana he had expended with his runs.

Andy was still holding Mordred, but now on her shoulder in her demonic form as she had woken up during this time, and her 'script' allowed her to come with to Ox-King, so in the meantime, she was busy feeling tall.

"It seems you were able to pass through the Flaming Mountains without Banana Leaf Fan and so the nurse's role as it's holder has been wasted," Spoke a robotic-sounding female everyone turned their attention to voice and to the side they all saw a petite girl with brown hair wearing a simple Chinese dress. And she was floating in the air.

"Lemme guess, you're the one behind this whole mess?" Andy asked.

"No, I am merely a messenger," She responded.

"I know you, but I can't remember," Xuanzang said with a pained expression on her face.

"Xuanzang Sanzang, you were once pure and holy, but now you're just despicable and mediocre with no-sense of self-sacrifice. Bereft of tolerance and benevolence, you're unfit to be student of Buddha's teachings,"

"Wha?"

"Your lack of memory is proof enough, though redemption is still possible for you. If you retrieve the last scripture, you will regain your memories and learn the truth of why this is happening and make the correct choice. I shall see you at the gates of the Underworld," At that she flew away her feet blasting fire like a rocket to propel her.

"...Why do I feel like she could have and has killed people with those thighs…" Andy muttered to herself.

"So that was a thing, say, do you remember that cutie now Xuanzang?" David asked.

"No, I do not urgh this is so frustrating," She complained.

"She may not, but I recognize her, or rather her spear having seen it myself once," Li stated. "It belonged only to one figure, Nezha or Prince Nezha guess there was a mistake in gender or the gods accidentally turned him into a girl then they resurrected him to be the Guardian Lotus of Buddhism," Li theorized. "Prince Nezha was described as being more beautiful than most women."

"I mean, I can totally see this 'Nezha' as being a dude," Andy said. "But either way, that was weird, right? Just popping in to...what, help Laoshi figure out what she needs to do?"

"Eh, like she said, she is just a messenger, and they tend to help people on their journey," David responded.

"Can we just get to Father now I rather have this be over with?" Mordred complained from her position.

"Right, right, same here," Andy said placatingly. "Everyone's gotten a breather, so let's get going." She then paused and sighed. "Red Hare, you want me to carry Laoshi for a bit so you can recover a bit more?"

"I would appreciate it," He responded, and Xuanzang took a seat on the other shoulder.

And then they headed for the Ox-King's home.

Xxx

A/N: And this joke was made by me during the session and pretty sure I killed a part of passive's soul with it. "Sun Wukong, I am trying to get to Tianzhu safely, but I am dummy thicc, and the clap of my ass cheeks keep making the demons kidnap me."

If you like this or any other of my stories, you can donate to my P A Treon. com (Slash) StreamingViking and read commissioned stories


	103. Psycho Mom

"Was wondering when you were going to show up," Storm as the Ox-King said as she sat upon her throne inside the cave that was her new temporary home. The group had finally arrived at the place a few hours after their encounter with Nezha.

"Sorry, got a little lost on the way here." Andy apologized. "Must have been boring, waiting here all by yourself."

"Extremely especially so when Red Boy had to go play her part of this annoying 'play,'" She said with air quotes. Though the mention of her being basically by Storm caused Mordred to blush, increasing her cuteness by a factor of five.

"Well, the good news is that it's almost over," Andy said with a shrug. "Oh, but congratulations on being the only one who got a costume that was able to actually pull off the look. Very intimidating."

"Why thank you, Andy, now I am supposed to hand these over too Sanzang here," Storm said as she picked up three scrolls at her side and threw them at the monk.

"Wah!" She exclaimed in shock as she grabbed them out of the air before they could hit the ground. "Got them," Xuanzang said with a happy tone as she held the scrolls.

"Now you just need to read them and regain your lost enlightenment and memories ending this farce of a journey," Storm stated, though as she did, Xuanzang's face turned into a frowning one.

"Ending my journey here? But I can't end it here I… I have to go to Tianzhu or at the very least the river that leads to the underworld cause that is where Andy needs to get picked up," Her tone was one of fear as if she was afraid to learn what the full return of her memories would entail.

"Then do that I don't care, even if we'll just wait a little bit longer until then, not like Chaldea is going to collapse if we're a little bit absent," Storm said with a dead tone as if this entire ordeal had already emotionally killed her and that she just wanted to go back home to her room and be a slob.

"Honestly, you can do whatever you want, Laoshi. You don't need to wait for me to get your memories back." Andy said, nonchalantly. "Worst comes to worst, if this whole thing comes apart at the seams, Boss and the others will be able to Rayshift me out once there's nothing holding this place together."

"You're right about that Andy, the only reason Mash, and the others haven't gotten us back is because of interference from something, and if this place starts to collapse, there is going to be more holes for them to exploit… wow, that can be taken the wrong way," David said as he gave a perverted giggle that resulted in a smack from Mordred.

"How the hell did this moron become King?"

"That is King Moron, young knight."

"...Just leave and get this over with already," Storm said. "And Red Boy you're staying with me,"

"Yes, father."

"Alright, well you two have fun, I guess we're off to...Naraka, right?" Andy asked as much as said.

"Well, just the entrance really, no need to go inside of the place cause then we're going to be stuck there for at least ten thousand years," Xuanzang said. "If we're able to make the climb in the first place."

"Yeah, no thank you, definitely not that, I don't have the Rage necessary to pull that off." Andy said, making the universal sign for 'no' with her arms. "What are you going to be doing down there, exactly? I only ever got about this far in the story."

"...I don't know yet, but, but I think that Ox-King here is correct that I should regain my memories, but not now, now is not truly the time. My gut tells me it's at the river that I should do it. Though now that you mention Rage, you do kinda look a little like an Asura with all those arms of yours, though no eating people," She said pointedly though the tone was joking.

"Hey, I've never eaten anyone...like that! And anyway, I don't have nearly enough faces to be called an Asura!" Andy replied just as jokingly. "Or arms, now that I'm thinking about it...hmm…"

"Save the bodily experimentation for later Master, now do we go or not," David said, pointing his fingers at the door.

"Right, right, sorry. As long as there's nothing else pressing to take care of here, let's go." Andy said, shelving her thoughts for later.

"See you in a few days, Andy," Storm bade goodbye.

"See you soon, granny," Mordred grinned as she waved goodbye.

"See you two back at Chaldea!" Was Andy's response, eager now that she knew they were just one step away from going home.

Xxx

?

It took a few days of travel, but they had finally managed to get to the river that was the entrance to Naraka.

"It's good to see you again, Senpai," Mash said as she appeared in the form of a hologram in a crispy clean image.

A grin of relief spread across Andy's face the instant she heard Mash's voice. "Happy to see you, too, Kouhai. We're almost home." She said just as much for herself as for Mash, considering this was the longest she'd been anywhere without Mash since getting her Kouhai, and Andy had not realized until now just how much she relied on Mash until now.

"That's great that is really great, the doctor and Da Vinci are working on getting coordinates fully locked so that they can Rayshift you out," She informed Andy.

"So, this is what you look like?" Xuanzang asked as she came up beside Andy, her attention entirely on the holographic Mash. "Well, Andy's description of you certainly doesn't do you justice with how cute you are, I just wanna pinch your cheeks," The Monk said as she was going gaga for Mash's appearance.

"Senpai has been talking about me?" She asked.

"Yep, Andy has been talking almost constantly about you while we were walking on the road," Xuanzang informed her Kouhai.

"Getting back on topic!" Andy said, happy that the blue medium of the holograms meant her blush didn't transfer. "We've reached the entrance, I've already collected a water sample, and no I didn't immediately drink it this time. So we'll do whatever it is we're supposed to do here, Laoshi will get her memories back, and then we'll be home in no time."

"That is good to hear, Senpai."

"Right, just give me a second," Xuanzang said as she took out the scrolls, and with a hearty sigh, she opened them up in front of her.

Andy watched as Xuanzang's eyes widened to the point of her pupils becoming small points, before returning to normal while her face shift to an apologetic frown as she dropped the scrolls onto the ground.

"I am sorry, Andy," She apologized.

"What for?" Andy asked, now on edge but acting as calm as possible. "Did it not work?"

"It did, and it's all my fault this entire situation is my doing, well my enlightened self's doing. You tried to summon me, to ask my assistance in restoring the Human Order. But I was a Buddha, an enlightened being who had forsaken all earthly desires to reach enlightenment. An event such as the incineration of human history would just be a blip on the radar, and none of our concern as that is what happened. Nothing should be done. But if I choose to help, it would mean I still had earthly desires and had not truly become enlightened. And so I created this situation to test your character to see if you were a worthy being of casting that away for. But you cleared that in the first five minutes of, meeting, and the test got turned around to testing me to test my character." She paused for a moment to catch her breath, before she continued. "And through your stories of what you experienced, I learned that I was wrong, that choice I made in life was wrong. What good does me being enlightened do? When everyone around me is suffering and screaming for help. How selfish of a person can I be to ignore that? To ignore my fellow men in favor of myself. Only a monster does that," Xuanzang finished as she collapsed to her knees and began to cry.

"...Well, I know the Laoshi, who taught me so many different things in such a short time, isn't a monster." Andy said as she kneeled down and put a comforting hand on Xuanzang's shoulder. She was a _bit_ mad about this whole thing having been a _fucking test_ , but she understood the sacrifice Xuanzang was making was massive.

"And what has that been, I called you my disciple, but what have I actually taught you? I've truly fallen as a person, haven't I?" She asked no one in particular as she leaned into Andy.

"Well, for one, you taught me about Buddhism." Andy started slowly as she gave the monk a comforting side-hug. "And you most _definitely_ helped refine my patience. Plus, I know how to use a staff now, which is neat." She paused for a moment, before going for the finishing blow. "And, if you really think you haven't taught much, you could maybe come back with us and make up for it there."

"That was a shit pep talk, you know." Was her statement, but she did smile now as she wiped away the tears.

"I know, but you can blame my other teachers for that one," Andy said with a grin of her own.

"Well, that was certainly an emotional rollercoaster we were just witness to, neigh."

"Not now, Red Hare, so Ms. Kyrielight, how much longer until we can return to Chaldea?" Li Shuwen asked.

"IN ABOUT A MINUTE!" Shouted the voice of Roman from out of frame.

"Heh." Andy laughed a bit at hearing the Doctor's shout, before focusing back on the monk she was still hugging. "So you've made your decision now, right, Laoshi?"

"Yeah, I wanna journey to that observatory," She responded.

"Great! Good to have you onboard." Andy said, the closeness of the hug working in place of the normal handshake.

"So, you've chosen to abandon the teachings of Buddha Xuanzang?" Asked Nezha as she landed in front of the group.

"Of course not I just decided to be a bit more flexible with them, I'll take my punishment when Andy no longer needs me," She responded as she stood up grim determination on her face.

"I see… then I shall eliminate you all," She spoke in a robotic tone as her feet and lance ignited with fire.

"Well, it seems that I have to postpone my arrival to Chaldea," Xuanzang said as the tapped her staff, and a barrier surrounded her and Nezha, cutting them off from the rest.

"Kick her ass, Laoshi!" Andy immediately cheered.

"Mash get Andy out cause I don't know how long I will be able to hold her," Xuanzang said.

"Understood, commencing Rayshift."

"See you later, Andy, and again sorry about this whole thing."

"See ya, Laoshi!" Andy said, happy to be going home.

Andy's vision saw the blue Rayshift tunnel, but a second later, it went black as what looked to lightning flashed across her vision.

Xxx

June 11

Andy could feel her consciousness returning, and is it did her sense of hearing touch did too. And what she felt was someone caressing her hair and humming a tune that sounded like a lullaby.

Her eyes fluttered open, and her vision was met with… breasts, two very big and round breasts. "Oh my, did I wake you, my child?" Asked a maternal voice, and Andy saw the face of the person that mountain of flesh was attached to.

"Ugh...where am I?" Andy asked, groggily. "Who are you?"

"You're at the summit of Onigashima, my child," She responded, her voice filled with maternal love. "And as for who I am? I am your mother."

Andy was now fully awake and aware as she sat up and scrambled away from the woman before her. " _Mother!?"_

"Why yes, you are the Master of my dearest Kintoki, are you not? That makes you his sibling, and you are my child then, but as for my name, I am Minamoto-no-Raikou or Yorimitsu if you prefer."

"Wait, _your_ Kintoki's 'Boss'?" Andy asked, more surprised than anything since he never mentioned _anything_ about her outside of offhand comments. The 'mother' thing at least kind of made sense now at least, if anyone knew about weird pseudo-adoption it was her, but she now also understood what it felt like for her Servants now.

"Yes, though I do wish he stopped that and referred to me as mommy properly, it makes me a little sad, then he doesn't," She said with a sad face, but there was something a little off about her as she sat on the rocky ground. And now that she noticed it, the entire sky was covered in dark clouds with thunder booming.

"Um, Minamoto…-san," Andy added, not wanting to be rude. "Thank you for taking care of me, but, do you know why I'm here?"

"Of course I called you here, I wanted to see my child now, come and return to mothers lap, while Kintoki and the others finish climbing the amusement I prepared for them," She said with a now slightly psychotic smile.

"Hypothetically speaking, what would happen if I didn't do that?" Andy said, prepared to either bolt, fight, or start placating depending on the level of 'nope' at play here.

"Then mommy would have to punish you for disobeying her," She responded, her face going into the disturbing end of the spectrum and becoming unsettling to look at.

Andy weighed her options.

On the one hand, there was an obviously psycho Servant in front of her that had a really weird complex, and...Andy quickly used her Stat-o-Vision upon realizing she knew her name.

[spoiler= Raikou's stat sheet]

True Name: Minamoto-no-Raikou

Class: Berserker

Master: -

 **Parameters:**

Strength: A

Endurance: B

Agility: D

Mana: A

Luck: C

Noble Phantasm: B++

 **Skills:**

Mad Enhancement: EX

Riding: A+

Magic Resistance: D

Divinity: C

Genji-Clan Martial Arts Discipline: EX

Mana Burst(Lightning): A

Mystery Slayer: A

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Ox-King Storm Call – Heaven's Vengeance is Slow yet Sure(Anti-Army): B++

[/spoiler]

" _Senpai, can you hear me,"_ Came the voice of Mash via telepathy, cutting off Andy's deliberating.

" _Mash thank God,_ yes _, I'm at the summit of 'Onigashima,' and this crazy lady with a mommy complex and_ Mad Enhancement EX _is holding me here, where are you guys?"_ Andy thought back, frantically.

" _On Onigashima too. We Rayshifted here a day ago to this Singularity when we located you after something kidnapped you, and it seems that Kintoki was correct in the assumption that Raikou or rather Uzhi-Gozen is behind this."_

" _Uzhi-what now?"_ Andy asked, before noticing the look Raikou was giving her, still waiting for an answer. _"Wait, more importantly, ask Kintoki, should I run or try and stall her? Her agility is low, but she's got a bow on her."_

" _He says to just play along, for now, we're in the middle of beating up the third guardian Oni blocking the path, so we should hopefully be there in an hour or two. And Shuten and Ibaraki are on their way to so they should be able to help you. So just play along, and I try to answer any questions."_ Mash responded.

" _Understood_ ," Andy responded, before focusing back on Raikou. "Um, actually, do we have anything to eat? I'm kind of hungry...mama." She said, dying a little inside.

"Ahh," She squealed as she, in an instant ran over to her and hugged her. "Of course mama has food for you, my dear," And from nowhere, she pulled out a box of dumplings for her to eat. "Now lay on my lap, and mama will feed you," She said with a tone of insistence.

Andy died a little more inside as she did just that. "Thank you, Mama." She said, feeling a part of her soul leaving her body, and quickly began distracting herself from what was occurring by telepathically talking to Mash. _"Kouhai, how long have I been here?"_ She started with.

" _You've been out for a day. Me, Kintoki, Ushi, Ibaraki, Shuten Rayshifted in as soon as we could alongside Irisviel and Kiritsugu to help us out. And we even managed to find to stray Servants to help us in the form of Benkei one of Ushi's retainers and Fuma Kotaro, the fifth head of the Fuma Ninja Clan. And also, Kintoki found one of his Noble Phantasms here and class changed to a Rider."_ She informed Andy.

" _Wait, you got a ninja? Awesome! I've always wanted to meet a_ real _ninja!"_ Andy replied ecstatically, distracted from how she was being fed (as much as she hated to admit it, very lovingly) by Raikou.

" _And I think he wants to meet you too, Senpai, since we explained the situation to him. So should I start explaining what is going with Lady Raikou?"_

" _Please do._ "

" _It is rather simple, according to Kintoki, Raikou's biological father was a lightning god by the name of Gozu Tennou, though the same kind of God as Orochi is making him a monster one. Though funnily enough due to syncretism in Hindu, he is Indra making her and Arjuna half-siblings. Now back on topic due to her upbringing and divine blood, Raikou developed a split personality, the other one being Uzhi-Gozen tied to her divine blood, and it comes out then the 'level of divinity' inside of her reaches a certain point and boils over. At least that's how Kintoki explained it,"_ Mash said finished her lecture.

" _Her current Divinity Rank is C, according to her stats."_ Andy mused. _"What's the threshold, E-?"_

" _I think that C is the base, but I think your vision isn't properly conveying the 'buffs' as it were to your mind. So I think it's higher than it is currently showing."_ Mash proposed.

" _Interesting. I never would have thought Stat-o-Vision wasn't reliable."_ Andy 'said', now doubting if she'd been seeing the correct information at all this whole time. Hell, that could mean there were Noble Phantasms hidden from her, and she'd be none the wiser, and that was a dangerous prospect.

" _Maybe it's because you viewed the stats of Raikou but not Uzhi-Gozen? Like with Jekyll and Hyde, you have to focus on their name even if you look at one or the other, right?"_

" _Oh, good idea, I knew I could always rely on my Kouhai."_

" _Senpai, please now is not the time,"_ She could hear the blushing over the link.

" _It's always the time."_ Andy smothered a grin, which was made easier by how Raikou had just fed her another dumpling (that box must have been a noble phantasm with how many dumplings it had…), before checking the stats of 'Uzhi-Gozen' this time.

And saw that they were mostly the same, but every physical parameter had a '+' attached, and the Divinity was now C++ instead. The rest was still the same as Raikou's. _"And you were right. She's got double plusses on her divinity, among other things._ "

" _Her chest? For those are most certainly double something."_ Mash responded.

" _How do you know that?_ " Andy asked. _"I thought she's had me up here for a day?_ "

" _You've been unconscious for a day, she has left your side a few times and went down the mountain to pass herself off as a Stray Servant killing the Oni on the island."_ She answered.

" _Ah, okay, that makes sense_ ," Andy said. _"What's your ETA btw?"_

" _Half an hour, Kintoki just managed to kill the enemy by crushing it with its own weapon."_ She answered with a distinctly annoyed tone.

" _Man, I wish I could have seen that. Sounds so much cooler than...this."_ Andy said, trying to picture that scenario, her mind for some reason supplying a palette swap of Ibaraki wielding a weapon bigger than her body for it.

" _Mostly annoying since this was the third time we did this, and the enemy Servants assisting them did not help at all. But we're on our way, also has Shuten and Ibaraki shown up yet?"_

" _...They're close. Lemme switch over."_ Andy said, feeling the connections. " _Shuten, can you 'hear' me?"_

" _Ah, Master, I guess you're wakey, wakey now. How is the cow's company?"_

" _I udder-stand why you call her a cow now,"_ Andy replied, tone dead serious despite the pun. " _Where are you?"_

" _Tehee, you get me now. Now Iba and I are hiding out near you, though we do have to be careful, or else she will cut our heads off,"_ She responded.

"Is your stomach full now, my dear?" Raikou asked as she caressed her hair.

"Uh, yeah, thanks mama," Andy said, dying a little more inside. "Um, my necks getting kinda sore, can I, um, sit up now?"

"Of course, dear, is there anything else you need? For a mother is meant to take care of her child's _every need_?" She asked as Andy sat up. "But that will have to wait for I am hearing some insects buzzing about," She said with a sour expression on her face as she stood up.

" _Oh, crap, she knows we're here!"_ Came the shout from Ibaraki and a second later, a large rock exploded as in less than second Raikou had drawn her bow and fired a lightning infused arrow at the target followed by more arrows fired at Shuten and Ibaraki who were now dodging the attacks after their hiding spot had been destroyed. "Like I said, insects buzzing about."

"Wait, Mama, stop!" Andy said, mentally praying that this would work. "That's my onee-sama and her friend!"

"MORON!" Came the shout from Ibaraki, but it was too late as Andy collapsed to the ground as in the blink of an eye, she had been pushed to the side by a now headless Shuten-Douji.

Raikou had drawn her blade blood dripping from the edge. "Filthy insect, it's always your fate to have your head cut off by this body of mine. And dear, you shouldn't be talking and saying such dirty words, mama is going to have to punish you now."

"Great Grudge of Rashomon!" Shouted Ibaraki and her massive flaming hand came rushing towards Raikou, but it was cut to mincemeat by her lightning infused blade.

Raikou grabbed Ibaraki by her horn and thrusted her blade into her chest, and quickly pulled it out, dropping the Oni to the ground. "Now those pests are dealt with, shall get back to what we were doing before, dear."

But even after all of that had happened, Andy could still feel the connection to the two Oni's, and there was the fact they were not dissipating back into Ether.

"No," Andy said as she got up from the ground, Ibaraki's sword in hand, a dangerous look on her face Shuten's blood splattered across it. "I don't think we will." She said, body beginning to crackle with electricity. "You're so eager for Kintoki to get here, maybe a clash of Lightning gods will bring our Golden Boy here?" She said facetiously as she transformed and charged straight at Raikou, moving like a lightning bolt and screaming like thunder. " _Huh, Mama?!"_

"Disobedient child, I will punish you!" She roared with animalistic fury as she swung with heaving swings at her. By sheer luck she managed to dodge the hit, having to abandon her initial charge, but as it hit the ground and Andy's slightly cut up her shoulder she saw a good chunk of the mountain plateau they were standing on begin to slide downwards as it had been separated from the rest.

"You're not my mom!" Andy said, shooting ice rune-bullets at Raikou as fast as she possibly could, aiming more to ruin her footing than actually hitting her dead on.

The crack of lightning thundered through the air, and Raikou disappeared from Andy's vision, and what followed was a familiar reverb of metal-on-metal Andy had grown very accustomed to hearing.

"Mash Kyrielight reporting for duty, Senpai," Her dearest Kouhai stated after having blocked Raikou's swing.

"Master's loyal dog Ushiwakamaru does the same."

"The Golden Hero of Children, Kintoki here too support his bro."

"Fuma Kotaro is ready to receive orders."

"Glad to see that you're okay, Andy," Said Irisviel as she and everyone else arrived at the scene, and standing by her side was Kiritsugu and Benkei.

Some of the tension left Andy's body at their arrival. "Finally!" She said, the one word conveying her relief and the eagerness that filled her. "Now that everyone's all here, lets butcher this cow!"

"You heard Andy, time to beat Uzhi-Gozen back into the deepest part of Boss' psyche," Kintoki stated as his fist crackled with electricity.

"Do you not like what I made for you, Kintoki? I made this wonderful land for you to kill Oni to your heart's content. Do you not love the gift your mother gave?" She spoke with tears forming in her eyes.

"Raikou is the only person that is, that not you Uzhi-Gozen. You're just divinity going on a rampage," Kintoki responded.

"Well, if that is the case. Ox-King Storm Call!" She shouted, and lightning slammed into her in the form of a large pillar, and then it dissipated five Uzhi-Gozen now stood each wielding a different weapon with one of them being Kintoki's ax.

Andy, however, was not perturbed. "Ushi, go for the bow one! Kintoki, deal with the one with your ax! Fuma, Benkei, split up the other two as you see fit! Mash, with me!" She said, jumping at the original one with an overhead sword swing, Mash right behind her.

"So, annoying you're just insects aren't just buzzing around, making my Kintoki not listen!" She shouted with a voice laced with madness as she swung her sword, but her form was now non-existent.

Mash shot ahead and blocked the sloppy strike, before Andy's power slid underneath her before stabbing upwards at Raikou while she was occupied.

"Argh," She shouted in pain as she lashed out, but the strike was once again blocked by Mash as drew her own sword in a quick unsheathing maneuver and cut Uzhi-Gozen's stomach. "Pests the lot of you; you're all pests."

Arcs of lightning were unleashed from her blade to increase the length of her slashes, but it was utterly sloppy, unlike before. It looked like Uzhi-Gozen was so consumed by anger that she had stopped drawing on the martial prowess that Raikou had imprinted on the body they shared.

"Just shut up already!" Andy said as she quickly sent a confirming message through her telepathy before Mash raised her shield, which she leaped at. "Senpai-Kouhai Combo!" She said as she landed on Mash's shield before getting launched off of it at high speed directly at Raikou sword held outward and sparking with lightning while her larger arms did the same, the points of Black Keys poking out of the wrists.

Uzhi-Gozen tried to retaliate and dodge, but one of the Black Keys found its way into her stomach. Andy landed on her feet as Uzhi-Gozen pulled the weapon out, and the wound sealed shut. "How dare you, I am-."

"Distracted, you freaking cow!" Shuten yelled as she ax-kicked Uzhi-Gozen straight onto her skull and sending her straight into the ground creating a small crater. "I would say this is cathartic because she killed me, but… this is Uzhi-Gozen and not Minamoto, so it doesn't count. And did I scare you Master with that stunt?" Shuten said with a smile as she walked over to Andy.

"Uh, yeah!" Andy said, indignantly. "Especially if you're saying you did that _on purpose!"_

"Oh, I did I would never be able to beat her in a straight-up fight as I am now, so that was the plan Ibaraki and I laid down."

"We, did but it still hurts getting stabbed," The Oni Leader complained as she went over to them, having assisted with the clones, taking her sword back.

"I got blood in my eyes because of you, y' know," Andy said with a huff, before her expression softened. "But seriously, don't do that kind of thing without telling me, okay? For a second I thought she actually got you."

"Is that compassion I hear Master? You shouldn't be express such feelings towards us Oni, or you would have to deal with the consequences of doing so," Shuten grinned.

"Oh, shut it, Shuten, you shouldn't be talking to Andy like that," Kintoki said with a grumpy face as he walked past them and over to the knocked out Uzhi-Gozen.

"Oh, right, momzilla," Andy said to herself. "You think that did the trick, Golden?"

"Did last time; hopefully, she doesn't try to kill herself this time," He responded as he sat her up and snapped his fingers in front of her. "Boss you there?"

"Hmm," She groaned as her eyes fluttered open. "Kintoki, dear, is that you?"

"Yeah, it's me."

"Hmm, what happened?" She asked, now fully awake as she looked at her surroundings. "...Oh my…I seem to have made quite a mess this time haven't I." Her tone was apologetic to the extreme.

"Uzhi-Gozen did not you, now come I don't want you sitting here feeling miserable," He said as he helped her stand up on her rather thin legs.

"Yes, but I do still have to apologize to a certain someone," She said as her eyes meet Andy's. "Young lady I apologize for what I, what Uzhi-Gozen did those actions were unbecoming of a mother."

"It's fine, I guess, since it wasn't really your fault," Andy said, waving off the apology. "Admittedly, she was very gentle when she wasn't trying to kill us. Completely psycho tho. You'll be able to keep that in check now, right?"

"Yes, I should, though her manifestation shouldn't really have been possibly normally, though I do believe it was thanks to this thing, and I think you should have it," Raikou said as she manifested a grail in her hand and threw it to Andy.

"Oh, a Grail fragment Senpai guess that explains how Onigashima manifested as it was a fictional place," Mash stated.

"Onigashima...wait, like Momotaro?!" Andy asked, only just now putting that together as she shifted out of demon form. "You're telling me I missed out on a Momotaro thing? That would have been so cool! Dammit…"

"You sadly did Andy," Said Roman as his hologram manifested. "Glad to see that you're alright now."

"Don't worry, Master I will forever be your bitch if you want," Ushi stated with a hundred percent serious tone though Andy could tell by the red on her cheeks she was slightly drunk.

Andy lightly bonked her on the head. "No. Bad Ushi." She then grinned and gave the dog-like girl a few head pats. "But thank you for saving me."

"Heh, Master praised me, Mash," She said with a smug tone of voice.

"Lord Andy, may I forge a contract with you?" Kotaro asked before Mash could say anything in response to Ushi's statement.

"Yes, absolutely, I've always wanted to meet a real ninja!" Andy said, grabbing and shaking Kotaro's hand ecstatically before he could say anything more. "I have so many things I wanna ask you when we get back to Chaldea." She said, eyes practically sparkling.

"This Shinobi will be happy to answer my Lord."

Andy just barely restrained herself from either squeeing or giggling like a schoolgirl at the idea of having an actual ninja under her command, deciding she needed to address the other stray. "And you must be Benkei, right? Thank you as well for helping save me." She said after a moment to the absolutely jacked man with numerous weapons strapped to his back.

"You're welcome, Lord Andy, but before you ask, I have already established a contract with Lady Irisviel," He stated.

"Yep, lucky me. And like I said glad to see that you're okay, Andy got a little nervous when you suddenly vanished," The homunculus said.

"From the summoning room or during the Rayshift?" Andy asked, since it'd happened twice in a row.

"The summoning room, and Mash was very distraught when it happened she didn't sleep for the first four days you were gone," Irisviel stated.

Andy frowned before turning around and pulling Mash into a hug, surprising the Shielder.

"S-senpai," She stuttered at the sudden embrace.

"...I missed you, Kouhai." Andy said after a moment. "I missed you so, so, so much. But you shouldn't neglect your own health because of me."

"I'm sorry, Senpai."

"Oh, that is so cute." Came Raikou's voice.

"Hm, hm. So Andy, if you're going to contract with Ms. Raikou please do so now. If not, I will start the Rayshift Process and… not even going to say just get ready," Roman stated.

Andy weighed the pros and cons of that at light speed in her head, before deciding 'fuck it' and holding out her hand towards Raikou, still hugging Mash. "Raikou, you wanna join us? Shake my hand for yes." She said quickly.

"I would like to very much, I hope I will be of use." She took Andy's hand, and a second later she saw the blue tunnel, and this time, there was no lightning.

Xxx

"Well, that was certainly a trip, Senpai," Mash stated as the two made their way for the Dining Hall after a quick briefing and getting all the new members situated.

"Yeah, and by god does it feel good to be back home Kouhai," Andy said, stretching as they walked. "I'm pretty sure if this wasn't Andy 2.0, the aches alone would have killed me."

"Well, hopefully, you get some time to relax before anything crazy happens again before your birthday Senpai," She said hopefully.

"Hopefully," Andy said, dragging out each syllable. "On that note, what is today, by the way? I lost track of time in that whole mess."

"It's the eleventh of June."

"Shiiiit, it's almost been a month?!" Andy asked, eyes widening in alarm. "Nothing exploded while I was gone, right?"

"Nothing did Senpai," answered though that was followed by her coughing a bit into her hands. But as she removed, Andy's eyes went wide as she saw the palm was covered in blood, and it was now leaking out of her mouth and nose. "Senpai," she groaned weakly as she lost consciousness falling to the ground.

Andy caught her, going fully into panic mode. "Nononono this isn't supposed to happen yet, we had until her birthday, why now?" She asked whatever was listening as she carried Mash to where she hoped- _prayed_ the Doctor was.

Xxx

A/N: If you like this or any other of my stories you can donate to my P A Treon. com (Slash) StreamingViking and read commissioned stories


	104. Shadow

_-I woke up at the same time again today._

 _I checked my temperature. I checked my five senses. I said my name out loud, so I could understand it objectively._

 _Mash Kyrielight._

 _That was the name they gave me, a human being._

" _Hello. Nice to meet you, Summon Experiment No. 2. Oh… No, that won't do. Starting today, I should call you by your proper name. Don't worry, I've stopped the recorders. Hello Mash Kyrielight. I'm Romani Archaman," The man said after he had entered my room. "From now on, I'll be your primary physician. Oh, is it all right if I take a seat here?"_

 _Since that was unprecedented, my words and actions were delayed._

 _No doctor has ever entered this room before._

 _The reasoning was that it was sufficient to speak through the glass._

" _Oh, is that right? To be able to convey your feelings even through glass… Chaldea is very advanced, indeed. But I'm still quite an amateur. I can't have a proper conversation unless I talk to people directly like this," The man spoke with a small smile. "So please don't hesitate to tell me what you think or feel. I want you to tell me all kinds of things. Communication is the best way to achieve mutual understanding. You can acquire far more information and feel someone else's warmth, right?"_

" _I see," I nodded. Indeed, more information can be acquired this way than through glass. The manner in which someone speaks. Their gaze. Temperature. Scent. Mannerisms. All things I have never experienced before._

 _If such interactions are deemed human-like… for the first time, I responded in a human-like fashion by…_

 _...agreeing to his proposal. "Hello, and nice to meet you, Doctor Romani."_

" _Oh, about that. I don't like the name Romani, see. And the name Archaman is a bit pretentious. I'd like to call me Roman. Doctor Roman. Sounds good, huh?"_

 _I know the word 'Roman' may stem from 'Romanticism.'_

 _It means to observe the world not by reason or by logic, but to observe it spiritually, subjectively._

 _The definition of the word changes from person to person. Even so, if I had to explain it-_

 _It is the philosophy of imagining a good future.' The sense of fulfillment when living one's own life._

 _Unlike my allotted period of activation, which is a detailed and efficient 'schedule.'_

 _Perhaps the hopeful observation that 'tomorrow holds many possibilities' is what the word is trying to express._

" _Oh my. That's quite a serious opinion you've got there. You sound like a senpai character from a Japanese comic. Oh… but that should be okay. You've been in Chaldea a lot longer than I have, so that would make you the Senpai," Doctor Roman sighed, creating a pause in his speech. "It's rather pathetic, actually. Although I am the head of the medical department, for the longest time, I didn't even know this section existed. I am truly sorry."_

 _Doctor Roman apologized to me for no reason. What a mysterious person. Also, he was wrong._

 _The Japenese terms 'Senpai' and 'Kouhai' are similar to that of a teacher and student. However, I have yet to learn a single thing from the Doctor._

 _Since my knowledge was input from Sheba, that would make Sheba my Senpai terms of knowledge. And so, when it comes to knowledge and information within Chaldea, I am the Kouhai._

… _Aside from that, though, it may be impossible, if I had a Senpai in life…_

 _It would be someone inherently human and of average status. Not the best, but a normal person who strives to do their best. I think it would be one who doesn't hurt others and never gives up an upright human being. After all, that's the kind of person I was modeled after when given life._

" _I see. You're right, not many people like that exist here in Chaldea. The staff here is made up of freaky geniuses. There isn't anything normal or average about them. Well, good and bad, normal or not, I guess all that makes up what it means to be human. I'm sure one day, you'll find a Senpai that you can truly rely on."_

… _The Doctor's words left a really strong impression on me. A Senpai that I could truly rely on…_

 _To imagine such a future sure made my eyes flicker with hope… A future filled with 'romance.'_

" _All right, then. Once again, nice to meet you, Mash. Let's try to make this a lasting relationship."_

" _Sure," I answered._

 _I'm a designer baby created for experimental purposes. Therefore, my lifespan is predetermined. I have been in operation for more than 10 years. If my surgery succeeds, I can live for a few more years._

 _...Oh, I am very happy._

 _After all, I get to have self-awareness for that much longer._

Xxx

June 12

Andy's eyes flickered open her head, resting on Mash's bedside.

She could easily hear her steady breathing as she slept.

"I'm sorry…" Andy whispered to the unconscious shielder. "I've failed you…"

"Why do you say that, Andy?" Roman asked from behind her as she heard the door to the room close the man's steps heavy. "You got her here as fast as possible, and now her condition is stabilized she should wake up in the next twenty-four hours," the good doctor told her.

Andy carefully sat up so as not to disturb Mash. "I saw one of her memories." She stated outright, not really in the mood for beating around the bush. "Your first actual meeting with her. She wanted...she wanted a senpai. Who would…" She took a shuddery breath. "A good person. She wanted a good, reliable Senpai, and I've failed her."

"And you aren't that? To Mash, the roles of Senpai and Kouhai are that of teacher and student. The one she wanted as one that could teach her how to be human, and you've fulfilled that role excellently. Before you, Mash was closer to being a robot than a person despite me and Leodnardo's best efforts. Thanks to you, she smiles genuinely, laughs genuinely, and overall much more expressive emotionally and even snarky at times, and that is all thanks to you. Not even Ophelia and Hinako were able to do that, and I would have considered them Mash's only friends in all of Chaldea before our mission before you. So don't say that you're a failure cause you aren't, and if you do I will get Scathach here to come and beat you up… cause I'm too weak to do that myself, for if I punched you, I would break my hand," He finished by taking a sip of his coffee.

"I'd deserve it," Andy said morosely. "I...I stole her real Senpai away from her. The one who was supposed to help her grow as a person. I'm...I'm not even supposed to _be_ here. I know that I've done okay so far, but there was someone _else_ who would have done _amazingly_ if they'd have been the one to be thrown out of the room that day. I'm just...I'm just a placeholder, until he wakes up."

"Oh, shut up, Andy," Roman said as he put down his cup and crossed his arms. "So what if you 'replaced' someone else. That doesn't matter the past is the past, and you can't change that. You might now have been 'the chosen one' as you seem to imply, but so what? You rose to the occasion and faced every challenge head-on where many would probably have long since given up. So what if you weren't supposed to be here, that doesn't matter, what matters is that you are, and you've done great," The man was actually glaring at her now.

Andy took another shuddering breath in an attempt to calm herself. "Was this...was this inevitable, or did I somehow speed it up?" She asked.

"Like with any disease, symptoms of it will start to show up at some point down the line. Without the Dress of Heaven, she will last until the start of the New Year, but thankfully thanks to your kidnapping by Uzhi-Gozen, we don't have to worry about that, cause remember what Raikou handed over?" He asked, and Andy's eyes widened since she did. "There is no shadow of a pillar inside of it, and it hasn't been tainted by an outside source like Angry Mainyu or Shuten's booze. That was still a stupid thing to do, you know."

"Past is the past." Andy echoed at him, as hope-filled her. "And it proved that we _can_ use fragments to grant wishes. So with what you're saying, does that mean we can…?" She couldn't even say it, such as the prospect.

"Da Vinci handed it over to Paracelsus and Irisviel, and they have been working all night," He said with a grin.

"That we have," Came the voice of Irisviel said as she entered the room. "Only good for two uses, but right now two is all we need, for now, one for Miss Kyrielight here, and one for Mr. Fujimaru." Her body clad in the Dress of Heaven.

"Do it now, or as soon as possible, whatever, just please do it," Andy asked/pleaded, the combination of euphoria over _finally_ doing this and the relief of knowing that she did something good removing her ability to do anything other than beg.

"I will fix her to the best of my abilities Andy, do not worry just watch," She said as she began to chant an Aria in German that sounded more like it was a song than anything else as a magical circle formed over Mash's chest that glowed an almost holy light that shone for a minute until she finished.

"You're a cruel man Marisburry Animusphere," Irisviel stated as her body swayed a bit before righting herself up.

"Is...is that it?" Andy asked. "You saved her?"

"To the best of my abilities with this rather half-assed Dress of Heaven, and her body was more damaged than I had realized spiritually as well, but right now she will be able to live until her forties for the moment, so plenty of time, time to extend to full lifespan as I only managed to double her lifespan," Irisviel informed the two.

"That, that is good enough for me," Roman said, looking like he was on the verge of crying.

Andy, meanwhile, had no compunctions and had been started crying (in relief and joy) around the point Irisviel said 'forties.' She didn't even try to speak, knowing it would come out a blubbering mess, and instead gave the homunculus a hug, her gratitude clear.

Irisviel returned, wrapping her arms around Andy, patting her on her back. "There, there now how about you stay with Mash, she should wake up soon. In the meantime, me and Dr. Archaman will go and fix Mr. Fujimaru so that you will have another Master to work with."

Andy nodded, still not trusting her words to come out as anything close to coherent, waving them along, not waiting for them to leave before sitting down in the chair next to Mash's bed and working on getting her emotions back under control so that Mash didn't wake up to her blubbering and think something was wrong.

In about 15 minutes, she had done so. She still obviously looked like she'd been crying, but the face splitting grin on her face as she patiently-impatiently waited for Mash to wake up counteracted it. As she waited, she absentmindedly took out her knitting needles and started going to work. About 45 minutes later, it was starting to look like a Fou plushie, the type that when Fou saw them he would attack them and they'd be gone in a matter of minutes, so she'd gotten into the habit of making them when she was bored and needed something to do with her hands.

And as she was about to finish it, a small groan came from Mash as her body moved slightly and soon after her eyes fluttered open. "Senpai," She groaned out as her eyes landed on Andy, a small smile on her face. "Good morning, have you've been crying?"

"Maybe, but that's not important right now," Andy said, a sly grin on her face as a thought came to her. "How are _you_ feeling, Kouhai?" She asked, waiting to act on said thought.

"I, I… I'm actually feeling really good. Nothing is actually hurting right now, and it feels like I've slept like for a year and regained all of my energy," She answered with a smile as she sat up on her bed.

Andy's grin grew at hearing that. "That's wonderful, Kouhai. Actually, on that note, I have some news for you, so which do you want first, the good or the not-really-all-that-bad news?" She asked, still grinning.

"I take both Senpai, and hello there, Fou, where have you've been?" She asked as the small critter jumped onto her lap. "I take the good one first, Senpai," She said with a slight grin.

"Good news is, the Dress of Heaven got made," Andy said, even more, glee filling her as she saw the meaning of that register in Mash's face. "And she used it about an hour ago. Your built-in lifespan is basically to your forties now. So really, there isn't a time limit now."

Mash didn't say anything, she didn't respond as tears flowed from her eyes, as she began to cry tears of happiness into Andy's shoulder.

Andy hugged her, only crying a little (mostly because she'd already cried herself out earlier) but no less happy for it as she just held her kouhai close.

Though the moment was slightly ruined as a loud rumbling emanated from Mash's stomach region.

"You've been out for a while, you must be starving." Andy chuckled a bit. "Do you feel up to walking to the Dining Hall, or do you want someone to bring something here?" She asked.

"I would like to walk. We do no need to tell everyone the good news, don't we?" She asked. "But could you step outside first Senpai, I need to change out of this gown first," Mash responded with a small blush on her face.

"Yes, right, sorry," Andy said, blushing a bit herself as she quickly got out to give Mash her privacy.

Fou following her outside.

Xxx

"So, Senpai? I forgot to ask why wasn't the Doctor or Irisviel with you in the room?" Mash asked, now clad in her casual clothes as they walked towards the Dining Hall Fou on her shoulder.

"Oh, right," Andy said as she remembered. "The Dress they made this time had enough 'juice' for two uses, so they went to fix up one of the Master Candidates, to help out our manpower and stuff."

"Ah, that's good now Senpai, won't have to work as hard and relax a bit more, now there are more like there should have been from the beginning," She said.

"Glad to know that I will be of use," said a young adult voice that came from in front of them. They had been so absorbed in their conversation that they hadn't noticed Fujimaru approaching them flanked by both Roman and Da Vinci as. "But, I'm just thankful for not being Captain America'd anymore."

It took Andy a moment to place Ritsuka's face in her memories, mostly through context clues, before she smiled. "Ritsuka! Good to see you off, ice." She said, before realizing Ritsuka probably had no idea who she was. "I believe some introductions are in order. I'm Andy Murphy, previously the sole Master of Chaldea, and now simply the most experience." She said with a short theatrical bow.

"Nice to meet you, Andy," He responded with his own exaggerated bow. "So I guess you're my Senpai now? But I have to ask, did we meet before I got blown to hell? Cause you feel familiar to me?" He asked with a 'detective-like pose.'

"Oh, right, you might remember me like this," Andy said, before flipping the switch back to male, not giving a single shit about the fact he was still wearing the version of the mystic code with a skirt, since it resized to fit. "And, more importantly, the one you should really be calling 'Senpai' is right here." He said, motioning grandly towards Mash, who just walked behind him in embarrassment.

Ritsuka just sputtered in shock, "Pfft, how did you do that? Do you have some kind of shapeshifting Stand?... Wait, you were the guy I meet in the shower, right? You've certainly lost weight." Ritsuka stated as he seemed to recall their first meeting.

"My boy, there is a _lot_ we need to catch you up on, on," Andy said with a goodhearted chuckle. "...Wait, what's this about Stands?"

"I was just wondering if you were a Stand user like myself," He responded.

"Wait, you're a Stand user?" Roman and Da Vinci asked at the same time. "That wasn't in your file."

"... Guess I forgot to mention that, didn't I, but it's like your dick; you just don't show it to other people casually."

"That is the worst comparison I've ever heard," Roman said with a look of disgust on his face.

"I find it appropriate," Da Vinci responded.

"Wait, so what is it? Your stand?" Andy asked, curiosity overwhelming his normal respect for others' privacy.

"Can we save it for later? I hunger, so I don't even have the energy to manifest Crush 40's abilities," He responded as he clutched his stomach hunger apparent on Ritsuka's face. "But you've got magecraft, right? That has to be more impressive than my Stand since I've got zero talent in that area despite having the average amount of Magic Circuits. But like I said, can we eat so that I can catch up?" He asked.

"Dining Hall's this way," Andy said, pointing to the right of the three-way junction they'd met up at. "We were on our way there just now anyway."

Xxx

After they had entered the Dining Hall. Roman had made a quick announcement about Mash's and Ritsuka's recovery, which had been followed by Nero yelling feast, and the chaos had been unleashed.

"Well, they are certainly lively, but I am kind of used to being around eccentric people," Ritsuka said as he ate his food with a happy smile on his face. "Damn, this is really good, and damn you've been through a lot, Andy, I almost want to apologize for not being there to help out," Ritsuka apologized after having gotten a very tl;dr version of what had happened.

"Eh, don't worry about it too much. It's not your fault Lev was a bastard double agent." Andy said. "Though, an explanation on that Stand of yours could be pretty neat."

"Still feel bad, cause then you got thrown out by the Director," He quickly made a cross-motion. "I kinda wanted to leave and see if you were okay, cause you definitely suffered from first-time simulation syndrome as me and the others liked to call it. But I didn't want to get yelled at," He said with an embarrassed tone of voice.

"Again, don't feel bad. If I hadn't gotten thrown out, then none of us would be here right now," Andy said.

"Too true, now as for my Stand, Crush 40 is an amour-type stand with abilities based in the element of darkness. Meaning that I can move in and out of peoples' shadows, and even redirect attacks through shadows, meaning as long as I am wearing Crush 40, I can't be hurt as I am a shadow myself. Though it only works as long as I am in a shadow myself, and of course, I get some increased durability and strength, but not Crazy Diamond or Star Platinum level. And the attack redirection requires action on my part and is not automatic," He told them.

"Excuse me, how exactly do you know what 'Crazy Diamond' and 'Star Platinum' are?" Andy asked, a certain hope coming forth unexpectedly.

"I got the shotgun speech from the both of them, then I dated Shizuka for a bit," he answered. "Wait, how do you know them?"

"Zelretch," Andy said automatically, hopes dashed. He really needed to stop getting his hopes up about impossible things like 'maybe he's another slider.' "I actually knew more about the Joestar family than the Holy Grail War before he drop-kicked me into Chaldea."

"Right, almost forgot that you're a freaking planeswalker," He said. "That is still freaky, but not the weirdest thing I've experienced or heard. Stands can get weird." He quickly added.

"Oh yeah, I know how weird stands can get, don't worry," Andy said, remembering the actual Joestar he'd met, and then registered the rest of Ritsuka's earlier statements. "Wait, that means Jotaro's still alive, right? And Joylene?"

"Was wondering that too," Roman said. "We have some records of the Joestars and their exploits, but we don't know what happened to the family after the events that occurred at Green Dolphin Street Prison."

"Yeah, he and Jolyne are still alive, they have no idea what did the gay ass priest in, but they are alive Jolyne managed to turn her entire body into string while Jotaro tried to us the World as much as possible to avoid getting hurt, but he is confined to a wheelchair now. Still scary as balls," He answered with fear in his eyes.

"That is good to hear, they are truly modern-day heroes," Roman responded.

"That is certainly nice to hear," Mash added her own comment.

"Yeah." Andy concurred, before remembering the thing he'd been meaning to ask Da Vinci way back before the whole Journey to the West mess a month ago. "Oh, but that reminds me, Leo, what was that thing? It's been more than long enough now, right?"

"Right the thing I wanted to give and wanted I wanted to tell you," She said as she pulled out a gun and placed it on the table. "This is an Evoker. Now Andy, what do you know of Shadows and Personas?"

"I take you aren't talking about the Jung version?" Roman asked.

"Of course, why wouldn't Persona's exist?" Andy asked himself. "Yeah, I know about Personas and Shadows. So what, I fight my shadow self with this 'Evoker' thing?" He said, giddiness returning at the idea of having anything even remotely like a stand. Personas were still pretty neat too.

"So, you do know about them," Da Vinci said.

"I'm sorry, but what are we talking about here?" Roman and Ritsuka asked at the same time.

"Everyone has a Shadow, the true self. It's all the stuff you don't like or don't want to acknowledge about yourself. If you deny it, it'll turn into a monster perverted from those same traits, and if you beat that up and then accept it or accept it right away, you get a cool Stand-like thing you can summon and use to fight with." Andy explained to the extent he understood it. "Though I don't know how the Evoker ties into it."

"So it is Jung Psychology, but it is a lot more literal than I thought," Roman said.

"Yes, and what Andy said is true a Persona is something very Stand-like, but is not one. There are many differences they don't have exotic powers like some Stands can have theirs is more JRPG in nature with a spell system of their own. And they have a greater connection with the Human Order or the Collective Unconsciousness as some call it or even the Metaverse," Da Vinci explained.

"Okay, but how do you know all of this, Da Vinci?" Roman asked.

"I hacked the Kirijo's groups system as they are foremost experts about Shadows and Personas, and I did so after everyone forgot what happened after Christmas of 2016, everyone except for probably due to my nature as a Servant," She answered.

"Da Vinci, you shouldn't hack other organizations' servers," Roman lamented.

"No, no, she should if it leads to stuff like this." Andy rebutted. "So, wait, to reiterate, what's the gun for?"

"Yes, I am curious about that as well, what does Senpai need the gun for?" Mash asked, eyeing the thing wearily.

"It's a tool that allows one to manifest a Persona even within the real world," She answered.

"Da Vinci is correct about that, but to use one must accept Death fully and utterly," Gil said as he walked up to their table.

"Que?" Andy asked, before connecting the dots and glaring at the little blond. "You knew the whole time, you little shit."

"I did, but it wasn't my place to tell then I realized that you were a Fool thanks to the words spoken by older-self in 1994," He answered.

"And I realized around the same time too, though I should have seen it earlier that you had the potential for awakening to the power of Persona. Cause your little dream escapades is not how the bond works at all. You should only be able to view memories and not walk around aware in the world inside their hearts. Should have been so obvious after Kiyohime, you stole her twisted desires and caused a change of heart like the Phantom Thieves did," Da Vinci said.

"Phantom Thieves?" Ritsuka asked before his eyes widened. "I remember when they were running around Tokyo me, and the others were meant to go see if they were Stand users after Christmas, but after that, they stopped being active and we couldn't find them. So they were Persona users instead?"

"Correct, at least according to the Kirijo Group and their data."

"That is correct. They were led by the Trickster, who stopped a being formed from the distorted desires of the masses to remove the ability to think for ones-self, but right now, they are not relevant to our conversation," Gil said.

"Yeah, back on topic, what do you mean 'accept death'?" Andy asked, a bit hung up over that part.

"That gun contains a Plume of Dusk, a piece of death itself. So, what you need to do is put the barrel to your head and pull the trigger," Gil said with a smile.

"Oh, is that all?" Andy said, picking up the gun and putting it to his temple. "Like this, right?" He still didn't pull the trigger, though. He wasn't stupid.

"Don't worry, you won't actually die, but the thing is going to make you think you are," Da Vinci said. "Under normal circumstances it should forcibly manifest your Persona, but as we all know by you, don't do things the normal way. So I am actually not sure what will happen."

"Senpai, you don't have to do it if you don't want to," Mash said.

"No, it's fine," Andy said, despite the bead of sweat rolling down his face. "We all know how great I am at decisions like this, right?" He said with a laugh, before pulling the trigger.

Andy heard the sound of glass being broken, and his head being pushed to the side.

And he wasn't in Chaldea's Dining Hall anymore, but he was standing in a Gazebo that was surrounded by a sea of fire.

"Sup, welcome to the Collective Unconsciousness, don't mind the fire cause humanity is kinda burning right now," said a black-haired man in a well kept red and black suit. "And this time, it ain't my fault."

"So, who are you?" Andy asked, confused. He'd been expecting to have to fight himself or whatever, not...this.

"Ah, where are my manners? Hello, Andy, my name is Nyarlathotep, the crawling chaos. I am the Shadow of Humanity and also your Shadow by technicality," he answered, and Andy felt the danger level rise immensely.

" _Oh_ ," Andy said, about twenty octaves higher than normal, before clearing his throat. "So, where does that put us, then? Do I need to accept you, or are you just gonna straight up try to kill me, or something else?"

"No, no, no not at all. While this might be a bit out of character for me I'm actually here to help you cause both me and Philemon are in an agreement that this situation sucks and that the little King of Mages needs to be taken down a peg. Cause if something ends humanity it has to be through my machinations no else. And Mister Hope got hit harder than this than me, so I have to help you get your Persona awakened as much as it displeases me, Mr. Survivor."

"Okay," Andy said, committing that explanation to memory to ask someone else about later, deciding to _not_ push the genocidal-but-willing-to-help Elder Deity. "How do we do that, Sir?"

"My aren't we being Mr. Polite, but as much as _I_ would like to mentally destroy you and psychologically tear you apart, that is 'your' job. Going to have to pull an Izanami and manifest your personal Shadow. Now Chao," He said with as he snapped his fingers and vanished, and a second later a tower of red and black goo exploded out of the ground, and as it collapsed, Andy saw himself.

Or rather, saw his old body now with striking yellow eyes.

"Huh." Andy said, nonplussed as he looked 'himself' over. There wasn't anything in particular weird about his Shadow beyond the eyes at first glance. The only notable thing to Andy' was that it was wearing his favorite old hoodie with Superman's insignia on the front, hands hidden in the hoodie's pocket. "So that's what I looked like. Neat."

His Shadow scoffed. "'Neat.' Is that really all you have to say?" Andy noted there was something shiny and metallic in his Shadow's mouth.

Andy shrugged. "Sure, I guess. It's not really like there's much I've been denying about myself. Is that why you look like my original body? Because I rejected it or whatever?"

The Shadow laughed. "Even _now_ , when faced with the truth, you can't see it?" He put a hand to his chest, and gave Andy a manic look.

"I am a Shadow, the True Self." The two said in synch, Andy having been expecting that.

"Yeah, yeah, I know all that already," Andy said. "Listen, I've already accepted who I am. We don't need to go through this whole song and dance, y' know?" He asked, holding out his open hand towards the Shadow.

The Shadow looked down at the proffered hand, and slowly reached out as if to grab it, before smacking it away at the last minute. "Ha! Accepted me? As _if!_ I am the True Self! I am Andrew! _You_ should be asking for _my_ acceptance!" The Shadow of Andrew said.

"What?" Andy asked, looking between his hand and his Shadow in confusion. "What are you talking about?"

"You really don't get it, do you?" Andrew asked, putting a hand to his face and shaking his head. Andy could now see its hands were discolored and wet with...something. The weird fire surrounding them muted all the colors. "You've always been slow, but this is a new height of stupidity!"

"Shut up with the nonsense and get to the point." Andy insisted.

Andrew tilted his head and grinned a vicious smile, sadistic pleasure written all over his face. He licked his lips with a literally silver tongue before continuing. _'Liar,'_ Andy's brain helpfully provided. "Oh, so _now_ you want to stop beating around the bush, now that it's convenient for you? Alright, fine, here you go: you're a, as you put it, a _placeholder_. Now that the _actual_ hero is here, _he'll_ be able to save everyone."

"Yeah, I know that dumbass," Andy said. "Except, _I'm_ still the one who _got us here_!"

"And how did you do that again…?" Andrew asked. "Oh right, by killing and torturing your fellow man, before giving up your humanity entirely." He scoffed. "Some hero you are, with all this blood on your hands." He said, waving the literal version of this.

"What are you even _on about!?_ " Andy yelled. "I _know_ I'm not the goddamn hero!"

"But I am."

"...What?"

" _You_ aren't the Hero. I _am_." Andrew said simply, a smug look on his face, pointing at the insignia on his chest. "You're scared out of your mind at every second of every day, waiting for death to come and take you. Me? I'm the one who's been pushing us forward, enjoying every moment." He shook his head. "You've been so scared that you've grabbed everything you could in the hopes it would save you someday… though it's not like that's anything new for you. A scared, useless thief."

"I'm not useless." Andy insisted. " _I'm_ still the one who got us here!" He repeated.

"Oh yes, and how did you do that again?" Andrew asked rhetorically in a mockingly exaggerated thinking pose, every motion spreading the blood on his hands over himself. "Oh, right, by freezing up every time it mattered. How fucking _brain dead_ do you have to be to just _watch_ over and over and over and over _and over again_ as the people around you _die_ or _worse?_ "

"Shut up."

"No, I don't think I will," Andrew said, smugly. "You've ignored the Truth for long enough. You _blew it_ , over and over again, and then _lied_ about it, just like you lie about _everything_. You've lied to your precious little Servants about so much. About how much you _love_ being in control of them, having power over other people. About how you've deluded yourself into acting like you _care_ about your little messed up 'family', and isn't _that_ just a _mess_ of lies, acting like a bunch of _ghosts_ are your _family_. It's a wonder you're still sane- oh wait, _that's a lie too_!"

"Shut up!"

"You've lied to your pink plaything that what you feel is love, not the simple _lust_ you feel when you look at him. What have you really done other than sex? Can that even be called love when you communicate almost exclusively in carnal passion?"

"Stop it!"

"Or what about that poor girl, Mash, that you've strung along this whole time? Lying to her that you're a good person, worthy of her respect, of her admiration? She's only a crutch, a lifeline, and without her, you'd have to actually _try_ , and we both know how _that_ would end up, don't we? You should just tell her the truth. If you did, maybe she'd end up just like Saph-"

Andrew was cut off by Andy, punching him in the face. "SHUT UP!"

Andrew cackled madly, not even moving from its spot. "Ooh, and there's the _anger_ and _violence_ you've lied about, too! I haven't even gotten to the Big One yet!"

"Why won't you just s _top! talking!?"_

"Why don't you just _stop lying?_ " Andrew asked as he shoved Andy back away from him, continuing before Andy could respond, apparently deciding to go for the killing blow. "Why don't you just tell them about how you've lied to them, to _all of them_ , on how much you know? On _where_ you got that knowledge from?"

"That-that's for their own sake!"

"Is it? Is it _really_? Or is it just, so you don't have to confront the truth- that you knew _exactly_ what you were getting into this whole time? That you _chose_ this. That you'd been _begging_ for something _new_ , for something _different_ , to come in and pull you away from home, for the chance to go on some grand adventure? How you'd always _wanted_ to save the world, just to say you did it? How you'd always been nothing more than a supporting character in your own life _at best_ , and you wanted _more_?"

"No!" Andy insisted, gripping his head in pain.

"How you wanted to be _the hero?_ "

"No…" Andy said, sinking to his knees.

"Of course, things never really go according to plan. After all, why not ask _them_?" Andrew asked, and at his words, Andy _screamed_ as he was bombarded with the memories of _everything_. Every time one of his Servants died, every time he was injured, every time he made a mistake, every time he saw someone die, every time he _couldn't do anything_ , _**his**_ face burning into his memory.

" _Let me show you why fighting against me is futile."_

"Why...why are you doing this?" Andy asked hoarsely as Andrew loomed over him.

"Because I'm a boy playing hero," Andrew said with a shrug, silver tongue-twisting in his mouth. "Because I'm a liar. Because I'm a murderer. Because I'm a horrible person. Because I'm _you_."

"YOU'RE NOT ME!" Andy screamed at Andrew, and a moment later realized his mistake as the Shadow cackled and started glowing. "Shit."

" **Argh, I can feel it swelling up inside of me, the power it feels so good, ahhhh,** " Andy watched as his Shadow exploded and reformed into a monstrous being. A massive black canine-like creature that on top of it fused to the neck was a humanoid being that had no apparent features, it was like looking into the void itself, though both of them were covered in red tattoos that looked like a dead language. " **I am not you, I am me, I am the Shadow the true self!"** The wolf howled. It still had a silver tongue, because of course, it did.

"Goddammit," Andy said as he quickly jumped back and switched into demon mode midair, able to focus now that the Shadow wasn't wearing his face. "So what are you even supposed to be shaped like now, huh? My repressed urge to fuck Cu Chulainn?"

" **Well at least you can admit** _ **that**_ **. Ziodyne!** " It shouted as a blast of lightning was fired from the Shadow's mouth.

Andy dodged, crackling with lightning himself to speed up his movements, before opening fire with some ice runestones, in the hopes of freezing it in place. Due to all the forced-self reflection occurring, he was able to recognize that this was his go-to tactic in a fight, especially since it dodged. "Is that why I have lightning powers? Because _you've_ been sitting around in my soul? Maybe I'll name you Zeus once this is all over!" He yelled, hiding behind the snark like always.

" **That's not everything I've got. Eigaon!** " It shouted firing a beam of concentrated darkness, that was thankfully avoided. " **And yet you hide again behind a mask of snark and sarcasm are you so afraid? Then why do you continue to fight, continue to live? Just lay down and die like the bitch you are. The real hero is here, there is not a need for a Dark Messiah that would just end up hurting everybody. Heat Riser!** " It said, and the body glowed as it got even faster as the two chased each other across the now much larger Gazebo.

"Fuck," Andy said as he began strafing, switching to fire runestones in the hopes of actually _hitting_ the damn thing. "I'm still the one who got us here, I'm still the one who fixed 5 of the 7 Grand Singularities! Me! And the Servants under my command, who I _am friends with you piece of shit!_ " He started yelling towards the end as the Shadow launched another Eigaon that he had to leap over to dodge and keep his momentum.

" **Friends? You actually believe that? That they are your friends, how can you know that? How can you be so sure that they just aren't using you to accomplish** _ **their**_ **mission? They are Servants, Heroic Spirits. Why would they want to follow the orders, and be friends with a human with an inflated sense of self-importance who made a deal to be here because he couldn't handle being a nobody!** " The Shadow shouted in response to Andy's declaration. " **Concentrate.** " The Shadow glowed with a dark color like it was preparing for something.

"Fine! Fine then, then I'll just tell them!" Andy yelled as he redoubled his bombardment and kept moving at high speed, aiming to get behind the shadow. "I'll tell them everything! It's like you said, the real hero is here now, so even if they kill me or reject me or whatever! He'll still be there to pick up the pieces!" Despite his words, the image of Mash's face of disappointment and disgust at hearing the truth flashed in front of his eyes, and made him falter for just a second.

" **Got you, Ziodyne!** " This time however the attack came even faster and stronger than before slamming directly into Andy's body sending him flying straight into one of the Gazebos pillars. " **And there it is, at least you can admit that you're an unimportant nobody, but how is that new body treating you? Why even go for it when it is still just as useless as the old one, what good has switching out the shell done for you? Just putting yourself in more danger, making poor Mashy Mash cry her heart out over her dear 'Senpai' getting hurt over and over again for stupid reasons. You're a terrible person. Only a monster would do that to another person. Oh wait, Mash isn't human she is just a robot, a doll meant to be dressed up.** "

" _She's more human than you are, you perverted mess of neuroses!_ " Andy screamed as he struggled to his feet. If anyone knew how to push his buttons, of course, it would be his own Shadow. "You know what? Thank you, Shadow-me, you just made me _fucking remember_ , you aren't _fully_ me, you're my worst shit driven to the _fucking extreme_. And you know how I know that?" Andy activated the M.E.S.S., the Philosopher's Stone in his chest glowing with a rainbow of energy as he set up his arms like the barrel of a cannon to guide the blast.

"I WOULD NEVER INSULT MY KOUHAI!" He yelled as all of the stored Magical Energy was released as a massive rainbow-colored beam bigger than Andy's own body as it tore through the space between them.

" **OH SHIT!** " The Shadow shouted as the blast consumed it, and as it finally let up after seemingly an eternity had passed the monstrous Shadow was gone, and laying on the ground was his old body. "Fuck, why, why do I keep losing, I just, we just wanted to be someone special." His shadow cried out as it laid flat.

"I know." Andy said as he kneeled down next to his Shadow, having swapped back to human shape automatically after using the M.E.S.S. "I know we did. But...we _are_ special. Look how far we've come. We probably aren't the hero, but y'know what?" He smiled tiredly at his Shadow. "We're Andy Murphy. No-longer-Sole Master of Chaldea. The Goddamned Survivor. An idiot who somehow managed to become friends with a bunch of ghosts." He said with a chuckle. "Not all of them, of course, but we've at least made a few happy, and that's good enough, right? We've always at least done 'good enough.'"

His Shadow just chuckled in response. "Yeah, we have, and isn't that good enough? We might be mediocre as balls, but we have them now, don't we? We have Arturia, we have Astolfo, we have Mash, they are all we truly need now that we're stuck here."

"Heh, 'stuck' here. Weren't you the one who reminded me about having chosen this?" Andy chuckled back.

"Oh, right. Hah, but I do mean it, the deal we made was a one-way trip," His Shadow said. "So, where do we stand?"

Andy grinned. "Well, I think _you_ are gonna 'stand' pretty well, my darker half." He said as he grabbed the Shadow's-no, _his own_ hand.

"So, we cool?"

"We cool."

"That's good, that is very good," He said as his body began to glow white. "Let's just be more honest from now on."

At that, his Shadow was replaced with another figure that looked similar to the form, his Shadow had taken after the rejection, though this time the humanoid figure and canine had combined to form an anthropomorphic wolf made out of roiling darkness. _"I am thou, thou art I. I have come from thy Sea of Soul. My name is Ahriman let us together bear the burdens of all."_ He said as he vanished, and Andy could feel the presence of the Persona within him.

"Neat," Andy said, before getting drop-kicked back into reality. At least, it felt like he did with how his head was pounding.

"Senpai!" Shouted the voice of Mash.

"Dude, are you okay?" Ritsuka asked.

"Da Vinci, what the hell!" Shouted Roman.

"Hey, don't look at me. I warned him!"

And Andy could sense a wave of concern coming from many of the connections he had made with his Servants.

"Heh." He said from where he was on the ground as he mulled over what had just happened and how he'd got here in the first place. "Worth it."

"So, I assume you managed to obtain your Persona?" Gil asked as he looked down upon Andy.

"Ayup." He responded, popping the p as he got up, the headache clearing surprisingly quickly. "In retrospect, I'm sorry for making you face your older self back in Fuyuki if that felt anything like this did, Gil."

"So, you faced your Shadow? And no, it did not, entirely different scenario," The child king said.

"Gotcha," Andy said as he dusted himself off, before looking at the Evoker still in his hands. "And yeah. How bout I show him to you guys?" He asked, putting the Evoker to his temple again. "Gotta get everyone desensitized to seeing this, that's for sure."

"Hmm, Andy, why are you putting a gun to your head?" Astolfo asked as he came up to the table, alongside Arturia.

"Yes, Mother, I would like to know too?"

"You know I think that sentence just made it into my top ten weirdest things I've heard without context," Ritsuka commented as he watched the scene unfold.

"Trust me, by the time you're caught up, it won't even be in your top 20," Andy said with a smirk, before addressing his...family. "And Azzy, Arturia, this is a special tool that lets me summon something like a Stand. Like this." He said, firing on 'this,' feeling a surprising amount of recoil before Ahriman appeared before him, idle and waiting for orders.

"Hot damn, this thing is strong I can feel the power," Da Vinci said as she looked at the Persona. "So, your other-self, your inner-self is a furry Andy? Wouldn't have guessed that about you."

"Ziodyne." Andy said tonelessly, Ahriman shooting a relatively weak bolt past her head and fizzling out just past it, basically just causing her hair to stick on end. "And no. Bad Leo."

"Just joking, but it seems you managed to level up again," She said with a grin.

"I think it's freaking cool," Ritsuka said as he gave Andy a thumbs up.

"Thank you, thank you, I'll be here all week," Andy said dramatically, before sighing as he looked at Ahriman, whose blank stare managed to remind him what he had to do. "Actually...on that. There's… something I need to tell you guys. Something big."

"What is it, Senpai?" Mash asked her voice filled with concern.

Andy swallowed the lump in his throat. "I...I've been lying to you. To all of you. About a lot of things. About Zelretch. And...about how I got here."

"Andy, what do you mean?" Roman asked his face indecipherable.

"Before...before all this. Back home. I'd been nobody. Just a college student going home for New Year." Andy started, looking at Ahriman to help keep him focused. "And I hated it. I hated not being special, I hated having to sell my soul to some school just to sell my soul to a company. So… I made a wish. For anyone, anything that was listening to send me on a grand adventure, where I could be useful, be important, be _special_. So I could save the world… and something answered." He took a shuddery breath. "Nyarlathotep, but I didn't realize that till just now. He wore a different face, but looking back I _know_ it was him. And he put me right where I needed to be, to be able to...save the world, a world similar to an anime I watched once. I'm...I'm sorry." He finished, waiting for judgment, unable to look at the people he'd grown to care for this past year. He didn't want to see their faces.

 _"You did the right thing,"_ Ahriman said as he disappeared back into him no longer being needed.

The silence that followed felt like an eternity to Andy, but it barely lasted ten seconds, as it was stopped by the sound of Astolfo smacking his ass. "What you moping around for? So what if you made a deal with Nep-Nep? That doesn't mean you caused all of this to happen you know. I'm crazy, but even I can see that you haven't actually done anything wrong. Sure you lied, but it didn't hurt anyone, so it's okay in my book."

"Azzy…" Andy said. It was all he could say at the feeling of relief that filled him. And that gave him the courage to look at the others.

"The Palladin is correct; while that deal now easily makes the top of stupid stuff you've done, your presence did not cause this to happen. And, and I am grateful for your presence Mother," Arturia said with a smile.

And Mash she just smiled for there wasn't any need to speak, for on her face Andy could tell that she had long since realized that he had been lying, and was now just happy he was being honest with himself and others. Or at least, that's what Andy thought it meant.

"I will always be by your side Senpai," She said as she went over and hugged him.

As Andy began crying tears of joy once more at this, he looked back at everything that had brought him to this point again. And he decided, that yeah it really was all, "Worth it."

Xxx

A/N: Man, this was a fucking emotional rollercoaster of a chapter. And this will be only other crossover, no other ones. Though I've been planning this shit since chapter 20. And as I've already told Passive this Nep's last and only appearance in story.

If you like this or any other of my stories you can donate to my P A Treon. com (Slash) StreamingViking and read commissioned stories


	105. The Second Master

"Sounds like someone just went through an entire arc of character development in five minutes," Hans said as the young author approached the group after emotions had calmed down a bit.

"Hey, cut me some slack man, that was at least a good twenty minutes." Andy jokingly complained.

"At the very least, you have progressed as a person. So this is the newest Master?" He asked as his eyes landed on Ritsuka.

"Sup, the name is Ritsuka Fujimaru, and who might you be small child with a disturbingly deep adult voice?" Ritsuka asked in response.

"This is Hans Christian Andersen," Mash introduced the author to Ritsuka with a happy face.

"The author?" He asked.

"Yes, and the best one here."

"You wouldn't know a good plot if it hit you in the face!" Came the shout from Shakespear, who was among the sea of Servants that filled the Dining Hall.

"Have you guys considered doing a collab? I hear they can turn out pretty good sometimes." Andy half-yelled at the authors.

"When he admits that I am the superior one," The said at the same time.

Hans cleared his throat before he spoke again. "So, now that Mr. Fujimaru is here, what is the plan for him? For it did take Andy quite a bit of time to amass this many Servants." He turned his attention towards Da Vinci. "For I assume his Master potential is on par with Andy's own?"

"It is," The Caster responded. "And yes Andy has summoned many, many Servants, a little bit too many and he can't tend to all of you. So, I wanted to propose some move their contracts to Ritsuka, especially those who only have 'working relationship with' Mr. Bloodaxe and Raikou, as you two are in the negative when it comes to it."

"Sad but true," Andy added. "I've been working on a list of these ever since Leo brought it up, actually, since while it would limit who I personally could deploy, I usually stick with certain ones anyway. On that note, I'm not giving you any of the Caster's we have right now, Ritsuka. They're _waay_ too useful."

"That's fine dude I don't want to demand any from you like they are trading cards, I would just be acting like a jackass if I did that," His fellow teen responded.

"I knew I made the right choice picking you first. You just had a good vibe to you the first time we met. Glad to know you are an actual good guy." Andy said, relieved. "I am willing to entertain requests, by the way. I'm betting you have a few Servants you've been thinking about summoning, right?"

"I do, so should we ask them to see if they are willing?" He asked. "But you mentioned Raikou, who is that?"

"Minamoto-no-Raikou. Boss of Kintoki, as in yes, _that_ Sakata Kintoki." Andy said.

And Andy saw Ritsuka's eyes turn into sparkling stars at that. "Really? That is awesome I grew up on their stories alongside Ushiwakamura's, is he here too?" He asked.

"Ushi is here, but is not available for transfer. She's just too damn reliable." Andy said, making an X with his arms in the 'universal' sign for 'no.'

"Ahhh, wait… you said she? History has lied to me once again," he cried fake tears in fake despair.

"There, there," Da Vinci said as she patted his back. "I've got four Summon Tickets, so you can go for two each later if you want."

"Summon? So we get to play the Gacha?" He asked as his mood returned to normal.

Andy snorted. "It's a bit different from a Gacha, since these are real people who only answer when they want to. Or you use a really good catalyst, either/or." He said with a shrug. "I've got a fragment from the Tower of Babylon if you want to use that, but I personally can't because if I do, Gilgamesh might burst through time and space to kick my ass."

"Won't need to as I can turn back into my adult-self if needed," Gil responded.

"Same difference, I'd still get my ass kicked into oblivion," Andy said nonchalantly.

"That is correct, though I will say the form your Persona has taken is appropriate, I almost expected Atlas, but Ahriman does fit you."

"Says the little shit who can see the future," Andy said, tousling Gil's hair.

"That is true but is not a hundred percent reliable thing. Though I am a bit concerned over the fact that the Crawling Chaos of man's Shadow made it, so you were here, but I assume Philemon goated him into it, to have a Wildcard be present to ensure humanity did not end, as only the Shadow can take actions outside of the collective unconsciousness," The king exposited a bit.

"That does sound concerning, but too much stuff just happened for me worry about something like that right now," Andy said, tapping his head. "Too much emotion in one day mean me no think good no more."

"Should probably get a brain scan for that if that is the case," Roman joked. "But I think you should go ahead and do some summons and afterward sort out the whole, who gets who business. In the meantime, I am going to check over Mash's medical data. I trust Irisviel's work, but I just want to make sure." The doctor bade everyone a good day as he left the Dining Hall.

"Boss is probably right; the sooner we summon the new folks, the more time you'll have to bond with them. Which, to reiterate, is important because they are still people." Andy said, lecturing his junior.

"Why does it feel like I am back in kindergarten?" Ritsuka asked with a trollish smile on his face.

"Tut tut." Andy tsked, putting an arm around Ritsuka's shoulder. "This isn't kindergarten, it's the Chaldea Crash Course Community College. Your schedule includes such helpful subjects as 'Summoning 1: An introduction' and 'How to Save the World 101'." He said with a matching smile.

"College already? Damn here, I thought I would have to complete my third year of High School first. Guess I got to skip a year thanks Senpai," He gave the most mocking grin in response with a thumbs up attached.

"The end of the world leads to some pretty early graduations, I've found." Andy joked, before his expression turned serious. "But you will actually be getting a crash course on all this stuff from someone whose been doing it for almost a year. Starting with your first summon."

Xxx

"Circle has been prepared, Senpai," Mash said with a happy tone.

"Alright, so now all you need to do is channel your prana through the ticket and into the circle. You know how to do that, right, Ritsuka?" Andy asked, having told Ritsuka as much about summoning as possible on the way down and while Mash set it up.

"I do, I did manage to get in a little bit of training before getting Team America'd," He said as he held the golden ticket in his hand.

Ritual did its usual thing as the Servant was summoned and a few seconds later announced itself. "Servant Lancer, Gareth of the Knights of the Round at your service Master," Gareth continued. "Is big bro Gawain present?"

"Sir Gawain is not present, Sir Gareth," Mash stated.

"Huh? Galahad, is that you? Ah, were you actually a girl this entire time?" She asked in great shock.

"No, no my name is Mash, Sir Galahad is just lending me his powers,"

"That sounds exactly like him."

"Well, it's nice to meet you Gareth, the name is Ritsuka, and I hope we can get along," Ritsuka greeted his newly summoned Servant.

"I hope so too, Master," She said as she went over to his side. "So, what now?"

"Well, now is when he summons another Servant. Who knows, he might even get Sir Gawain." Andy added, not-so-subtly reminding Ritsuka to summon more. "Afterwards, you and your new Master will tour the facilities, get to know each other, and you'll be able to pick a room."

"Cool, I hope it's more of my fellow knights."

"Well, we already have our Majesty wandering the halls of Chaldea, along with Sir Mordred, and Sir Lance-." Mash cut herself off before she managed to finish the sentence.

"It's okay Sir Mash, I've already forgiven Sir Lancelot for being responsible for my death, I do not blame him," She said with a much more Knightley tone than the happy one she had been talking in before.

"Okay, going to unpack that later, now let me summon another one," Ritsuka said, quickly disrupting the dense atmosphere that had filled the Summoning Chamber.

"Hello there I am the Assassin you've summoned the name is Yan Qing, my fists are ready to tear into your enemies," Yan Qing announced himself.

"And I think I've just caught a little of the gay, anyway the name is Ritsuka Fujimaru, and I am your Master," Ritsuka introduced himself to the newly summoned Assassin.

"Well, you look like someone who can handle himself in a fight, I can accept you as my new Lord," Yan Qing responded.

"Alrighty then!" Andy said, clapping his hands together. "You three go explore the facilities, get to know each other, have some fun. Ritsuka, that bag I gave you earlier has the wristbands for your new Servants. We'll go over the contract-transfer thingy tomorrow after I talk it over with mine." He said, shooing them out of the summoning room. Ritsuka telling him they would talk later, and he also heard Yan Qing being ecstatic over getting his room, calling this a luxury vacation in terms of summonings already.

"So, Senpai, are you ready now?" Mash asked.

"You betcha Kouhai," Andy said with a smile before throwing caution to the wind and doing a double summon, hoping that if two were summoned this time simultaneously he wouldn't have to deal with more Buddha's messing with him for character development.

"Summoned as a Saber, Jason captain of the Argonauts is here to bring you an assured victory."

"Servant Rider, Queen- Oh, it's you, you exploding asshole," Medb cursed as her eyes landed on Andy.

"Would your opinion of me change if I told you that I have literally no grudge against you and had actually rooted for you before I'd met Cu whenever I read your story, Medb?" Andy asked, hopefully. Medb hadn't really done anything morally repulsive (that he was aware of) and had 'just' tried to conquer it, and considering who's summons he'd accepted before that wasn't much of a big deal these days.

That seemed to catch the Queen of Connacht off guard, as she started to blush heavily. "Well, I am still mad, cause you embarrassed me with that tactic," She sputtered.

"I can help work off some of that anger later, if you like," Andy said nonchalantly.

"Oh, my to think you would offer yourself like that to me? Do you think you have the stamina of seven Ulster and Connacht men?"

"...Y'know, I was talking about a massage, but yes, actually, I think I do, because my boyfriend is Astolfo of the Twelve Paladins," Andy said proudly, taking offense to that.

"I'll take the massage actually," She responded, ignoring the rest of his words.

"Hey, are you ignoring me if so I might as well leave," Jason commented, getting rather fed up with being ignored.

"Oh, sorry, Jason, wasn't so much ignoring you as knowing that a hero who led the Argonauts would probably have a lot of patience when it comes to dealing with rowdy folks," Andy said. "Speaking of, you don't know who I am, correct?"

"I have patience when it comes to my fellow heroes, but you were the one who summoned so at least acknowledge my presence, and no, I just know that you are my Master," He responded with an annoyed tone. "Did you have a run-in with another version of me? If so I am impressed you survived if Heracles was by my side."

"Archer Heracles, in fact. Took the actual Ark of the Covenant to stop him," Andy added. "And good, the other you was a raging asshole, which I _hope_ is because of the Demon Pillar that was manipulating him." He not-so-subtly said.

"As much as don't want to admit, I do have a habit of being fooled by beings of that kind of power, must have promised to fulfill my dream and so that me would have gotten very desperate to do anything to accomplish that goal," He said. "But that is not relevant at all, we are now crewmates to onboard this ship, so I hope we can work together to reverse what has happened for if there is no human history I could never have my kingdom."

"I suppose that is true," Andy said as he checked Jason's stats with his Stat-o-Vision, and then also checked Medb's too once he realized he never got the chance to do so.

[Spoiler=Jason's Stat Sheet]

True Name: Jason

Class: Saber

Master: Andy Murphy

 **Parameters:**

Strength: C

Endurance: B

Agility: B+

Mana: D

Luck: A+

Noble Phantasm: B++

 **Skills:**

Magic Resistance: B

Riding: B

The Sought After Golden Fleece: -

Insight in the Jaws of Death: A

The Far Off Sea Route Conquered with My Companions: B++

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Astrapste Argo: The Dazzling Ship that Splits the Heavens(Anti-Army): B++

[/spoiler]

[Spoiler=Medb's Stat Sheet]

True Name: Medb

Class: Rider

Master: Andy Murphy

 **Parameters:**

Strength: E

Endurance: E

Agility: B

Mana: C

Luck: EX

Noble Phantasm: A+

 **Skills:**

Riding: A

Magic Resistance: B

Golden Rule(Body): A

Queen's Discipline: A

Alluring Nightingale: C

 **Noble Phantasm:**

Chariot My Love: My Dear Iron Chariot(Anti-Army): B+

My Red Mead: My Dear Honey Alcohol(Anti-Army): C

Conchobar My Love: My Dear Future Vision(Anti-Unit): C

Fergus My Love: My Dear Rainbow Sword(Anti-Army): A+

[/spoiler]

"So, Jason, I can figure out what the Fleece does, but what do your other two skills and your Noble Phantasm do?" Andy asked, a little confused why a Saber would have a ship as his only Noble Phantasm.

"So, you wish for me to explain my glorious abilities? Very well, I shall. My second skill obviously my ability to gain insight to escape a predicament that would result in my death. I dislike this skill as the knowledge only comes when my life is in danger. My third is a sub-species of Charisma, one meant to command rowdy heroes into following orders. As for my Noble Phantasm it allows me to summon Shadow Servants of those that served aboard my ship, and the more righteous our position in battle is the stronger they will be. But I usually let Heracles handle all the heavy lifting."

"What kind of Greek Hero are you? Do you do nothing of your own?" Medb asked.

"Of course, I do? Their victories are mine, my skills lie in handling such heroes, but do not underestimate me Chiron still taught me Pankration," He stated with pride. "And my sword skills are not too dull either, though I have greater ability with a spear… Seriously why am I even a Saber?"

"Wait, all the Argonauts?" Andy asked, excitedly. There had been _quite a few_ powerhouses on that ship throughout its journey. Even Shadow Servants of them would be fantastic.

"Of course from Heracles to even that damn Asclepius," He said the last name with a shutter. "Of course magical energy expenditure goes up the more are summoned."

"Still, that's a wonderful ability to have," Andy said with a grin as he went through his mind of all the Argonauts, before remembering something _very important_. "Oh, Jason, almost forgot, the fully grown version of Medea is here. You are not to be within viewing distance of her without my or her express, explicit permission." He said sternly. "I'll put an app on your armband to alert you whenever she's approaching that range, because she's likely to kill you, and I'm likely to let her."

At that, Jason's face went deathly pale. "Thank you, Master, I would very much like to avoid my ex-wife."

"What a pansy," Medb commented. "Though considering it is Medea, that is a rather apt reaction."

"Pft. As if you wouldn't kill Conchobar yourself if you could." Andy said. "Speaking of, unless the version of the Ulster Cycle I got was _waay_ off the mark, what's with the phrasing of the Noble Phantasm with his name on it?"

"As much as I despise the man, I was still married to him and was my 'love,' it was just about my own emotional status, I would have Gae Bolg too. And that is true I would string him up after I dried him up," She said with a sinister smile. Andy could only imagine what kind of perverse torture was going on inside her head, and the image was nasty. And yet he couldn't blame her for it.

"Ah, that makes sense. I suppose that means the 'Fergus' one means you have Caladbolg, but what do your other two Noble Phantasms do?" Andy asked.

"My Chariot is mobile Reality Marble pulled by my bulls that entraps men and where I proceed to ride them until death. My mead with brainwash anyone to become my loyal puppets, so watch what you drink Master," She said with a teasing wink as she clasped her riding crop.

Andy's brow furrowed. "Only men?" He asked, not really minding too much about the 'mead' thing since he wasn't allowed within 10 feet of an open alcoholic beverage yet.

"It sadly doesn't have any toys, so I just kill the women after I get them, and animals takes too much training," She simply responded.

"Master, I have to ask you, is this woman one of my Gods?" Jason said with a disturbed face as he looked at Medb after what she had just said.

"Close enough to one," Andy said back quietly, before addressing Medb again. "So, is it one of your skills then that produces those soldiers you used against us in America?"

"It is an unlisted one," She answered.

"And does that work with hybrids?" Andy asked, eyes narrowing.

"Anything really, they just gain the physical abilities of their 'father,'" She said.

"And how long can you, quote-unquote, 'hold them in'? Or do you have to make them right away?" Andy asked, eyes glimmering with the possibility of an instant army.

"Indefinitely, it just costs a lot of magical energy as I am producing 'homunculi with Servant Parameters.' I was only able to produce that army in America due to having the Grail."

"Mhm, I see, I see," Andy said, thinking it over. "So really, all we'd need to do is find a nice enough leyline… or I could even use the M.E.S.S. if need be…" He pondered, before shaking his head. "Well, anyway, I'd like to test that ability out a bit. Is there anything else you actually need to do it?"

"Nothing else," She happily responded.

"Well, then we should test it right away. Jason, here's your armband, head straight for an unmarked room, and don't go down a single floor beneath that if you don't want to run into Medea. Medb, follow me, we have work to do!" Andy said as he tossed the armband to Jason, the stupor of [s]magic[/s] SCIENCE! Overwhelming him for a moment.

Xxx

 _June 13th_

"Okay, so how do we do the whole transfer, Servant?" Ritsuka asked as he sipped from his water bottle. The two of them had just finished a training session together with Da Vinci, working them to figure out what his Stand did, and what his Persona could do.

"Ah, right, Da Vinci gave me instructions yesterday on how to do it. I've gathered up 20 of the Servants I thought would be the best fit for you for now, and so that you don't get overwhelmed with suddenly having 50-some." Andy said as he called those 20 forth. "You basically just need to manually forge a Servant Contract with each of them, and I need to Void the one I have. I've already talked it over with most of them, and they seemed pretty receptive."

"We are, and he definitely seems like less of a buzzkill than you Andy, you didn't have any fun with my event," Nobu said as she went over to Ritsuka. "Oda Nobunaga, Demon King of the Sixth Heaven," She proclaimed.

"Well, definitely doesn't match the art, but I've seen enough anime where you're a girl, so doesn't really shock me that you actually are one," Ritsuka said as he scratched the back of his neck. "Well, let's be friends Nobu."

"Definitely a more fun guy, now let's be Stand buddies," She said as they completed their contract.

"Wait, you got a Stand?"

"Eh, more like I make my Reality Marble into one," She said.

"Ah, okay. Now then, who wants to go next?" He asked.

Xxx

"I have to ask, is Romulus a Pillar Man?" Ritsuka asked after he finished contracting with the twenty Servants. The two of them, alongside Mash, in the lounge playing the Game of Life. "Matches the pictures they have of them and Santana."

"No, he _glimmers_ in the sunlight, but we beat him, so he's neither type of Pillar Man," Andy said.

"Ah, okay, so your turn," Ritsuka said. "Though the biggest shock of them all was Nero, I did not expect Shortstack Roman Emperor."

"Yeah, for some reason, everyone is really, really, _really_ short, and if they aren't, they are _massive_. There's like, close to zero normal-sized Servants." Andy exaggerated only slightly.

"Yeah, that seems like an accurate statement," He responded. "Well, at least Mash here is normal-sized."

"Yeah, but Mash is a living person. Hell, for all we know, she might even grow now." Andy said with a smirk towards his Kouhai. There had been much (gentle) teasing about their height difference in the past.

"Though probably not in the way she expects," Ristuka grinned, getting a punch on the arm and a 'No cool' from Andy.

Which caused Mash to blush heavily at what he was implying.

"Hey, don't get mad, you set up the line?" He said pointedly with a finger for emphasis. "I just seized the opportunity."

" _Never_ make lewd comments about Mash, do you understand?" Andy said, actual anger evident in his face. "I will remind you that, in addition to myself, Sir Lancelot as a Berserker is here, and he is rather protective of her as well."

"And it feels like I never left," He said utterly unfazed by Andy's words.

"Senpai, don't be like that; he didn't mean anything malicious by it," Mash interjected. "And it's not like you're any better when it comes to others."

"I have no idea what you're talking about, Kouhai. Unlike _some people_ , I either keep it classy or accidentally blunder my way through innuendo, thank you very much." Andy said, faux-affronted.

Which resulted in Fou smacking his chin. The little critter not believing a word of what was said.

"Oh, so now you're betraying me too, Fou?" Andy decried dramatically. "It looks like all I have left is myself and my wife and children!" He said, motioning towards his car on the board.

"Fou," He said as he went over to sit on Mash's shoulder.

"So, do you have any advice for missions, cause Da Vinci wants to send me on one test out my capabilities as a Master before we go to the next big Singularity?" Ritsuka asked after a few more turns, and it looked like team Mash and Fou were going to win.

"Oh, well, first of all, figure out what your team can do before you go in." Andy started, sorting through his own experience to figure out what to prevent. "Communication is important too, so make sure you get used to Telepathy. Oh, and despite what it's like in a Stand Battle, with all the trickery and thinking and stuff, overwhelming brute force can and will save the day sometimes, but don't forget your roots. I did tell you about how we used the Ark of the Covenant as a bludgeoning weapon to kill an Archer Heracles, right?"

"You did, and I think that was r/madlads moment if there ever was one. But I hear you, a lot less [Around the Stars] and more [Star Platinum] when it comes to fighting," He said with a nod.

"...I'm guessing the former is one that you're group had to fight personally then?" Andy said upon realizing he didn't recognize the stand.

"It was, the name didn't really fit, but it was an ability that turned a segment of reality basically into an Mc Escher Painting, you try having to deal with Lovecraft style non-euclidean geometry."

"I'd rather not, thank you," Andy said, knowing damn well to not think too hard about those kinds of things anymore. "But that reminds me, you were dating Shizuka before all this, right? I'm really interested to hear about what happened with her, since last I saw on the show she was still just a baby."

"She had a relatively normal Childhood though a bit isolated due to the effect of her Stand activating on inopportune times while she was growing up, and the fact she was a Joestar," He responded. "I met her during the summer of 2016, while my family was on vacation in the US, and we hit it off cause I didn't know who she actually was until later. But things ended up happening, and we and a few others ended up going on a road trip across the US for most of the year fighting Stand Users that used their stand to accomplish crimes. Yes we were basically Mystery Incorporated," He admitted.

"But did you have a dog, though."

"No, we had a Penguin."

Andy opened his mouth, then closed it, and simply nodded and moved on. Stupid stand ass bullshit could wait for another day when he wasn't aching all over from extensive training and, for lack of a better word, _experimenting_.

A few minutes later, the conversation caught up again when Mash reached the retirement area and, after some quick maths for Ritsuka and Andy, who were close behind, won the game. "OF course, my Kouhai would win at Life. Makes total sense." Andy said with a massive grin.

"Well, from what I've heard already, you do have a habit of getting bodied," Ritsuka said.

Andy shrugged. "Games are games, man. The only thing I really care about 'winning' nowadays is the war for humanity, and you being here means that now we just need _one_ of us to succeed." He said with a grin.

"Thank you for the praise Man-Emperor of Mankind… or is that Gilgamesh?" He asked.

"It's Gilgamesh," Andy said with no hesitation. "Oh, but speaking of 40k, you interested in body-mods? Not sure what would work best for you in particular, but the Meeting of the Minds could probably whip up something that synergizes with how you work. Or at least give you something like the M.E.S.S., so you have a back-up for mana."

"I'm… kinda intrigued," He responded.


	106. From Birthdaying to Crusading

June 18th

"Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday, dear Senpai, happy birthday to you," Mash sang as she entered Andy's room.

"Aww, thanks, Kouhai," Andy said, looking rather happy.

"You're welcome Senpai, here is your gift from me," She said as she handed over a box. Andy opened it up, and he saw that is was another necklace like she had given on Christmas, but this one was an elaborately designed cross.

" _Wow_. This is...this is beautiful." Andy said truthfully as he looked at the necklace. "Did you make this, Mash?"

"Well," She pressed her fingers together. "I got help from Da Vinci in making it, but I made the design," She stated.

"That's still incredible, Kouhai. Thank you." Andy said, giving Mash a hug. "Though I think I might have too many necklaces now."

"Ahh, sorry," She apologized.

"I'm just joking silly, no need to apologize," Andy said as he released her from the hug. "Unless you made it a necklace specifically so that I would have too many. Then I'll accept that apology." He continued joking.

And now Mash just looked like a tomato. "H-how about we go to the Dining Hall, everyone is probably waiting for you there."

"Just lemme put this on first," Andy said as he added the necklace to the many things around his neck. "Alright, now I'm good to go."

And so the two of them walked to the Dining Hall like they did most mornings, and as they entered the Dining Hall. Saw that it had been decorated to commend the celebration with a huge banner of the rather massive cake that Emiya had made.

The Servants standing over to the side with a smile of satisfaction upon his face at his work.

"Congratulations, Andy, you're now one step closer to death," Da Vinci commented. "So, how does it feel to be nineteen?"

"Basically, the same as when I was 18!" Andy said with a thumbs up and then shrugged. "Not much to gauge any real differences off of now anymore."

"True, you're not a Pokemon, so hitting a new level doesn't make you evolve, anyway time to blow out the candles."

Andy did precisely that after a 'stunning' rendition of Happy Birthday by the assembled servants (the music was good, since it was Mozart, but even he couldn't keep all of them in sync, or tune). "Y'know, this has gotta be the biggest cake I've ever seen at anything other than a wedding."

"Technically, it is one; I just made it more birthday like," Emiya responded from his position.

"I suggested one where I jump out naked, but it was denied," Astolfo said with a pout as he glomped Andy's side.

"Of course, it was!" Roman shouted. "I didn't want to traumatize the children, and you can save that stuff for the bedroom like adults, use cream if you have too."

"Oh my!" Came the response from Jeanne, who had been standing by the doctor's side.

"Boss… shut up." Andy said as he hugged Astolfo to his side, blushing intensely at the consecutive imagery and embarrassing comments.

"Well, it is my job, now let's just have fun for today cause in two days you'll be going to the sixth Singularity."

"Already?" Came the complaining tone from Ritsuka, who just looked dead tired. "But I just came back last night, also happy birthday dude."

"Ritsuka, how was your first mission? You look like shit." Andy asked and stated the obvious.

"I feel like it too, and it was a success if that was what you were asking, and I thought the stuff we used to was exhausting. Freaking Vampire Princess," He complained.

"That is why I am giving you two days to rest and recover, and besides you're a Stand User, you guys are made out of much sterner stuff than normal people with all the abuse you can take," Roman responded.

"I think I should report that comment to HR?"

"Sorry, we don't got one."

"Don't worry too much Ritsuka, once we fix all this, you can report to the new HR allll your misgivings about our Boss," Andy said with a wide grin. "You might even get to revoke his Magi Mari privileges."

"Hey, don't bring her into this!"

"Take it, easy, boys," Martha interjected as she stepped in between them.

"Hey, don't worry about it Marth, I know not to raise my hand against someone weaker than me." Andy 'assured,' grinning.

"You wanna catch these hands," Ritsuka taunted as he went into a stereotypical combat pose. "I show you that my Crush 40 is the best thing ever."

"I think he is talking about me, Fujimaru," Roman interjected.

"Yeah, I _was_ , but now I do wanna fight. That can be your birthday present to me, Ritsu-chan." Andy taunted.

"Sure, 'cause I actually don't have anything for you, also don't call me that," Saying the last part with a deadpan expression.

"Good, good, but let's have some cake first, then fight," Andy said, motioning towards the cake, Emiya was cutting up and was making Andy very hungry.

Xxx

"Okay, you two, let's have a fair and clean match," Martha said, having been chosen as the judge.

Neither moved, both eyeing up the other, and then Andy spoke. "So, how we gonna do this? You wanna come at me, me come at you, or we both come together at the same time?" Andy asked.

"Dude, you're weird," Ritsuka responded as darkness surged around his body and formed into a black coat with a large zipper on it. "But I say we go until first blood," He said as he fell over backward into his own shadow and sunk into the ground disappearing from view.

"First blood sounds good," Andy said as his left arm turned into cannon mode as he made sure it was slotted with fire rune-bullets. "Its a reference, I'll see if we have the series in the archive." He added, before firing a shot at the largest shadow in the room, causing the flames to blossom out and fuck with all the shadows in the room for a bit.

"Argh fuck you're a dick for doing that, you made the place like fifty degrees hotter," Ritsuka shouted as he popped up from behind Andy, exiting from his shadow and delivering a hard blow to his back.

Andy let himself tumble forward with the blow, and jumped back to his feet to see Ritsuka had already vanished. "Hmm. Fuck that noise." Andy said, running enough off a current through his legs to diminish his shadow as much as possible. "So, Ritsu-chan, I'm pretty sure you can hear me right now, what was it like to smash an invisible puss?" He said, trying to draw Ritsuka out of the shadows by aggravating him.

"Honestly, you have to better than that; I've heard worse trash talk," Ritsuka responded, his voice exiting from the various shadows still present. "And that was the first thing she said."

Andy grunted a little as Ritsuka's fist collided with a certain part of his anatomy. "Note for the future, one of the mods I got means I can turn off my pain receptors down there." He then stomped heavily on the ground with his right foot, which had been sparking, even more, electrocuting the floor.

"Bzzt!" Ritsuka cried out as he launched himself out of the shadow. "I think you won this time," He said as his body twitched on the floor.

"Yeah, sorry. That's what happens when you go up against an opponent whose full capabilities you don't know who _does_ know yours, and isn't stupid enough to tell them to you mid-battle." Andy said as he helped Ritsuka to his feet, turning himself into a grounding rod for a moment during their contact to reduce the charge in Ritsuka, which didn't kill Ritsuka because magic lightning was thankfully bullshit. "That's something you'll have to get used to, not knowing how your opponent fights or what with. That's why I keep suggesting 'brute force,' but as you can feel, thinking is still good."

"I said this time, cause next time I will win, but your right brute force is sometimes the best solution. But sadly, I don't really have that, kinda, sure Crush 40 can allow me to hit a hell of a lot harder than normal, but it only works while I am in a shadow or _in a shadow_ ," He stated. "So, what I did with you is my normal tactic."

"Yeah, I'll admit, I really had to think outside the box with this, so it's a pretty good tactic," Andy admitted. "Though, I gotta ask, why does it make you look like a part of Organization XIII? Please tell me that's just because your a nerd and not because that's real too."

"I don't think they are, but if you exist in this universe, they probably do in some variant, but yes, it's because I am a nerd. Shadows are malleable; they can take any form of something 'wearable,' so I just shaped it to look like this," He explained.

"You two can discuss powers later now, go and continue the party you've still got presents Andy," Martha said, and at that Nightingale ran in, grabbed Ritsuka, and carried him out.

"Presents?" Andy said excitedly, ignoring Ritsuka's confused cry for help, knowing Nightingale would take good care of him.

"Did that hit too your nads affect your other head? You've still got birthday presents that need to be opened, you moron," She said as she threw a package into his face. "From me to you, it's a bottle of seriously enhanced holy water use it when encountering powerful undead."

"I _knew_ you could make holy water!" Andy exclaimed, as his early assumptions were finally proven correct.

"I can, it is just difficult as a Rider despite being the Saint of Water, if I were a Ruler… Well, not that it matters," She responded as she walked away from him.

"Neat," Andy said as he stored the holy water away for later before practically sprinting back to the dining hall as he realized/remembered it was an actual birthday party. He arrived back at the hall in a matter of minutes and, after taking a moment to calm his breathing, so he didn't look desperate, re-entered the dining hall.

"So, old Master, did you and new Master have fun beating your bodies against each other getting all hot and sweaty?" Drake asked as just chugged a jug. "Where is he, by the way?"

"I didn't even break a sweat, and Nightingale took him to deal with his injuries. Turns out humans being electrocuted, even if its a controlled shock, can be dangerous." Andy said with a shrug. "Who knew?"

"Everyone not you apparently," Came the comment from Medb.

"Well, hey, if it isn't my new favorite queen. Did you have any cake?" Andy asked.

"I did thankfully it is not cheesecake."

"So, all cheese is a no-no with you?" Andy asked, a bit confused about the boundaries of the issue.

"Yes, getting killed by an old piece of cheese soured me to most dairy products, all cheeses included," She said with a grimace as she ate her cake with dignified grace.

"That doesn't include ice cream, does it?" Andy said, a look of mounting horror on his face at the idea of no dairy like that.

"No, no, just pure vanilla, of both kinds."

Andy was confused for a moment before his face lit up as he remembered the experimentation they'd done for her soldiers. "Gotcha." He said simply, brain stalling and unable to think of anything else in response.

"Hmm, now excuse me… Cu dear, could you feed me?" She said as she went over to the group of dogs who startled to scramble.

"Well, this place never gets boring," Drake chuckled.

"Ain't that the truth," Andy said, shaking his head.

Xxx

June 20th

"I hope you two have refreshed yourself enough?" Roman asked Andy, and Ritsuka entered the Command Room.

"Ask me tomorrow morning, maybe?" Ritsuka responded as he drowned himself in an espresso.

"Tip-top shape as always, boss," Andy said, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed and ready to go. "I feel like I could take down a Demon Pillar myself right now." He exaggerated.

"You probably could with that Persona of yours," Roman responded.

"Maybe." Andy half-agreed, not really wanting to test it. "So, where and when is it this time, Boss?"

"I'll get to that, but first, there are going to be some differences this time around due to the inclusion of Ritsuka," He stated.

"Why is that?" Mash asked as she stood by Andy's side.

"It involves the distribution of energy really, we can only send so much to the Singularity," Da Vinci explained. "So now you two have to share it. While you can still take six Servants with you, three of them have to stay astralized, so now you have to switch out with your 'back row party members' if you want a comparison."

"So I get two of my choice and Mash then. A fair trade-off for not having to do it all myself." Andy said with a shrug. "Is that all?"

"In regards to combat going forward, yes it, however, this concerns the Singularity itself, I actually discovered its coordinates before I found America's," Roman stated. "But when I observed it, it quite simply disappeared before reappearing, and disappearing again, and it did that a few times. And now it has been not going since the beginning of June, so I think it is safe to enter right now."

"That is why we have given this Singularity the rating of EX simply for its uniqueness, and that is why I will be joining you and this expedition," Da Vinci stated.

"Ayy, having a genius on board with us means we won't have to worry about when our comms inevitably fail or are blocked like every other mission," Andy said.

"Yes, that does have a tendency to happen," Roman admitted.

"Well, I will be glad to have you onboard Da Vinci-chan," Ritsuka stated.

"My what a charmer, and thank you for what you got for me. Now, as for where we are going, Romani?"

"Right, hmm, hmm. Today our local will be Jerusalem, 1273 A.D." He answered.

"Oh, the crusades?" Andy asked, before it clicked what that meant. "Oh god, the _crusades_."

"Kinda, this should be after the ninth's crusade was over, but that probably makes it easy to guess what the thing that is causing the damage is that the crusade didn't stop," Da Vinci said.

"Hmm. Well, I'm gonna guess that literal crusaders won't like me very much. Ritsuka, you'll probably have to be the face of the operations this time, if they have any actual holy types on their side that can sense demons." Andy pondered. "Ritsuka, pick your team. I've already got one in mind."

"Already decided on who yesterday and went over it with everyone," He responded.

"Then, if you're both ready, let's go," Da Vinci said with a cheer, the living folk going on the mission joining her.

Xxx

"Argh, what the hell is this! Where the hell did you land us, Romani!" Da Vinci cursed as they had all been Rayshifted into the middle of a freaking sandstorm.

"Argh, fuck my eyes, Crush 40, everyone turn into spirit form for now," Ritsuka ordered his Servants as he called upon his Stand. "Also, is just me, or do you too have trouble breathing Andy?"

"Not breathing much right now, thank you!" Andy said from where he was holding Mash to his chest to protect her face, while his own was covered by the partially deployed Tenfold Shield's helmet. "We need to get the hell out of this storm!"

"It's not the storm that is making it hard to breathe for Ritsuka but is certainly a problem, but the mana concentration in the air is close to the Age of Gods, it should not be trouble right now, but I can help you later. Also, no communication with Chaldea, and I have to ask if this even Jerusalem for there should be no dessert like this nearby the city," Da Vinci stated.

"Let's worry about that when we aren't in a fucking sandstorm!" Andy said, mad not for his own sake but for everyone else, since Tenfold Shields could more than hold up to the storm. "Any ideas on which way to go to get out, or something to stop it, or _whatever_ would be appreciated!"

"I say just walk, direction does not matter," Da Vinci responded.

"Hey, guys, is it me, or do you see something in the distance?" Ritsuka asked.

And he was right while visibility was remarkably lowered due to the flying grains of sand he could see something approaching them. And it was something big.

"Oh, you have got to be kidding how is there something like that here?" Da Vinci asked the empty air as the creature got closer and now Andy could see the truck-sized creature clearly.

It was a Sphinx.

"Gareth, Yan Qing, Drac deploy!" Ritsuka shouted as the three Servants manifested and took up a combat stance in front of the Egyptian monster.

"I'll let you try this one yourself, Ritsuka!" Andy said as he and Mash began running to get out of the sandstorm. "Good luck, I'll be right on the edge of the storm!"

"You fucking asshole! Fine, I do it myself!" He shouted back. "Da Vinci, some backup!"

Andy and Mash tried to run through the sandstorm, but not even a minute later, they were stopped in their tracks by a dirk flying by his head.

In front of them was a familiar woman wearing a white-skull mask. Andy recognized it as one of the Hundred Persona's bodies. Who, of course, was backed up by a dozen bodies.

"Shit." Andy cursed under his breath at seeing them. "Hey, we don't actually want to fight, and I'm pretty sure we aren't enemies in the first place! Any chance we could resolve this peacefully? Or at least outside the storm?"

"Why should trust the words of one who is accompanied by one who is dressed like a knight of the Lion King," She stated.

"Me?" Mash asked pointing a finger at herself.

"Who else, has the Lion King made an alliance with the Sun King? Did he send you to retrieve his attendant?" She asked and Andy noticed that one of the more muscular male bodies was carrying a very chocolate-colored woman on his shoulder.

"Listen, lady, I have literally no idea who any of those people are! We literally just showed up in this place in the middle of this thrice-damned sandstorm, and would very much like to get out, and there's a sphinx attacking some of our comrades back there that I really should have helped with, but I hate this _fucking sand_." Andy said, as said sand managed to get in his mouth from the gap in his helmet, and he internally cursed that he hadn't deployed the full suit in order to not press Mash's face against the hard plates.

"The guardian beasts are already on the prowl, damn!" The Assassin cursed.

"Okay, what is going on here, Andy, and thank you for leaving us," Ritsuka said, now wearing a scarf and a pair of goggles. Da Vinci worked fast. The hood of his cloak down.

"Still working that out, and I told you you could do it," Andy replied.

"Just beat it up a little, and it ran away, couldn't kill because Divine Beast of the gods," He responded.

"Hey, you guys put that woman down," Gareth ordered, and all of the Assassin's eyes were on her and then proceeded to curse.

"Mission abandoned drop the target we're leaving now," The female body shouted, the body that was carrying the woman dropped her. And within seconds, the Hassan was gone. Which made sense as, from an explanation he had gotten from Cursed Arm, all Hassans had charms that allowed them to 'swim' through the wind.

"Huh, am I that intimidating?" Gareth asked.

"They said something about knights of someone called the 'Lion King', which given our time period I'd think is probably Richard the Lionhearted off his rocker or something. But that lady is with someone called the 'Sun King.' so we should probably take her with us and find shelter like, _now,_ " Andy said as he put together the pieces they had.

"I scanned the area, and I located a rock formation that can protect us from the storm," Da Vinci said as she pointed towards the direction.

"Great work Lady Da Vinci, Master I shall carry you, I can waste the energy," Drac said, and Ritsuka gave a nod in response.

"Fuma, sorry about this, please grab the advisor," Andy ordered as they made their way over to the formation Da Vinci had mentioned.

Thankfully it didn't take long for them to get there, and rocks were able to provide suitable cover at least they weren't being pelted in the face by sand.

"So, Master any idea who this chick is?" Yan Qing asked the only one of Ritsuka's Servants now out.

"No idea, but she is most definitely a beauty," He said as he looked at the woman propped up against the rock now untied.

"Keep it in your pants unless your gonna seduce info out of her," Andy said a bit harsher than he'd intended as he shook the sand out of his helmet.

"Well, let's wake her up and find out," Da Vinci said as she began to poke her with her staff.

"Hmm, Lord Ozymandias not so rough, they are not bunny ears but an artifact to communicate with the sky god," She moaned.

"Excuse me, miss," Andy said as he knelt down next to her to gently rouse her. "Are you alright? There is no 'Ozymandias' here."

"Huh?" She said as her eyes opened up and landed on Andy, her face immediately going red. "Wahh!" She screamed as she back away from Andy. "Who are you? Where am I, why am I not his Pharaoh's grace, you, you kidnapped me, didn't you?" She shouted and asked as she stood up.

"No, no, we ran into your actual kidnappers, and they dropped you and ran when they saw us," Andy said, hands up placatingly. "We're in the middle of a sandstorm, so we took you with us to this little refuge. We aren't holding you here."

"Why should I believe you, this is just a trick to get me to do make sandstorm go away, now you shall face the wrath of the incarnation of Horus the Pharaoh Nitocris shall-augh!" She shouted as Yan Qing bonked her on the head.

"Yesh, calm down, miss-over-dramatic," He said as the now named Nitocris rolled around on the sand in pain.

"Oh this is so humiliating I have truly failed his majesty I might as well just end my own life, so he doesn't have to waste energy doing it himself,"

"Okay, that went way to fast!" Ritsuka shouted. As he went over to her. "We didn't kidnap you; we aren't with the Lion King or the Hassans; we're from Chaldea," He explained.

That caused her to stop acting like a ball. "Chaldea, that means you must be the Masters that Lord Ozymandias mentioned? You fool, why did you not just say so?" She asked her personality, doing a one-eighty.

"Well, I didn't mention it because I thought you were a regular living person. And therefore would have no idea what it means, if I'm being honest," Andy said. Not mentioning that he usually didn't talk about Chaldea often anyway. "But your Lord, he knows of us?"

"Yes, he mentioned once a group of human Masters that were working to undo what has happened to Human History, and since you're a human accompanied by Servants, that must mean you. And I am Servant of the Caster Class such a thing should be obvious to even a peasant."

"She is a Servant Senpai, Nitocris was a Pharaoh in the 22nd century BC, famous for drowning all those that killed her brother within a sealed tomb." Mash exposited.

"I was rather proud of that plan,"

"And then committed suicide right after."

"Way to bring down the mood shieldy," Yan Qing quipped.

"Point is," Andy interjected in an attempt to steer the conversation back in the right direction. "If you know about us, does that mean you are trying to save or destroy human history?" He asked Nitocris.

"I follow the orders of the great Pharaoh," She simply responded. "And he does not care."

"Hmm, I think we should talk to Lord Ozymandias, he seems like a neutral man and might be able to give information about what is happening here in Jerusalem," Da Vinci suggested.

"Yeah, it looks like that's the best plan for now." Andy agreed.

"So Pharaoh Nitocris, might we seek an audience with his Majesty?" Da Vinci asked.

"Oh, and what makes you think you are worthy to stand before him, if you wish to have an audience with his greatness, you must face a test," She stated.

"And what that might that be oh, great and powerful Nitocris?" Ritsuka asked, which caused her to become as red as a tomato.

"Do not think such tricks will work on me," She sputtered. "Oh, great desert quell thy wind and now come forth great guardian Sphinx!" She chanted, and the sandstorm died on the spot, and from the sand came out another Sphinx this one looking more like the statue. "Your test is quite simple; you must kill this Sphinx."

"How!" Da Vinci shouted. "It is an Immortal Divine Beast!"

"I didn't say it was a fair one."

At that, Ritsuka summoned back Gareth and Vlad. "Plan?"

"Yeah, of course, I have a plan," Andy said immediately, before turning to the sphinx. "Oh, Mighty Sphinx, I beseech thee to make a concession! Combat shall prove nothing, but what greater test is there but a riddle?"

There was silence for a few seconds before the Sphinx responded by bitch, slapping him into the rock.

"Sorry, that only works on the original these are just manifestations of the God-King's power," Nitcocris informed him.

"That means its killable!" Andy said as he bounced back to his feet. "I knew my plan would work one way or the other! Joan, Jeanne, you're up!" He ordered.

"Kitty is going to get burnt!" The Alter shouted as she unleashed a firestorm that glassed the sand. But the Sphinx was unharmed. "Well, shit!"

"Didn't you hear the smart one? They might be less powerful, but they still possess the same abilities as the original; they are unable to be killed by mortal weapons."

"Then a divine arm should do the trick," A new male voice spoke. "Switch-on, shine my Silver Arm Airgetlam!" There was a flash of light, and the Sphinx vanished.

And in its place stood a knight with a silver arm.

Which was followed by a shout from Gareth. "Sir Bedivere, you're here!" She shouted in joy.

"How, how did you do that?" Nitocris shouted in shock.

"A gift from the court mage," He responded.

"I have. _So many questions_." Andy said as his brain short-circuited trying to put together all this new information with what he'd already gathered.

"Me too, buddy," Ritsuka said just as confused.

"But let's start with the simple one. Whose side are you on?"

"Chaldea, Lord Merlin sent me to assist you," He responded. "Sir Gareth, it pleases me to see your happy face," Said with a smiling face.

While ignoring the still dumbfounded Nitocris who just looked at the place where her Sphinx had been.

Xxx

A/N: And the best parts of this fic continues to mind fucking Passive.


	107. Knights in the Desert

"To, or not to sick the Medjed on you," Nitocris muttered as her mouth still hung slightly open.

"I would say not, since you _did_ tell us to kill your sphinx, especially since you didn't specify _who_ or _how_ and Sir Bedivere here appears to be on our side," Andy said, thinking quickly as he did _not_ want to have another ancient Egyptian god [s]card[/s] to deal with.

"Fine you win, I shall guide you to the Great Temple," She sighed as she leaned on her staff.

"Thank you for your generosity," Andy said with a nod, not wanting to anger the Caster any more.

"You should now follow me, for as long as you do, the desert will not harm you," She said as she turned around and began to walk.

The group quickly followed, and in the meantime, questioning was happening behind the female Pharaoh.

"Sir Bedivere, would you kindly explain _what the fuck_ is going on?" Andy asked the knight quietly, baffled as to how a Knight of the Round was running around with the arm of a Celtic god during the crusades, even with the 'Merlin did it' explanation.

"Which questions do you want answers to, Lord Andy?" Bedivere asked.

"First of all, how do you have the arm of Nuada Airgetlam?" Andy asked, as in his mind, that was the most pressing question.

"As I said it was given to me by Lord Merlin, he summoned me to the realm of Avalon as a Servant, but among them, I could be considered one of the weakest as I barely qualify as one. While I am three times greater than any knight among the Rounds, I was quite ordinary. I had nothing special to me. I don't even know why her majesty invited me to join their ranks," He spoke in a saddened.

"Ah, don't be like that Sir Bedivere, you were the heart of the team you made everyone's day brighter. For you were one of the few that has seen our King smile," Gareth said with a smile of her own, one guided towards her fellow knight.

"Thank you for your kind words Sir Gareth, but even so I am weak Servant, I do not even have a Noble Phantasm, only this silver arm technically serves as one," He said as he lifted up his mechanical appendage.

"Mhm." Andy hummed, eyeing said arm enviously for a moment. He'd known of Airgetlam since he was little, since it was basically the only divine prosthetic he'd ever heard of, and seeing it now, in person was cool, but it wasn't like he was going to tear off his own arm to have it. "I see. But _why_ did Marlin decide to send you in _now_? What's special about this one?" Andy asked, suspicion already rising based on the earlier reactions by the Hassans.

"He was very coy about it, but from what I was able to gather from his words someone called the Lion King has empowered the Servants under his command with something called 'Gifts,' and my arm has the power to sever that 'Gift' from them severely decreasing their power," He answered.

"Well, that's awfully convenient of him," Andy noted as he checked Bedivere's stats to confirm his words.

"Lord Merlin wishes for you to succeed in this endeavor, for he would be quite saddened if humanity was to vanish, and all their stories were to disappear."

"Nice words, but somehow I can hear the condescending tone in those words," Ritsuka commented.

"That is Sir Merlin for you, Master," Gareth responded.

"I still don't get how Merlin stole Airgetlam to give it to you, Sir Bedivere, but I am going to trust you for now," Andy said, still hung up over this. "Actually, I just had a great idea," Andy said, before swapping out the still-in-the-backline Georgios for Saber herself. "Hey, Tori, look who I found."

"Sir Bedivere?" She asked as her eyes landed on her knight.

"Your majesty!" He said in shock as he immediately took a knee. "I did not know that you had been summoned by this Master as well, though then I saw Sir Gareth, I thought that maybe you…" He trailed off.

"Rise my knight there is no need to bow before my any longer as Servants we are both now of equal standing," She stated as she held out her gauntleted hand.

The knight grasped it and raised himself up, and though now, he hilariously stood almost four heads taller than her.

Andy covered his mouth to smother the snicker at the height difference, transitioning into clearing his throat to hide it, mostly from Nitocris. "Ahem. Please feel free to catch up you two, but do remember the situation." He half-warned.

"Of course, mother," She responded.

There was a swishing sound as two heads immediately turned to look at their king at what she had just said.

"I shall explain later," Arturia said as they continued to walk.

"Of course my king," Came calm response from Bedivere while Gareth was imitating a fish.

"Now, if you're done fooling around now, look down and behold the Great Temple of his majesty, the Ramesseum Tentyris!" Nitocris said coming to a stop at a slope that leads down to the temple. And here they could see it, a massive temple complex that looked to be made out of a bunch of other temples.

"'Gaze upon my works and despair' indeed, damn," Andy said with a whistle as he looked over the complex from their viewpoint.

"I can see why he deserves the title of King of Construction, I can even see the Dendera, Karnak and Abu Simbel are a part of it. 'All temples past, present and future exist for my sake.' This is definitely a Noble Phantasm as two of those temples were made after his time," Da Vinci stated as she observed the complex.

Andy took another lookout at the temple complex and felt a bit of the 'despair' part he had just jokingly mentioned. "That _whole thing_ is his Noble Phantasm?"

"That is correct, Master of Chaldea, behold the great Pharaoh's power, now let us get down there, he is probably expecting us," Nitocris said.

They did precisely that, Andy planning an escape plan and route the whole way through in case this went south as he was expecting it to, internally cursing that he could no longer just bring five Servant Buster Calls at the drop of a hat, a side effect of bringing Ritsuka that he had overlooked. He also took the time to admire the architecture, since the place was legitimately beautiful.

Though to his surprise, actual humans were walking through the temple as they went through it; apparently they were native people that Ozymandias had taken as subjects to protect them from the Lion King, and so they were all walking a wide berth around their group even if Nitocris were leading them.

Though to make it worse, the place according to his Servants and Ritsuka's it sealed of their Noble Phantasms making them unusable. And Jeanne saying that the place was filled to the brim with Phantasmal Beasts acting as security.

So she suggested playing nice with the guy as her Revelation Skill was telling her that if they took a directly hostile action, they would be cursed to hell and back by Divine Authorities.

"Lord Ozymandias, I bring guests that seek an audience with you!" Nitocris stated as they entered the throne room, and upon a golden throne, sat the Pharaoh.

Andy's first unbidden thought upon laying eyes on the Pharaoh was 'oh god no he's hot, _shit,_ ' which just completely derailed his entire train of thought, and as such he quickly bowed in greeting and to hide his face.

"You're so noisy, Nitocris I was just in the middle of resting, and here you come with guests? Well, it seems that one knows proper respect. So you're the ones from Chaldea? Honestly, you being here is a surprise I had thought you perished during the fourth Singularity, but it seem the eyes of Ra can be wrong sometimes," The man spoke with the voice of Dio Brando.

"I have very much so survived, your majesty," Andy said. "Also, the stories of your countenance failed to capture the real deal." He said without thinking, his two thought processes of 'oh god he's hot' and 'be polite' mixing.

"Flattery will get you everywhere."

"Dude control your gay thoughts, though even I are having them. But to cut to the chase your Majesty, we're here for the Holy Grail so we ask of you to part with the knowledge of its location?" Ritsuka requested as he too took a bow.

"The Holy Grail, you say? You mean this?" He asked and in his hand, the golden cup appeared.

"The Grail!" Mash exclaimed.

"I will tell you this I will not part with it, for you are too late, far too late, if you had arrived six months, earlier this Grail would have been the source of the Singularity, the source of a never-ending crusade that would have become the seedbed for a Demon God to manifest," He stated.

"I get it the Crusaders summoned you didn't they?" Da Vinci asked. "But you betrayed them and established this territory for yourself converting it into 1000B.C. Egypt? A Singularity inside of a Singularity."

"My you are a smart and knowledgeable, one tell me your identity, Servant?"

"She is _the_ Renaissance (wo)man, Leonardo Da Vinci, the Ultimate Genius and the smartest person in the room at any given moment." Andy espoused for Da Vinci, not exaggerating in the slightest as far as he was concerned.

"Thank you for the praise and introduction Andy, though I will say that I am a teensy tiny bit less of a genius compared to you, your Majesty," Da Vinci said.

"Da Vinci? I did not expect that you were a woman, but I will say that your beauty is comparable to that of my Nefatari's own,"

"But let's get back on topic, if the Grail is no longer the source of the distortion of Human History what is?"

"That should be obvious the Lion King and the Holy City he established after he crushed the Crusaders," Ozymandias answered. "Though speaking of knight-." Ozymandias' words were cut off as his head slowly slid to the side of his neck before he quickly pushed it back into place. "..."

"Did his head just?" Ritsuka asked.

"As I was saying to think that I-." His words were again cut off as his head again started to slide off his neck, and once again pushed back into place.

"Uhm. Your Majesty, if you'd like, I could heal that for you?" Andy offered, weirded out about the whole 'head falling off' thing, but really he'd seen weirder. "A-Assuming, of course, that's happening because of an injury, I meant no disrespect if otherwise."

"Heal, what? There is nothing wrong with my neck and to insinuate as such is worthy of execution though I shall let it slide you are a peasant after all your eyes are not as acute as a falcon's," The Pharaoh proclaimed. "And now, where was I? Ah yes, speaking of knights. I was certainly not expecting to see the one who wields the Holy Sword here, though you're different from the one I encountered during that Grail War in Tokyo, gender being the obvious one," He stated with reminiscence, like it was of a memory of him having gone on a vacation.

"My apologies, your Majesty; thank you for your benevolence," Andy said with another bow. "Though, forgive my insolence, could you perhaps go back to the Lion King situation?" Andy asked, filing the 'Tokyo Grail War' thing away for later.

"What is there to address? He is the enemy you need to defeat, his city and sanctuary is located north-east of here in the wasteland he created as a result of his war against the Crusaders. Though you bringing her has brought me a good mood, I shall allow you to stay for the night and grant you safe passage through the desert," He generously stated.

"Thank you once more for your benevolence, your majesty," Andy said with another bow while hoping he wouldn't fuck it up by accidentally insulting Ozymandias again.

"Yes, thank you, your majesty," Ritsuka also thanked the man giving a bow. "Though may I ask why you choose to use your Greek given name?"

"Because it is so much cooler than Ramses that much should be obvious!" He answered.

"I agree it is really cool," Ritsuka responded with a thumbs up.

"Heh, you're like if my dearest friend and brother were split into two people," He said aloud though he probably didn't mean too.

"Thank you for the compliment, your majesty. We shall depart by your leave." Andy said.

"I shall see you off in the morning," The Pharaoh responded as he sat back down on his throne.

"Well, that was intense," Mash stated, finally speaking after her little shout as Nitocris escorted them to their quarters.

"Of course for when the Pharaoh as the incarnation of Ra upon the earth looks at you with his gaze, you're seen by the sun itself," Nitocris stated.

"I do feel a little more tanned…" Andy said idly, despite still wearing the plugsuit under his clothes.

"Well, at least we now have a direction we can go," Ritsuka stated.

"That is correct, though let us first rest and eat before we set out tomorrow," Da Vinci stated.

"Yeah, that's probably the best idea," Andy said aloud, while telepathically, he spoke to Fuma. " _Kotaru, see if you can scout this place out awhile, but prioritize not getting caught over everything else_."

" _I shall My Lord, thankfully this place does not compromise Skills, as it does Noble Phantasms, though as long as I do not direct hostile actions towards the ruler of this place I shall be Golden as Lord Kintoki would say,"_

" _Please don't start doing the Golden thing too. I can only handle so much of that."_ Andy chided.

" _I shall try not too."_

Andy then turned to the still-catching up Knights of the Round Table, now that Nitocris left them in their (admittedly very nice) accommodations. "Alright, so, Q-and-A time. Sir Bedivere, how much do you know of the current situation? As in, how much prior to our arrival have you been here, and do you know what's actually going on?"

"A Singular day, and nothing really only that we're in is a Singularity," He responded.

"I see. That's a shame, we could have used more information." Andy said, shaking his head. "Oh, but, any questions for me, Sir Bedivere?"

"Just one," Bedivere said, looking between his king and Andy. "'Mother'?"

Xxx

 _June 21st_

"Taadahh! The Da Vinci Sphinx Dune Buggy is up and running, thankfully Lord Ozymandias was kind enough to provide materials for me to use," Da Vinci presented her car to all of them now standing outside of the Pharaoh's Temple. "For I am not walking on foot through this desert anymore."

"...Aren't you supposed to be a Caster, not a Rider, Leo?" Andy asked as he stared at the 'buggy.'

"I can actually be summoned as one, though I will be limited to all my vehicular inventions."

"You can enjoy that Da Vinci I am going to be on Boudica's chariot," Ritsuka stated as the Rider Class Servant manifested.

"Ready to go Master, so it's this Holy City? We shall be heading towards?" The Rider asked for confirmation.

"Right, Boudi...whoops, not used to that yet, sorry," Andy answered for Ritsuka before remembering.

"It is fine, Andy, so shall we go there? Or is there another place we shall go to first?"

"Well, remember when I said that this was like a Singularity inside a Singularity? Well, I detected another anomaly via my staff inside the desert yesterday. But I say we save that for later for we need to re-establish contact with Chaldea and figure out this whole Lion King business before we touch that, in my professional opinion," Da Vinci informed them.

Andy shrugged. "Considering the Pharaoh was telling us to go there, I'd have to agree with that plan for now."

"I am finding no objection to that idea," Ritsuka said as he joined Boudica on the chariot while Bedivere and Mash situated themselves on the Da Vinci Mobile.

"Sweet, then let's ride. Hit it, Leo!" Andy said as he hopped in the Da Vinci Mobile.

Xxx

When Ozymandias had said, the Lion King had created a wasteland, he hadn't been exaggerating as they had just exited the desert and the area in front of them looked more like a volcano had unleashed its load on the area.

"Oh, my god I've finally gotten in contact with you guys, what happened?" The holographic image of Roman said in relief.

"Hey, boss! We met a Pharaoh who's basically Ancient Egyptian Gilgamesh, and is making a Singularity with the Grail inside of the main Singularity which is being sustained by something else." Andy updated Roman. "Also, The Hassan of a Hundred Faces is here, and the 'bigger' singularity is apparently stocked by knights based on their reaction to Sir Gareth. Also, it's being led by someone calling themselves the _Lion_ King from the _Holy City_ , which is leading me to believe it's Richard the Lionhearted gone even more coocoo."

"Ah, that makes sense; you're probably right about it being King Richard," Roman responded having learned how to understand Andy Speak. "Though for you guys, I have a bit of a gift for you. Sheba was actually able to create a map of the area, and we have an overhead view of most of the place. To your right, you can see what I presume to be the Holy City, a rather massive place," He pointed to it on the screen.

"Ho-o-h _oly shit_ , is that thing to scale?" Andy asked as he looked at what appeared to be a truly _massive_ castle/walled city with equally massive perimeter walls thick enough, he could clearly see them on the map. "What are they expecting, an army of titans?"

"An army of insane Crusaders or probably even that Pharaoh who I assume is Ozymandias as he is the only one that fits the description you gave," He responded. "But yes, it is mostly to scale the city is absolutely massive compared to what existed in this age."

Andy whistled. "Daaamn. Guess we won't be able to pull a Jericho here." He then thought about the situation for a second. "Though, we are gonna see what's up with them first before even thinking of attacking, right? Since all, we have to go off of is the words of the Pharaoh, and we don't know _anything_ about these guys." He proposed, since for once, he actually had other people (who weren't his servants) to lead.

"I agree with that, though the best bet is to try and find some of the locals and get their opinions on what is happening here," Da Vinci said. "So let's drive across this literal wasteland, though those craters I can see makes me a little concerned."

"Now that you mention it, I can see it too; those are craters, aren't they?" Mash asked.

"And if they are, what could have made those?" Ritsuka asked the sound of spit being swallowed could be heard from his throat.

"...Oh god, they have a Final Fantasy Final Boss on their side, don't they." Andy stated more than asked as he put the pieces together of the literal scorched earth and the _massive_ craters (using the city as a reference), which would have either been _meteors_ or some other Anti-Army (or bigger) Noble Phantasm dropping...from...the sky…

Andy looked up in mounting horror, trying to spot anything up there that could have done it, but all he could see was the ring caused by Solomon's Phantasm, which ruled out satellites, but _magic_. "...We're going to need to be extra careful. And extra diplomatic."

"I, I agree with that, Andy so get going," Roman said as the hologram disappeared.

"...Ritsuka, please let me handle the first impressions and negotiations for this. I know you've got a lot of charisma, but I _really_ don't want us to get fantasy nuked at the gates." Andy said after a moment of uncomfortable silence.

"You can have this one, Andy, for I am kinda scared. I am used to weird not all the Dakka as they say," He finished with another swallow.

"Yeah, overwhelming firepower is an issue you're going to be dealing with a _lot_ now. Luckily for you, it's just this one and the last one left." Andy said with a sympathetic grin. "Don't forget about Grand Order Change if you need to bring in the Big Guns."

"I know, I know, let's just keep going."

After that, they continued their trip through the wasteland with two things of note happening. The first was that they had run into the aftermath of a massacre with a bunch of bodies having been sliced into pieces consisting out of men, women and children. Though the most noteworthy body being a decapitated Hassan that wasn't one of the HFH's bodies. Da Vinci suggested it was the Hassan of this era.

And what made it worse were the ravenous Ghouls they had to kill that was feasting on the bodies.

Though their spirit had been lightened, then they had run into a group of refugees that were making their to the Holy City to seek shelter. As apparently this time of the month they were opening the gates to let people inside.

They escorted the refugees to the Holy City, where outside of its gates and massive walls, a tent city of other natives had formed. All of them waiting to be let inside.

"Mother, there is something about this place that… I don't quite know, but it is setting off my instinct everything about is screaming trap, but according to the people of this land, people have been let inside," Arturia spoke as she poked the bonfire with a stick night having fallen once again.

Andy let out a half-relieved, half tired sigh. "Good to hear my suspicions backed up. This place…" He switched over to telepathy, in case they were being listened in on. " _I don't like it one bit. It's...too good to be true, in the most literal sense."_

" _Blondy is right Master, this place while it might not look like it, it is soaked with grudges and wishes of vengeance,"_ Joan said as she ate some rations.

" _Mhm. That's even more worrying."_ Andy replied, before switching to speaking aloud with a degree of cheer he did not have before. "Well, it looks like we'll just have to wait till tomorrow to find out for sure, won't we?"

"No, no, we won't; something just exited the city," Da Vinci said.

And at that, the night became day.

And what followed was the sounding of slight panicking from the refugees over the sudden sunlight bathing the area.

And Andy could feel it a massive source of magical energy standing in the middle of the mile-long gate, and as he stared at it, he felt a sense of growing dread as he realized he _recognized_ that gate.

"'The sun shall always shine upon you' those were the words of Lion King then I was granted my blessing of Sunshine I am Gawain welcome to the Holy City of Camelot!" He announced himself and around him stood knights decked in armor.

"Mother _fucker_ ," Andy said softly. "They remade _Camelot_. Of _course_." He quickly sent out an order through telepathy. _"Arturia, astralize_ now _."_

She quickly obeyed though Andy had seen the shock on her face, then the Sun Knight had appeared.

That was when a second voice spoke, and atop the wall, a figure stood and the voice was familiar; it was Arturia's voice. "I am Lion King, I welcome you all to this Holy Selection, I know you have traveled far but only those with purest of souls may enter the walls of Camelot," At those words, two humans among the masses shined brightly.

"Gawain, my knight, bring them in," The Lion King said and vanished from the wall.

"Knight enforcers, you have your orders take the chosen ones and start the Holy Extermination." At that, the sound of screaming was heard as within seconds, arrows rained down and people were slaughtered.

"Mash! Show these fuckers the _real_ Camelot!" Andy ordered, the screaming refuges breaking him out of his growing dreadful stupor at having to fight what was likely going to be the whole Round Table.

"Sir, GAWAIN!" Came the shout from Arturia as she manifested and shot off towards the knight in a blind rage.

"That won't work, Senpai!" She shouted.

"Let's just save as many people as possible, Gareth, Vlad, Nobu start exterminating these knights and round the people!" Ritsuka shouted.

"But… Sir Gawain and her majesty? Why are they?" She began to ask and looked like she was on the verge of a panic attack.

"Gareth, you need to calm down; we get answers later but the people are most important, and Andy, I think you need to go and support your daughter!" He shouted at him.

Of course, Andy had already transformed and leaped at the clashing knights before Ritsuka had even opened his mouth, Tenfold Shields forming around his body as he did, Mash and Joan already inbound towards Gawain.

"Ah, more trash," The knight stated as he took a stance at the three Servants and Andy.

Xxx

A/N: Here is a Chapter of the second anniversary of the story and now the Camelot Singulartity truly begins. And to say a few words if I went back in time and had to write this story a new there is a few things I would have done differently like not iceing Ritsuka, doing stand and Persona stuff from the start. Having proper Social Links and limiting Passive's Servant pool to like two dozen while Ritsuka had the rest.

But I am rectifying some mistakes now and I hope you enjoy the rest of the Arc, though hopefully maybe we finish part 1 before the new year ends and 21 starts.

If you like this or any other of my stories you can donate to my P A Treon. com (Slash) StreamingViking and read commissioned stories


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